A coalition of Martindale-Brightwood residents and environmental advocates has filed a legal challenge to stop the development of an approved data center in the Indianapolis neighborhood.
Since last year, residents have pushed back against the development from Metrobloks, a California-based developer.
The Hoosier Environmental Council and local residents argue the development will threaten progress made on environmental cleanups, and that the data center will continue a "legacy of environmental racism."
The Indianapolis Metropolitan Development Commission approved the company’s request for rezoning the land to build the data center. The nine-member commission adopts zoning ordinances and makes decisions on some variance and all rezoning petitions. Members are appointed by the mayor and the City-County Council.
In the court filing, community members are asking the Marion County Superior Court for an injunction to prohibit Metrobloks from starting any construction related to the data center project and declare the rezoning approval invalid.The complaint names the company, Indianapolis Metropolitan Development Commission and Sherman Investments, LLC as the defendants.
In 2025, Metrobloks filed a rezoning request to build a data center complex on a nearly 14-acre site at 2505 N. Sherman Ave., a vacant lot that was once a drive-in movie theater.
Metrobloks said it would draw electricity through contracts with AES Indiana, the local utility, rather than pulling from the residential grid. It would also use a closed-loop cooling system — water added once during construction and then continuously recirculated and treated.
The complaint alleges the project threatens the community with groundwater contamination because it is located on a site with a documented history of industrial pollution.
Metrobloks did not respond to WFYI's request for comment.
Data centers are facilities that store and process large amounts of digital information. Their rapid expansion has been driven by the rise of artificial intelligence and increased demand for data storage, with companies increasingly flocking to states like Indiana for cheaper land and tax abatements approved by the Indiana General Assembly in 2019.
Residents in Decatur Township have filed a similar request for judicial review after the Metropolitan Development Commission approved plans from Seattle-based developer Sabey Corp. to build the 130-acre campus near Kentucky Avenue and Camby Road on the southwest side of Marion County.
"We will not allow our neighborhood to be treated as a sacrifice zone," the Protect Martin-Brightwood coalition said in a public release.
"Standing with our neighbors in Decatur Township who have challenged similar actions, we are taking this fight to court to protect our rights and our future."
Farrah Anderson is an investigative health reporter with WFYI. You can follow her on X at @farrahsoa or contact her at fanderson@wfyi.org.
