Lansing: How Organic Is the Support for Deep Green?

"As a member of the local business community, I am writing to express my strong support..."

Steve Japinga, Senior Vice President of Public Affairs, Lansing Regional Chamber of Commerce; LRC-PAC operational contact (MiTN Committee 000516). Template letter sent via The Soft Edge to Lansing City Council, February 2026.

LANSING, Mich. -- All 12 template support letters submitted to the Lansing City Council for the Deep Green data center rezoning were generated through The Soft Edge, a paid advocacy platform. Seven of the 12 senders have documented ties to the Lansing Regional Chamber of Commerce: members, award recipients, policy committee participants, and the Chamber's own Senior Vice President of Public Affairs. The Chamber published four press releases supporting the project between January and March 2026 without disclosing these connections, and its homepage links directly to the campaign that generated the letters.

Who Sent the Letters

Connections were verified through the LRCC member directory at members.lansingchamber.org, LRCC press releases, and the 2025 LRCC Policy Committee roster (downloaded from lansingchamber.org/about-us/, March 14, 2026).

The remaining five senders have no confirmed Chamber connection: Michael Hull (Superior Electric), Peter Campbell, Marchon Holmes (Jackson, Mich.), Aaron Helman (Ionia, Mich.), and Gordon VanWieren (Okemos, Mich.). But four of the five are not organic either. All except Hull show the loopback email pattern (mailagent@thesoftedge.com), meaning they were enrolled by the campaign administrator rather than finding the form and signing up on their own. Three listed addresses outside Lansing.

In total, 7 of 12 senders (58%) have documented Chamber ties. Four of those seven also show the loopback pattern (Japinga, Doherty, Baker, and one of the five without confirmed connections). The Chamber-connected senders span the organization's membership, its awards program, its policy governance, and its staff.

The Award Recipient and the Policy Committee Member

Mark McDaniel was announced as the Chamber's 2026 Community Service Award recipient in late January 2026. The award is the LRCC's oldest honor, established in 1948, and was presented at the 125th Anniversary Gala on February 25, 2026. His Soft Edge template letter was sent approximately two weeks after the award announcement and three weeks before the gala. He did not identify himself as a Chamber award recipient in his letter.

Megan Doherty sits on the 2025 LRCC Policy Committee representing the Small Business/Professional Trades sector. Her letter shows the loopback email pattern (mailagent@thesoftedge.com), meaning she was enrolled by the campaign administrator. She did not identify herself as a Chamber policy committee member in her letter.

Dustin Howard, UA Local 333's Business Manager, sent a Soft Edge template letter from dustin@local333.com on February 3, 2026. Seven days later, the Chamber quoted him by name in its "Labor and Business Leaders Unite" press release: "The Deep Green data center project means real jobs for local skilled trades workers." His press release quote echoes the language in his template letter. Neither the letter nor the press release discloses the other.

Four Press Releases, No Disclosures

The Chamber published four articles about the Deep Green project between January 8 and March 4, 2026. Two were authored by Steve Japinga (per page metadata at lansingchamber.org). None discloses any of the following:

On February 10, the Chamber published its "Labor and Business Leaders Unite" press release announcing support from "13 labor organizations." That same day, nearly 200 residents attended the City Council meeting, with the vast majority opposing the project. The Chamber article does not mention the meeting or the opposition.