The proposal, submitted to the town in late October, calls for 10 buildings on land owned by the Krafts' Unified Packaging box business, located about 10 miles south of Worcester. The campus would consume 900 megawatts of electricity — enough to power a small city — and would rank as the fourth-largest data center facility in the United States, according to research firm Cleanview.

Residents raised concerns about excessive water and electricity use, environmental harm, disruption of quality of life, and potential impacts on property values. The board allowed only about 15 minutes of public comment at the start of the meeting, and all six speakers opposed the project.

"I don't want to see this town sell its soul and get stuck as kind of the dumping ground of the AI industry," resident Michael Galli said.

Elena, a resident who asked not to share her last name, played a recording of the constant hum a data center produces during her two-minute allotment. "I can turn that off," she said when her time expired. "A data center never turns off."

Another resident, Max Provo, shouted "End it now" and "You can't drink cash" during the presentation. He was eventually removed by a police officer after ignoring repeated requests to stop heckling, yelling "kill it now" on his way out.

Resident Jen Heck asked the board, "How can you ensure that long term this deal won't cost more than it returns?"

Sophia Swartz told the board she does not see a data center when she thinks of Sutton. "I see trees, I see lakes, I see landscapes, I see rural communities," she said. "Data centers are not something that need to come in here and poison that."

Sheila Brady-Savard, a real estate broker from neighboring Millbury, warned of regional impacts on home values. "You might save a little on tax in Sutton, but these neighboring communities are going to be negatively impacted," she said. She added that shortly after learning about the data center, she texted her husband, "we need to sell the house."

Select Board Chair Jonathan Anderson said the board would not vote immediately and plans multiple public forums. "This is not a project that's a done deal," he said. "It's far from it. This is the very, very beginning of the process."

Later in the meeting, Town Manager Austin J. Cyganiewicz presented a preliminary analysis. He told the Globe that Sutton faces a budget deficit of about $350,000, projected to grow to $2.5 million in the next budget cycle and to about $10 million by 2033. "We're looking for any source of revenue to balance [the deficit]," he said.

The full facility would be worth several times the $2.8 billion assessed value of all existing property in Sutton, according to Cyganiewicz. The first two buildings would pay $10.4 million annually in property taxes starting in fiscal year 2031, rising to about $27.8 million a year for all 10 buildings in 2035.

Despite the potential financial relief, most attendees staunchly rejected the project. Some board members appeared hesitant as well. Select Board member Christine Watkins argued the town should create a zoning bylaw to regulate data centers before moving forward, cautioning against writing a bylaw just for the proposed site. "Zoning is the opportunity for the community to decide what they want to let in and not let in," she said.

Anderson said he has "a really strong dose of skepticism and concern about this project." "We need to really make sure that we're not allowing our financial situation to cause us to make really bad decisions," he said.

A recent executive order from Governor Maura Healey requires local approval of data centers before any state permits are issued, giving the town leverage to block the project. The order also mandates that larger data centers be powered by renewable energy and that developers cover costs instead of ordinary utility consumers.

Cyganiewicz said the town can block the process at any point and that he plans to keep the public informed as the process moves ahead.