The Indianapolis City-County Council Monday advanced a proposal pausing new data center approvals in Marion County through 2027. The move follows months of protests over the facilities' water, energy and noise impacts.
The council members voted 23-1 to approve the moratorium, sending it to the Metropolitan Development Commission, which could give final approval as early as Aug. 19.
But the pause wouldn't delay or stop the three data center projects that have drawn the most community opposition so far and already approved: DC Blox in Warren Township, Metrobloks in Martindale-Brightwood and Sabey in Decatur Township. All three are exempt from the pause, according to the city's data center information page.
During Monday’s meeting, Councilor Jesse Brown attempted to add a proposal to the agenda that would remove members of the Metropolitan Development Commission. Brown said some commissioners ignored communities by approving data centers to be built in the city. The council rejected considering it 7-17.
What's in the proposal
The measure, known as Proposal 238, amends a broader zoning ordinance the city has been developing since April to regulate data centers for the first time.
The moratorium would halt new data center permitting until at least Dec. 31, 2027 so staff can convene a committee of experts and residents to study campus size, building height, sound levels and environmental impacts.
Councilors also added a floor amendment Monday defining "data center" in the county's zoning code.
Under the definition, a data center is a facility primarily used to store, manage, process or transmit digital data, covering uses like server farms, artificial intelligence training and cloud computing. It excludes IT equipment that's incidental to another permitted use, as well as facilities primarily used as wireless communications infrastructure, utility substations, or public safety and postal facilities.
The amendment specifies a facility isn't automatically exempt just because the data involved relates to wireless, broadband or public safety communications.
The original proposal would have created a permanent special use district, called SU-47, that set standards data centers would eventually have to meet. The requirements included a 400-foot buffer from industrial-protected areas, a 65-decibel noise cap at the property line, screening requirements and annual public reporting on water and electricity use.
Ongoing fight over data centers
Data centers have become a focus of economic development for Indiana government and business leaders. But the centers have also triggered intense community pushback with concerns about resource and land use. At least 17 Indiana counties have enacted temporary moratoriums, and two, Marshall and Cass, have banned the facilities.
In Marion County, Google withdrew a contested proposal in September 2025 to rezone hundreds of acres in Franklin Township for a data center campus.
The Metropolitan Development Commission approved a $4 billion project from Seattle-based Sabey for Decatur Township that March. In May, Metrobloks won approval for a development in the Martindale-Brightwood neighborhood despite opposition. And in July, DC Blox, a Georgia-based company, secured approval for a two-building, up to 420,000-square-foot facility on the east side.
During Monday’s council meeting, Councilor Michael-Paul Hart was the lone vote against the data center moratorium. Hart is supportive of the DC Blox data center planned in his district.
What's next
The moratorium now heads to the Metropolitan Development Commission for final action. It meets 1 p.m. Aug. 19 in the City-County Building.
Eric Weddle is WFYI's education editor. Contact Eric at eweddle@wfyi.org or follow him on X at @ericweddle.
