Delaware County gathers to discuss rumored AMA data center
Residents gathered in Delaware County to discuss a rumored data center on 1,100 acres owned by the Academy of Model Aeronautics. No formal proposal or zoning request has been submitted, but AMA members and local residents are concerned about the potential project’s approval process and environmental impacts, including water use.
A standing-room-only meeting in Delaware County focused on the possibility that the Academy of Model Aeronautics could sell about 1,100 acres to a property development company for a data center. Meeting minutes indicate the AMA Executive Council has considered the sale since April, although the organization has not publicly confirmed that it received a formal data center proposal.
AMA member Philip Calvert said members learned about the minutes only recently and characterized the issue as an ongoing fight. Delaware County Commissioner Stephen Brand has previously expressed support for data centers and said he had spoken with companies interested in local land, but county commissioners and the Delaware-Muncie Metropolitan Plan Commission said they have received no data center proposals or zoning requests, including for the AMA property. Speakers also raised concerns about the environmental effects of large data centers, including potentially substantial daily water consumption.