How a proposed data center could impact one of the city’s oldest charter schools
A proposed DC Blox data center in Indianapolis, Indiana, is facing a lawsuit from Irvington Community Elementary School and local residents due to concerns about noise, potential environmental contaminants from the former Ford plant site, and its impact on student enrollment. The project was approved just before the city enacted a moratorium on new data center applications, but a lawsuit seeks to halt its development.
A proposed $2 billion data center by DC Blox on Indianapolis's east side is facing a legal challenge and community opposition due to concerns over noise, potential environmental contamination, and its impact on a nearby charter school. Irvington Community Elementary School, one of the city's oldest charter schools, is among the plaintiffs in a lawsuit filed last month to stop the two-building facility, which is slated for a former Ford Motor Company car manufacturing plant site.
Residents of the close-knit Irvington community have voiced apprehension regarding potential noise from up to 31 generators and the risk of construction disturbing hazardous substances in the brownfield property's soil and groundwater. School CEO Rachel Maldonado expressed concerns about potential health impacts on students, especially those with conditions like asthma, and the potential for a non-conducive learning environment from construction noise, citing limited research on such effects.
The Metropolitan Development Commission approved the DC Blox project just prior to Indianapolis enacting a city-wide moratorium on new data center applications through 2027, as the city works to develop new zoning regulations for such facilities. This leaves the DC Blox site as one of three approved projects that can proceed. DC Blox has committed to contaminant testing, vapor mitigation, and sound level adherence, with sound not to exceed 65 decibels at the campus edge. Despite these measures, school leaders, including Principal Katie Welch, continue to field questions from parents and staff about the project's long-term effects on health and learning, and worry about its negative impact on student enrollment amidst already tight school budgets.