In this episode, Anton sits down to unpack one of the strangest land fights happening in Washington State right now: a $260 million power line slicing through 32 miles of Quincy farmland to feed the AI data center boom.

It starts with a number that's hard to shake — $2,415. That's what one family in Quincy was offered for a permanent easement across a third of an acre in their front lawn, to make room for a 230,000-volt transmission tower. Multiply that story across 112 parcels, 34 homes, and 449 acres of working farmland, and you start to see the shape of what's really going on.

Anton has a personal stake here — his family is from Quincy, and he's spent two decades on both sides of eminent domain negotiations. So rather than pick a villain, he walks through the actual court filings, the utility's own rate structure, and the tax rolls to figure out who benefits, who's getting squeezed, and why.

Along the way: what a judge actually ruled (and why the headlines got it wrong), how cheap hydropower turned a one-horse farm town into a data center hub, the low-ball offers landowners are fighting in court, why a "pay-to-play" bill died in Olympia, the natural gas plant that got shut down by local pushback, and whether AI data centers are really draining the region's water supply.

It's a story about power, land, and money — and about what happens to a small town when a trillion-dollar industry decides it needs to move in next door.

Got a land use or eminent domain question of your own? Give us a call or find us at resg.com.

About the Show

Welcome to the Anton Stetner Podcast, where we break down real estate, economics, investing, housing policy, and the trends shaping the future of the Pacific Northwest and beyond. Whether you're a homebuyer, investor, business owner, or simply trying to make sense of today's economy, you'll find practical insights, market analysis, and conversations with industry experts designed to help you make smarter financial decisions.

🏡 Looking to buy, sell, or invest in Washington State real estate? Visit: RESG.com

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