Almost twenty years after my writing journey began by telling my parents’ story, I am using my voice again in an unexpected way. We own land on the very northern shore of Great Salt Lake, which happens to be located near where the largest data center in the world has been proposed. It is being pushed by celebrity investor Kevin O’Leary who has dubbed himself “Mr. Wonderful,” and who has also tried to rename a whole valley after himself, “Wonder Valley,” although it is formally known as the Stratos Project.
Citizen outrage about the whole project has attracted international attention, and my family found ourselves responding to requests from major media like The New York Times, CBC in Canada on The Current, F.A.Z. in Germany, television worldwide, and one of my favorite podcasts, Radio West.
(Scroll to the bottom to see links of stories that have been published thus far)
Read the full story:
In May, June, and July of 2026, one of my wildest dreams came true…just not in the way I might have hoped.
My voice ended up on Radio West, written into the Salt Lake Tribune, and in…The Times. Yeah, as in The New York Times. What the what?!
Every author will dream of having our work featured by major media. I’ve never wanted to be famous (that sounds dreadful) but I would like doors to open that can help me make a living doing what I love. Still, getting quoted in a publication like the Times is something I never really thought would happen. And when it did, it was for my other work—with my brothers in our family business.
It’s so interesting to look back because in the last few months, I’ve felt an intuitive call to carve out more time for my brothers in the family business our parents started. I swear, I’ve felt in my bones that something was coming. So, as I’ve been finishing books, I haven’t taken on any more client projects in the short term.
Who could have foreseen that the largest data center in the world would be proposed very close to our land on what used to be the shoreline of Great Salt Lake?
My brothers and I had some heart-to-heart conversations about whether we wanted to stick our necks out on this thing. It’s not exactly a positive PR moment for our business.
All downside, no upside
It seemed like all downside and no upside. But our parents raised us to stand up for what we believe in. So, we started accepting invitations to speak.
After each one, I’d replay how it went, wincing at ways I could have done better and hoping I wasn’t making things worse by opening my big fat mouth. And most critically, why hadn’t I lost 5 pounds instead of gaining 5 from stress carbs? (Lol. Vanity is a beast.)
In June, we accepted another request to take three more journalists on a tour. Two were from the Salt Lake Tribune and a photographer from the New York Times. I didn’t know that the Trib journalist, Megan Banta, would be interviewed the next day for Radio west on KUER, the local NPR affiliate.
Radio West has long been one of my favorite podcasts. When I was working with the publicist for my last book, they asked: If you could get on one program, what would be your biggest dream?
I didn’t hesitate. “Radio West.”
The podcast happened to drop when I was together with three of my big brothers. That’s rare, but we had just finished a meeting, and I saw the podcast go live. (Yeah, I had been refreshing it all day, ha.)
I thought the Tribune journalist was going to discuss the situation in general terms, but when the show opened, I heard my own voice. I about dropped my phone.
Get in here!
The text to my brothers was: “Get in here!”
That evening, the four of us listened to it together in real time. When I got home, I couldn’t quite get my head around it: What just happened? The Salt Lake Tribune, Radio West, and the New York Times?
But you know the part that meant the most? Listening together with my brothers. It felt like we were doing something worthy of making our parents and our kids proud. I had tears in my eyes when they included the part about my dad whistling to the meadowlarks and them whistling back.
It has been scary and exhausting, and this isn’t the kind of press any of us might have hoped. But it is also a privilege to join with other voices speaking up for our community, the land, and the Great Salt Lake.
The outcome is yet uncertain, but politicians ARE listening and making course corrections. Voters are outraged have already forced several powerful incumbents out of office when they didn’t win their primary elections. I foresee big changes to the MIDA law, and I believe the referendum has a real shot.
Here is the Media Roundup (newest at the top)
F.A.Z. – English translation of title: The Fight Against AI at the Great Salt Lake
Note: This newspaper from Frankfurt is often referred to as the New York Times of Germany. Rhonda Lauritzen, Val Anderson, and Brenna Williams spent a day with journalist Roland Lindner
New York Times How Utahns Took on Mr. Wonderful and a Data Center on the Great Salt Lake
Kevin O’Leary of “Shark Tank” fame hopes to build a sprawling data center on the parched shores of the Great Salt Lake. It has become a burning issue in Utah’s looming primaries
Note: Article quotes Rhonda Lauritzen, who is also pictured. Rhonda was interviewed by the journalist and took a photographer to her family’s land for a day.
CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Corp) – Anger grows over Kevin O’Leary’s AI data centre in Utah:
Note: Here is a link to the national morning show “The Current” on CBC in Canada. It’s like NPR’s Morning Edition. The full segment including the journalist talking about data center pushback nationwide is 23 minutes.
Interview with Rhonda Lauritzen and senior reporter Jael Holzman
Radio West KUER (Utah’s NPR station): The Evolving Plans for the Massive Wonder Valley Data Center
Journalist Megan Banta appeared on Radio West to discuss the project. At the podcast’s opening, Rhonda Lauritzen discusses her family’s land.
Salt Lake Tribune – Residents worry proposed Box Elder County data center could transform the ‘mythical American West’
Subtitle: On gravel roads between Interstate 15 and the site of a proposed data center, you see more cows than people.
By Megan Banta
The Salt Lake Tribune sent two journalists to spend an entire day with Rhonda Lauritzen and her family so they could see the data center project area with their eyes and cameras. They produced a written story and a video:
https://www.sltrib.com/news/politics/2026/06/11/proposed-box-elder-county-data/
Video title: Utahns worry proposed data center could transform the mythical west
By: Trevor Christensen
KSL Television: Family near Box Elder County data center worries about water quality going back into the lake
By Erin Cox
KSL Story by Erin Cox from a daylong tour of the project area:
