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Indianapolis is becoming home to a growing number of data centers, including a large-scale facility proposed in Franklin Township. A site map of the project is shown on the right. In response, residents have launched a communitywide campaign, placing signs like the one above in their yards to voice opposition.
Graphic Illustration by Farrah Anderson, Photos courtesy of Protect FT.Brittany York moved to Franklin Township, a neighborhood on the southeast edge of Indianapolis, for more space and a yard where she can watch the sunsets.
But like many of her neighbors, her yard floods when it rains — sometimes up to her ankles.
“People jokingly say they live in houseboats because they have to drive through water just to get to their house,” York said.
Now, with a proposed data center planned right up against her property line, she fears the flooding will only get worse, threatening the home she worked so hard to enjoy.
Data centers are buildings that store and process huge amounts of digital information — popping up now more than ever with the rise of artificial intelligence and the need for more data storage. In Franklin Township, a currently unknown tech company filed a rezoning request to develop a data center on 467 acres across several properties on South Post Road, East Troy Avenue, Davis Road and Vandergriff Road.
And while York is pushing back, she worries it might not be enough.
“It’s David versus Goliath,” she said. “We’re just the little guys trying to fight back.”
WFYI reached out to Joseph Calderon, an Indianapolis attorney who filed the rezoning petition on behalf of the company, and he declined to comment, saying that he is "not authorized to speak to the media."
The U.S. is home to the most data centers in the world by far, with more than 5,400 spread across the country.
The Midwest is rapidly becoming the epicenter of the data center boom — with nearly 30 centers proposed or under construction in Indiana, according to the Citizens Action Coalition, a local environmental and energy policy group.
Companies are drawn to the region for its central location and strong infrastructure. Another major draw for tech companies: tax breaks. In 2019, Indiana lawmakers passed legislation waiving sales tax on equipment and energy for up to 25 years — or up to 50 years for projects worth more than $750 million. Local governments can also cut property taxes for companies investing at least $25 million in a facility.
While state officials tout the promise of construction jobs and investment, critics say the centers offer few permanent jobs and put pressure on local resources. Facebook parent Meta announced plans early last year to build an $800 million data center in southern Indiana. While it was expected to generate hundreds of construction jobs, it was only expected to create 100 permanent jobs, according to the Associated Press.
Data centers also consume huge amounts of water to cool their servers, which can add up to 5 million gallons of drinking water per day for just one data center, according to researchers. And because Franklin Township relies on well water, residents fear the development could lower the water table — forcing taxpayers to foot the bill to connect to city water lines.
Meredith Sharp lives just blocks from the site of the proposed data center in Franklin Township and runs an herbal skincare business. She uses her 3-acre property to grow product ingredients. Sharp worries the massive development could worsen flooding and strain the water supply.
“This has been something I’ve worked on my entire life, to be out here, and it will be destroyed,” Sharp said.
Beyond her own land, she’s concerned about the broader impact on the community’s water access. Studies suggest that data centers are among the top 10 biggest water consuming industries in the U.S.
“We’d be paying billions of dollars for these tax-exempt corporations to come in and ruin our state,” she said.
The rapid growth of data centers is also driving a surge in electricity demand — with newly announced facilities in early 2024 projected to require nearly 24 gigawatts of power, more than three times the capacity announced during the same period the year before, according to energy analysts at Wood Mackenzie. That’s enough power to supply electricity for tens of millions of U.S. households at once. A 2025 study from Harvard shows how rate structures and secret contracts between utilities and data centers could be moving energy costs to the consumers who live near data centers.
Earlier this month, Gov. Mike Braun signed a bill requiring large energy users, like data centers, to cover 80% of the costs of the new power if they’re trying to fast-track regulatory approval.
Still, local residents are worried about the impacts on their properties.
Andrew Filler, who moved to Franklin Township in 2017, lives nearby with his wife on a small hobby farm. When he heard about the proposed development, he launched a campaign to stop it, including a petition that has gathered more than 2,400 signatures and ignited a series of community meetings.
The rezoning request for the data center in Franklin Township will be considered in a public hearing on June 12, according to records from the Department of Metropolitan Development.
To help residents push back, the Citizens Action Coalition is presenting communities with information about the impact of data centers and how to organize against them, said the coalition’s director, Ben Inskeep.
Inskeep said just because a data center is proposed doesn’t mean it’s inevitable. The group has helped stop at least five data centers so far, Inskeep said.
“The writing is not on the wall,” Inskeep said. “It's really important that folks know that just because a data center is being proposed in their community, in no way means that that's actually going to happen.”
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.
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