Grove City Data Center Fight Pushes Ohio Voters to the Ballot Nov. 3
Grove City residents gathered more than 1,500 signatures opposing potential data-center development, prompting the City Council to enact a 12-month construction moratorium. Voters will decide Issue 28 on Nov. 3, a proposed charter amendment that would require referendums for large developments based on acreage, power demand or water use.
More than 1,500 Grove City residents signed a petition opposing plans for a potential six-hall data-center development near the city. Although no formal data-center application had been filed, residents cited concerns about land use, wells, noise, light pollution, property values and infrastructure. Stream Data Centers had listed a nearby site as in development.
The Grove City Council voted 6-1 on June 1 to impose a 12-month moratorium on data-center construction, reportedly lasting until June 2027. The dispute will continue at the ballot box, where voters will consider Issue 28, a proposed charter amendment requiring a public referendum for developments covering at least 50 acres, using more than 20 megawatts of peak power or consuming more than 500,000 gallons of water per day.
The Grove City measure is part of a broader wave of Ohio ballot initiatives and moratoriums targeting data-center growth. Officials and residents elsewhere have raised similar concerns about electricity costs, water use and infrastructure, while the Office of the Ohio Consumers' Counsel has warned that increasing demand from data centers could put upward pressure on household electric bills.