Tensions rise as hundreds crowd Decatur Township data center meeting

Hundreds of residents packed an open-house meeting Tuesday night in Decatur Township in southwest Marion County, where developers outlined plans for a proposed data center on industrial-zoned land. 

The room quickly grew tense as residents shouted frustrations about long-term disinvestment in their community. Attendees voiced fears that the project — made up of two large data center buildings — would worsen existing problems, ranging from deteriorating roads to strained water and power infrastructure.

While developers argued that the project would provide tax revenue and promised to pay their “fair share” of costs for power, residents remained skeptical. Speakers argued the project would harm the environment, raise utility costs and drag down property values in a community that feels overlooked by city leaders.

“I hope that what we did here tonight matters,” resident Ethan Hunt said. “But unfortunately, we may never know if this gets passed.”

The packed meeting displayed growing outrage over the fast-paced development of data centers in Marion County and across Indiana — warehouses for computers and servers that store, manage and process large amounts of data. The state is at the center of a data center boom, with billions of dollars in projects underway.
 

Communities have pushed back on proposals, including in Franklin Township, where Google retreated from its effort to develop nearly 500 acres of land. Currently, residents in Martindale-Brightwood, a historically Black neighborhood, are challenging a proposed center.

Republican City-County Councilor Josh Bain, who represents the area and helped organize the meeting at Decatur Township School for Excellence, urged residents to fill out a survey. In a social media post, Bain said that he wants to make sure “our community’s voice is heard before any decisions are made.”

In an effort to curb residents’ concerns, Sabey, the developer behind the project, has committed more than $5 million to repave roads in the area surrounding the proposed site. Additionally, the company committed to cooling the data center with a system that uses less water, a resource data centers consume heavily. 

A flashpoint at the meeting was the potential for tax abatements. Residents questioned whether Decatur Township would see any direct benefit from the resulting revenue or if funds would be absorbed by the city budget. 

Phil Webster, who ran against Bain to represent District 21, said he’s concerned tax revenue would be spread throughout Indianapolis rather than landing in Decatur Township. 

“It's time that Decatur Township speaks up and says, ‘We deserve the services that we're paying for, and we're not getting those services,’” Webster said after the meeting.

The attorney for developer Sabey confirmed the rezoning petition has been filed with the Metropolitan Development Commission. Next, developers said they will come to the Decatur Township Civic League Land Use Committee meeting on Dec. 18. 

Randy Poynter, who lives in the township with his wife, Norma, said he’s concerned about how the data center could impact his community — from potential power blackouts to noise pollution to losing the value of his home. 

“It's a lose-lose situation for everybody,” Poynter said. “I'm concerned about this, but I'm not going to be consumed.”

No one in the audience spoke out in favor of the plan. 

Farrah Anderson is an investigative health reporter with WFYI and Side Effects Public Media. You can follow her on X at @farrahsoa or by email at fanderson@wfyi.org