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# Mike Hammett: How things actually work.

## Sitemaps
[XML Sitemap](https://www.mikehammett.net/sitemap_index.xml): Includes all crawlable and indexable pages.

## Posts
- [Hello World!](https://www.mikehammett.net/hello-world/): I'm Mike Hammett. Twenty years running ISP and data center infrastructure in Northern Illinois, co-founding an internet exchange, and watching public narratives about technical systems drift further from operational reality.
- [An Open Letter to Data Center Developers: Transparency Prevents Delays](https://www.mikehammett.net/an-open-letter-to-data-center-developers-transparency-prevents-delays/): The information vacuum around new data center projects gets filled by whoever shows up first. Usually that's not the developer. Here's what the industry keeps getting wrong, and why it's easier to fix than they think.
- [Why Electric Bills Really Rose, and What It Means for Data Centers](https://www.mikehammett.net/why-electric-bills-really-rose-and-what-it-means-for-data-centers/): Electric bills went up. Data centers got blamed. The cause is PJM capacity markets and Illinois deregulation decisions made years before the first server arrived on I-88.
- [How Meta’s Data Center Affected DeKalb County Property Taxes (2020–2024)](https://www.mikehammett.net/how-metas-data-center-affected-dekalb-county-property-taxes/): Assessments are up. Tax rates are down. Most residents don't know why. The numbers are public. Here's what they show.
- [What Data Centers Actually Mean for Northern Illinois Communities](https://www.mikehammett.net/what-data-centers-actually-mean-for-northern-illinois-commun/): Data center projects along I-88 have added $200 million in taxable value and cut local tax rates roughly 20%. They've also generated an unusual amount of bad information. Here's what the public records show.
- [Balancing Growth: How Yorkville’s Data Centers Strengthen Our Community](https://www.mikehammett.net/balancing-growth-how-yorkvilles-data-centers-strengthen-our-community/): Yorkville's Project Cardinal and Project Steel show how smart planning turns data center growth into school funding, rate relief on water bills, and infrastructure paid for by developers - not taxpayers.
- [What DeKalb’s Experience Shows About Data Centers and Community Growth](https://www.mikehammett.net/what-dekalbs-experience-shows-about-data-centers-and-community-growth/): DeKalb's Meta Data Center added over $100 million to the local tax base, created more than 1,200 construction jobs, and helped lower property tax rates. Here's what the real numbers show.
- [Rochelle Can Grow Smartly – What DeKalb’s Data Centers Teach Us](https://www.mikehammett.net/rochelle-can-grow-smartly-what-dekalbs-data-centers-teach-us/): Rochelle already hosts three quiet, long-running data centers. DeKalb's experience shows how transparent planning turns technology investment into local jobs, lower tax rates, and stronger grid reliability.
- [Aurora’s Path to Smart Growth – Lessons from DeKalb’s Data-Center Success](https://www.mikehammett.net/auroras-path-to-smart-growth-lessons-from-dekalbs-data-center-success/): Aurora's data center moratorium is a chance to get growth right. DeKalb's $1 billion Meta campus offers a nearby model for balancing technology investment with environmental accountability and community benefit.
- [Batavia Can Grow Smartly – What DeKalb’s Data Centers Teach Us](https://www.mikehammett.net/batavia-can-grow-smartly-what-dekalbs-data-centers-teach-us/): Batavia's pending Hut 8 data center raises fair questions about power, water, and neighborhood impact. DeKalb's Meta campus shows how responsible planning creates local jobs, stable tax revenue, and real community benefit.

## Pages
- [About](https://www.mikehammett.net/about/): Twenty years running ISP and data center infrastructure in Northern Illinois. Co-founding an internet exchange. Watching public narratives about technical systems drift further from operational reality.

## Categories
- [About](https://www.mikehammett.net/category/about/)
- [Community Impact](https://www.mikehammett.net/category/data-centers/community-impact/)
- [Data Centers](https://www.mikehammett.net/category/data-centers/)
- [Energy & Power](https://www.mikehammett.net/category/energy-power/)
- [Infrastructure](https://www.mikehammett.net/category/infrastructure/)
- [Northern Illinois](https://www.mikehammett.net/category/northern-illinois/)
- [Open Letters](https://www.mikehammett.net/category/data-centers/open-letters/)
- [Public Finance](https://www.mikehammett.net/category/public-finance/)
- [Technical Analysis](https://www.mikehammett.net/category/data-centers/technical-analysis/)

Mike Hammett is an independent analyst and writer covering data center infrastructure, telecommunications, energy policy, and public finance — with a focus on how large-scale infrastructure projects affect municipalities, utilities, and communities in the Midwest. This publication features original reported analysis drawing on public records, regulatory filings, and local government data.