Support for Louisiana.

The state we're in is provided by Entergy.

Louisiana is strengthening our power grid throughout the state.

We're reinforcing infrastructure to prepare for stronger storms, reduce outages, and respond quicker when you do need us because together we power life.

Additional support provided by the Fred B and Ruth B Ziegler Foundation and the Ziegler Art Museum, located in Jennings City Hall.

The museum focuses on emerging Louisiana artists and is a historical and cultural center for Southwest Louisiana and the Foundation for Excellence in Louisiana public Broadcasting.

And viewers like you.

Thank you.

This week, we're taking you inside Meta's massive data center in Richland Parish.

LPB is the only Louisiana media outlet giving you this exclusive look inside one of the largest development projects in state history.

Early voting is underway here in the state of Louisiana, and two of the races will play a big role in regulating your power bills.

Plus, with Election Day approaching, we'll explain the constitutional amendments and what they could mean for you.

And an LP favorite is coming back with a renewed focus on Louisiana.

Artist.

We've made it to the weekend.

Let's get started.

Let's get to it.

Hi everyone.

I'm Christina Jensen.

And I'm Victor Howell.

Much more on those top stories in just a moment on this week's edition of Louisiana, the State We're In.

But first, Louisiana is becoming a destination for data centers projects promising billions of dollars in investment, but also raising questions about power, water, and the impact on local communities.

In this three part series, I'll take you inside these massive projects, examine the infrastructure needed to support them, and hear from the communities navigating the changes.

And for the first time.

Meta has given LP exclusive access inside its massive Hyperion Data Center project in Richland Parish.

From above.

Trucks and equipment move across the expansive site on the ground.

Construction crews and heavy machinery keep the work moving as the project takes shape.

This is where the AI center boom is taking shape in Louisiana.

Meta is building this massive data center in Richland Parish, one that will require an enormous amount of infrastructure to power it.

Meta invited me to tour its Hyperion project, giving me an exclusive look inside a data center campus that's still under construction.

Representatives told me The New York Times was the only other news outlet to be granted access.

Much of the tour took place from inside a vehicle, but at designated stops, we were able to step out and get a closer look at the operation taking shape.

We're here on site getting a rare look at this data center.

Talk to me about what we're seeing currently.

Absolutely.

What you can see out here is the absolute parts of the Richmond Paris data Center.

These are going to be the connectivity buildings that really drive these incredible improvements to our AI products that this facility is going to make possible.

Driving through this site, I was blown away by just how big this project is.

During the tour, meta representative Henry Thornton explained that the first phase will include nine buildings to house the data centers operations, along with additional buildings for employees and logistics, and the project has grown significantly since meta first announced it.

The campus is now expected to cover more than 3600 acres, more than four times the size of Manhattan Central Park.

But building a campus that size is just the beginning.

Turning it into a working data center will take thousands of workers and years of construction.

We have over 7500 workers coming on site right now each day to help build this facility.

We hope the first of the buildings will be complete in 2028, with our first phase done in 2030.

And this campus is being built to support Meta's growing artificial intelligence tools, including muse, which meta describes as a personal AI agent.

It can do things like renegotiate your cell phone bill, it can cancel a subscription.

It can help with your day to day scheduling with your kids and the soccer practices and all the commitments that folks have these days.

And increasingly, it's being used by small businesses to make advertising easier, to make connecting with customers easier.

Those AI tools rely on powerful computer systems that generate heat and must be kept cool across the campus.

Rows of dry coolers help release that heat into the outside air.

Or these coolers.

That's right.

We are proud at meta of having some of the most water efficient data centers in the entire country, and these pieces of technology that you can see behind us are, you know, the closed loop cooling system in action.

But cooling the facility isn't the only challenge during construction.

Keeping dust under control is another concern.

We have, you know, dozens of water trucks out here on the site working to make sure that, you know, the dust stays on the ground and not in the air.

Dust control is one visible example of the challenges that come with construction on this scale.

Other questions are less visible, including how much electricity and water the campus will need and what it takes to keep a data center running.

Why does a data center need so much electricity?

The servers inside data centers, you know they need electricity to, you know, handle these very advanced model training systems that they're running and to store, you know, your Facebook photos, your Instagram photos and all of these products that meta is so glad to provide the public for free.

And so that's, you know, what draws our electricity within the center.

But powering a data center requires more than electricity.

It also takes infrastructure to deliver that power from power plants to transmission lines.

Meta says it has signed a ratepayer protection pledge and agreed to pay for the electricity infrastructure needed to serve its data center.

But what happens when the contracts end and the infrastructure is still there?

Entergy and met are not telling you a lie when they say they're going to pay their fair share of the cost for the length of their contract, but what I caution everybody to know is the length of their contract is not the length of the assets that we are building, not the lifespan of the gas.

Power plants.

Are the transmission line leaving somewhere between 15 to 20 years that we may be on the hook for.

So while we may not see an increase directly today, we're going to potentially see an increase down the line if meta does not renew their contract or continues to pay for all of the infrastructure, whether they needed or not.

Water is another resource needed to keep the campus running.

During my tour, Medha showed me part of its on site water treatment system, a series of tanks that representatives said are part of a four stage process.

Why is so much water needed to power this data center?

What we do need water for is to help cool the facility as the servers run.

But we've specifically designed our servers at meta to withstand temperatures up to about 96 degrees.

So we only need water when the temperature inside the buildings hits that.

So there are several months a year where our facility doesn't use much water at all.

Henry says Meta's cooling design is intended to limit water use.

The company is also committed to restoring water to the watershed.

Local officials have also been working with meta to address the infrastructure needed to support the project, from roads and water systems to emergency services.

Eliot Colvin is a Richland Parish Police jury member and farmer who has been involved in those discussions.

I will.

Say meta had basically went back to the drawing board and did some redesign to really lower their water use.

Honestly, on the acres that they're sitting on, they're probably going to use less water than what we was using as farmers in a in a year.

Water use is part of a larger debate about the resources data centers require, and how their impact can vary from one community to another.

A CBS news analysis found that golf courses nationwide use more than twice as much water as data centers, but every data center is different.

Water consumption, electricity demand, and even noise can vary depending on how facility is designed, how it operates, and the infrastructure that supports it for Richland Parish.

The questions go beyond water to how this project could change life in a rural agricultural community.

What do you say to those that are against this data center?

I would just say I get it.

I live here, too.

I'm a farmer.

I'm having to work around traffic with tractors and equipment and stuff like that more than I ever have.

You know, I know change is happening.

But it's also presenting opportunities.

You know, make the most of those opportunities and, you know, be the people that we are and just show the world that we got a good place here.

That tension between the promise of economic opportunity and the challenges of change is playing out here in Richland Parish.

Back on site, I asked meta about its response to the growing debate over the project.

How do you respond to all the criticisms surrounding this data center and all the negative press?

We're really just here to talk about the positive aspects of our Richland Parish Data Center facility.

Meta points to scholarships, investment in schools, and other community programs as part of the benefits.

It says the project will bring Meadows Data Centers bringing billions of dollars of investment to northeast Louisiana.

But the question is how much of that investment will translate into opportunities for the people who live here?

In part one, we took you inside Meta's Hyperion Data Center project in parts two and three.

We'll explore what this project means for Richland Parish.

From job training and power infrastructure to the concerns of landowners.

That's ahead in our continuing series.

Louisiana voters will soon decide who regulates the state's utilities and helps shape the future of their energy bills.

Yeah.

That's right.

Two seats on the Public Service Commission are up for grabs, and the races could have a direct impact on your utility bills.

The electricity you count on and Louisiana's energy future.

Our issues aren't red and blue.

There's no Democratic or Republican way to make sure the lights go off.

Our stay on.

It's a job that touches every Louisiana, regardless of party.

The Public Service Commission helps determine what residents pay for electricity and how utility companies recover the cost of providing power.

Those decisions can feel distant until the bill arrives.

And now Louisiana is entering a new era of energy demand.

Massive data center projects are promising billions of dollars in investment while requiring enormous amounts of electricity and new infrastructure.

The question is no longer just how to power that growth.

It's who should bear the cost.

This November, voters will choose two of the commission's five members in an election that could shape the state's energy future for years to come.

In this case, it may not mean as much as it does in other races, because we have a Democrat and a Republican in the two big races, and that's probably the way it would have been with an open primary.

But it means in this case, in one of the districts, that someone with fewer than 50% of the votes could win.

Louisiana's new primary system changes how candidates advance, and two commission seats are up for grabs this November in District one.

Three candidates are making their case to voters.

The district covers the North Shore and parts of southeast Louisiana, where complaints about Magnolia Water have put utility oversight in the spotlight.

State Representative Stephanie Hilferding wants stronger utility standards and says data centers should pay for the power they require.

Engineer and energy policy consultant Chris Justin wants closer scrutiny of utility spending and says customers shouldn't foot the bill for data center infrastructure.

Connie Norris, a retired healthcare professional and community advocate, is focused on affordability, transparency and stronger utility oversight.

No matter what happens in that election, there.

Is going to be a very different public service commission come January.

Everybody in Louisiana needs to understand how important and valuable their own voice is, not just as a ratepayer, not just as a citizen, but as a voter.

That change will also be felt in North Louisiana.

In district five, Republican John Atkins and Democrat James Green are competing for a seat on the commission.

Atkins, a Caddo Parish commissioner in Shreveport, businessman, supports data center investment but says growth shouldn't come at the expense of ratepayers or the environment.

Green, a pastor and former Shreveport city councilman, says families are struggling to choose between paying utility bills and buying food.

The district includes Richland Parish, where meta is building a data center, and the Shreveport-Bossier area where Amazon data Center projects are planned.

And with just five members on the commission, a single vote can help tip the balance.

Even though three votes are going to be certainly Republican and maybe four.

There is always the prospect that people will vote differently than along party lines, but if it goes as predicted, DeVante Lewis will be the lone Democrat remaining.

Two seats, five commissioners and decisions that could shape Louisiana's energy future for years to come.

For Louisiana ratepayers, the stakes are personal, reaching all the way to the next utility bill.

Also on the.

November 3rd ballot are ten constitutional amendments.

Last week we examined five proposals dealing with property taxes.

This week, we're breaking down the remaining amendments and what they could mean for you.

Joining me now is Barry Erwin, chief policy officer for leaders for a Better Louisiana.

Thank you so much for joining us, Barry.

Glad to.

Be here.

So we spoke about the five amendments surrounding property tax.

Now let's talk about the remaining five.

Starting off with amendment three which deals with bales for certain crimes against children.

Talk to me a little bit more about this.

Well, the Constitution really gives people the right to bail, not just before they're tried, but actually after convicted, like when the case is on appeal or they're awaiting sentencing.

Now, the way it works is if the sentence, the maximum sentence you could get is under five years, that's automatic.

You were you have the absolute right to have bail.

If it's more than five years, it's kind of up to the judge to decide.

What this amendment does is say in the case of certain kinds of crimes against minors.

And these are really some bad crimes.

I mean, trafficking, human trafficking, you know, sexual exploitation, molestation, these are serious crimes that that right, could be taken away, that they would not have that post-conviction.

Now, like everybody else, you would still have that right to bail before you're tried, but after convicted, you would lose that ability to have bail outs on appeal or whatever.

Amendment for actually has been in the headlines.

A lot of term limits on governors.

Can you talk about why some say this is needed?

There's people for and against this.

Yeah, I think it's sort of like the whole argument about term limits one way or the other.

We have it for the legislature.

Now we should do it for the governor, I think is kind of the argument.

I mean, the way it works right now is we don't have a lifetime term limit.

A governor can serve two elected terms consecutively.

You basically get two terms for life.

They don't have to be to back to back together.

But that would be it.

Amendment five would change how the state pays down its retirement debt.

How would that work?

Well, now lawmakers are looking at it and saying, well, with interest rates high, you know, sometimes there's this schedule of debt that really brings in more money for the state than paying off that old debt.

So basically, what it does is give the legislature more flexibility to pay off the whatever debt that we have in the retirement system.

That's the most beneficial.

You know, for the state Fisc.

Amendment seven is also an interesting one.

It would replace lead pipes on private property.

Can you explain why that would be needed?

Yeah.

The federal government passed something in 2020 for the EPA that basically said that cities have to get rid of lead pipes.

So that's both the pipelines that come, you know, through the streets or underground, the ones that, you know, the water mains, but also between the water main and the house lead pipes really kind of went away after World War one.

But there's an estimated like 85,000 properties in New Orleans.

It still have lead pipes.

So there's money available that New Orleans is applied for and received to be able to do this.

The issue is, though, the Constitution prohibits in many cases, the state donating or giving away things of value to individuals or corporations.

So what this would do is basically say in this very limited circumstance, they could use these federal dollars to their public dollars to fix the pipelines between somebody's house and the water main, which, again, is kind of in question right now.

Amendment eight puts restrictions on property and foreign adversaries.

Can you explain this one?

Basically, we have the right or the Constitution gives local governments the right to export property.

That's take property thinking about roads and bridges and that type of thing.

But it also does that for private companies.

So think about utilities laying fiber or, you know, water pipes that type of thing.

And it's not just taking property, but sometimes it's like digging on property to lay a pipeline to lay fiber, whatever.

So private companies do have the right to do that.

What this would say is if there is a private company that was owned by a foreign adversary or an involved with an agent of a foreign adversary, that you couldn't do that.

Interesting.

Taking a look at all these five amendments, what's one thing that voters should take away?

I would suggest do their homework.

We have a resource available on our website, la.org.

Other organizations have resources to.

I would say do your homework a little bit and try and understand these, because even though some of these are not shattering, we're still changing our Constitution and they're still important.

Well, thank you so much for joining us.

Absolutely.

All right.

Let's take a look at what's happening this week in the world of sports.

Victor, lots going on.

A lot of things going on midseason of football.

NBA is tipping off a lot of things happening.

But we're going to start with some medical news in sports that involves a prominent head coach here in the state of Louisiana.

Some discomfort during a round of golf led southern head football coach Marshall Faulk to go see a doctor.

That doctor's visit came with the news that Faulk has Parkinson's disease on a recent Caring Neurologist podcast.

Fox shared the news of the diagnosis, saying he's thankful it was discovered in its early stages and he's taking medication to stay ahead.

He also shared a story of a dinner he had with a famous athlete, Muhammad Ali, who had Parkinson's, and Ali gave him some inspiration.

It probably gave me the best feeling ever, because I was at one of his dinners at fight night, and I sat next to him and he leaned over to me and he whispered, you're a bad boy.

And I was like.

And then he made a couple other comments.

I was like, he's all.

They're like, yeah.

So.

So knowing that, you know, I didn't look at it like, you know, if if I got a diagnosis, it was something bad that I was, you know, life was going to end.

It's something you live with.

It's not to where it's detriment to your livelihood.

Now, if you don't take care of it, there's an opportunity for that to be.

But you have to take care of it.

We will have more on Fox diagnosis.

Hear more from the head coach and we'll talk about his Southern Jaguars, who are in Houston set to take on Texas Southern, as well as take a look at the other landscape of college football here in Louisiana on game notes Saturday morning, 10 a.m.

right here on LPB.

Well, last week we heard from Saints owner Gayle Benson and her disappointment in the team's start to the season.

Those comments came after the embarrassing Monday night loss to Atlanta, but before the team's win last weekend up in New York.

Well, they spent the past several weeks or several days last week in Paris getting set to face Pittsburgh Sunday in the NFL's first ever game in France.

And while their GM, Mickey Loomis, responded to his boss's comments and calling out the team's recent performance.

Look, I understand I understood what she's coming from and and I think every once in a while we all need to be a little uncomfortable.

That's okay.

This is an outcome based, sport.

And and it's not good enough yet.

Process probably is a little more on the forefront as opposed to the outcome.

We have to make sure we're our processes are right and that our development is correct.

And then we'll get the outcomes that, that we, we want and expect.. The saints of the designated home team for Sunday's game against Pittsburgh.

It's the first international game for the black and gold in four years.

It will be breakfast and pigskin Sunday morning with kickoff in Paris set for 830 hour time.

The game can be seen on the NFL network or locally in New Orleans on WDSU.

The team will have its bye week next week when they return to the States.

Hey, are we seeing a rivalry developing on the ice last weekend?

They dropped the puck for the return of the Baton Rouge Kingfish hosting Kristina's Monroe Moccasins and the Federal Prospects Hockey League.

That's Jake Cox.

He's a holdover from the Baton Rouge Zydeco.

He got the first goal for the Baton Rouge Kingfish version 2.0.

Then Matt Steuer lights the lamp.

He signed to the team the day before the opener came the Baton Rouge.

And he's on the scoreboard.

Then Jason Bradshaw right in front of the goal.

He puts the biscuit in the basket.

It was six two pink fish over Monroe on this game.

The next night they all went to North Louisiana and played again off of I-20.

Hatred won by the same score 6 to 2.

So the Kingfish now on the road, they're going to play a three game set in Mississippi, South Haven.

The fact against the monarchs and then the moccasins, they're open Topeka, Kansas, for two games set up there against the Scarecrow.

You know, that's a big rivalry.

Baton Rouge in Monroe.

Well, I think it's going to build even more because back in the h l days, you had Baton Rouge, Lafayette in New Orleans with the Brass Mobile, the mystics and Biloxi.

So now instead of going east west, they'll just go north south and have a nice little.

Rivalry, I love it.

I know you had fun up there when you did.

That story.

So much fun.

Yeah.

I encourage people to go check out a game.

I agree with you.

It's such a fun event.

Get out there if you can.

All right, let's move on.

Now, where an LP favorite is making a comeback, the new season of Art rocks kicks off this weekend.

The long running series highlights Louisiana's artists, creative communities and cultural traditions in a new way.

Here's executive producer Linda midget to explain.

Well, we are here at the Old Crow Gallery in Saint Francis ville, and I can't think of a more beautiful location to discuss the new season of Art rocks.

I am joined with Catherine Scherer, who is the producer of Art rocks, and James Fox Smith, who was the host of Art rocks and also the publisher of Country Roads magazine.

So James and Cathy, thank you for being here.

You know, we've been on hiatus for a little while, but we are back with some refresh and rebranding of the series.

And Cathy, I would love for you to start us off by telling us about some of the changes.

We're so excited for the 13th season of Art rocks, because it gives us an opportunity to focus more on the featured Louisiana artist.

So this season, there will be an expanded feature segment with the featured artist, as well as something we're calling the impression segment, which is an opportunity for us to speak with an authority, and they can give extra context about the artist in that episode and really share with viewers why they're worthy of having their story told on Art rocks.

And then another something new that we're doing this season is called Vault Rocks.

That is where we have 12 past seasons of Art rocks, and we choose a segment from an artist that was featured in the past that somehow was is connected to this episodes featured artist.

And lastly, what's new this season is that what we found is there's so much extra footage that we're capturing and we didn't want viewers to miss out.

So we have digital extras at LPB, and we're calling those art rocks unframed.

So that might be a tour of an artist exhibition.

Or James can fill you in on another unframed segment that we had a lot of fun with recently.

Yeah, I'm still washing off the makeup.

Yeah.

Well, I love these changes.

This is a real deep dive into Louisiana and really putting more of the spotlight on Louisiana artists, which I think is fabulous.

So, James, you've been part of the series now for a really long time.

So glad to have you back.

And I would love for you to talk about why you're passionate about this series.

Sure, sure.

Everybody sees the place that they call home differently.

Everybody sees some different value in it and some different perspective on it.

And when you have a chance, and I think this is the power of art, and particularly in this state, to see what they see and share their vision, it really is an opportunity to see something about Louisiana that you don't necessarily have a chance to from your own perspective.

Well, you both have such a rich background in the arts, and it's wonderful that you're bringing that to bear on the series.

Cathy, share with us, just briefly, your a little bit of your experience before our rocks.

Sure.

Well, I was with the Arts Council of Greater Baton Rouge for years and directed events like Festival, Art and Music Festival in the Baton Rouge Arts market.

So it was it's great to share the artist stories, so many of whom I met along the way during that experience.

And tell us who are some of the artists that we can expect to see.

Just give us a little sneak peek.

Yeah, sure.

Well, the season premiere includes Brandon, 13.

He's a very talented painter.

We have Barton Jilly, who's an animatronics artist.

We have patents.

Who's on Juno, who are metal smiths?

And in fact, we are surrounded by Pat Juno sculptures right now.

And then Jose Maria, originally from Spain.

He's a sculptor and a painter who's been featured in Country Roads magazine.

Great.

And animatronics.

So I've, I've, I've heard a rumor, James, that you actually were transformed yourself.

I really try to get into the character when we do these.

Lynda and I had the opportunity when we went to film at 13th Gate, which to look at Barton Jellies animatronic Frankenstein, which is part of the part of the show in the 2026 Halloween season, that what I Was done was cornered by one of their makeup artists and made up like a fully fledged zombie for the rest of that filming, and I'm still finding makeup in places I had no idea it was ever going to be.

This is part of our digital content, so we have a lot of changes coming to Art rocks, but it's the same great series that you know and love.

So please take a look at the new episode Friday Night, 8 p.m.

and we have on course on Sunday at 530.

James and Kathy, thank you so much for being with us.

Thank you Linda.

You.

Well, that's our show for this week.

Remember you can watch LPB any time with our LPB act.

Absolutely.

You can catch LPB news and public affairs shows, as well as other Louisiana programs you've come to enjoy over the years.

And please, when you have a moment like us on Facebook, on X, and on Instagram.

For everyone at Louisiana Public Broadcasting, I'm Christina Jensen.

And I'm Victor Howell.

Have a great weekend everybody.

Thanks for joining us.

And until next time.

That's the state we're at.

Support for Louisiana.

The state we're in is provided by Entergy.

Louisiana is strengthening our power grid throughout the state.

We're reinforcing infrastructure to prepare for stronger storms, reduce outages and respond quicker when you do need us because together we power life.

Additional support provided by the Fred B and Ruth B Ziegler Foundation and the Ziegler Art Museum.

Located in Jennings City Hall, the museum focuses on emerging Louisiana artists and is a historical and cultural center for Southwest Louisiana and by Visit Baton Rouge and the Foundation for Excellence in Louisiana Public Broadcasting.

And viewers like you.

Thank you.