‘We’ve been ignored;’ Community gathers for another protest against data center plans in Piqua
Residents in Piqua, Ohio, gathered for a protest against an approved data center project, alleging the city commission ignored their concerns. A community group has hired a lawyer and plans to file a lawsuit to stop the development, whose company remains unknown due to an NDA. This local action comes as Governor Mike DeWine has paused new data center tax exemption requests statewide.
Residents in Piqua, Ohio, held a protest outside City Hall and attended a City Commission meeting to express their "disgust" over the approved data center plans in their community. Alisha Lange, a representative of a local citizens' group, stated that the community feels ignored by the city government, which moved forward with the project despite public disapproval.
The Piqua City Commission has already approved the data center, but the company behind it remains undisclosed due to a non-disclosure agreement. Lange announced that her group has retained a lawyer and intends to sue to halt the project.
This local opposition takes place amid broader state-level actions regarding data centers. Ohio Governor Mike DeWine recently instructed the Ohio Tax Credit Authority to pause considering new data center tax exemption requests. This pause, which is not a ban, will continue while a state legislature joint data center committee studies the industry's growth in Ohio. Other data center projects in the Miami Valley include Amazon's facility in Sidney and a proposal in Wilmington, while Urbana City Council recently paused a separate project.