City Council Schedules Public Hearing to Discuss Fate of Proposed Google Data Center

Franklin Township District Councilor Michael Paul Hart successfully pushed for a public hearing on the proposed Google Data Center at Monday's full council meeting, gaining approval from all 25 council members.

The public hearing will be held at the City-County Building on September 22 at 7 p.m. to hear from Google, the community, and Hart about the Franklin Township project before a final decision is made.

"We're very excited we won this round but the war is not over yet," said Nikki Vantreese.

The City-County Building was packed with residents holding signs and chanting in opposition to the project. Many in attendance are concerned about the potential impact of the data center on their community.

"It's very sickening to us," said Debbi Vantreese, whose family has lived in the township for over 100 years. "We live on a road named for us — Vandergriff was named for Vantreese. His family built all those homes on Vandergriff Road. We don't want those young kids buying homes across from us to lose everything they have."

Councilor Jared Evans opposes the project due to concerns about the potential energy impact.

"I think one of the biggest issues is making sure we're not putting the burden on residents to subsidize their energy and water," Evans said. "There's evidence that shows that's exactly what's happening in communities all over the place."

Hart stated that residents in his district are opposed to the data center.

"There's plenty of places across Indiana where this would be a good fit, but putting it in the middle of a community where you're not going to get any jobs out of it just doesn't make it a good fit," Hart said.