As data centers spread across central Ohio, voters in Sunbury will soon decide whether to put a cap on how big they can get. The question is on the Nov. 3 ballot, 10TV reported.
What's on the ballot
According to city officials, a "yes" vote would ban data centers with a combined monthly demand or peak electrical load greater than 25 megawatts. A "no" vote would keep the city's existing regulations in place, allowing data center development under the current rules.
The vote comes as Amazon defends its proposed $2 billion data center project in Sunbury, while opponents raise concerns about how large-scale development could affect their neighborhoods.
In July, 10TV reported that opponents believe passing the measure could stop the development. Ahead of a City Council meeting Thursday, 10TV asked City Administrator Daryl Hennessy whether the measure would stop the project. He declined to comment.
The sign campaign
Yard signs opposing large data centers are showing up throughout Sunbury. Larry Thode, who organized the effort, told 10TV he has made about 800 signs.
Thode said he isn't against data centers altogether, but wants limits on their size and where they can be built. "People do not want data centers where they can ruin neighborhoods, ruin communities or put people at risk," he said. "We're not banning them. We want to limit the size so we can control the damage."
A neighbor's worries
Dave Dannaher has lived in his home for 47 years and built his business, Dannaher Nursery, there. A proposed data center across the street has him worried about noise, light pollution, possible effects on his well water and more construction traffic on the road in front of his home.
"I'm just saying maybe you shouldn't do it so much in Central Ohio," Dannaher said. "We have over 100 data centers in Central Ohio alone."
Council talks noise
Sunbury City Council met at 6:30 p.m. Thursday. According to the city administrator, the discussion was to include concerns about noise and how to control industrial noise.
Whatever happens at the polls, Thode said the issue has brought people together. "Everyone likes to paint a picture of a divided world, but we're a lot more similar on things than we realize," he said.
The bigger picture
10TV covers the Sunbury vote as part of its "Boomtown" reporting on central Ohio's rapid growth, and data centers have become one of the biggest flashpoints in that growth. As Dannaher pointed out, the region already has more than 100 of them. The Sunbury vote puts the question of how big these projects can be, and where they can go, directly in front of voters.
A 25-megawatt cap is an interesting approach. Rather than banning data centers outright, it targets the biggest power users while leaving room for smaller facilities. Whether that would affect Amazon's project specifically is the question city leaders haven't answered publicly.
Why it matters for contractors
A $2 billion data center is the kind of project that can anchor a contractor's workload for years. Electrical, mechanical, concrete, steel and sitework firms in central Ohio have been riding the data center wave, and Amazon's Sunbury proposal would add to that pipeline.
The Nov. 3 vote puts that work in question. If the measure passes, data centers above 25 megawatts would be banned in the city, and opponents have said they believe that could stop the development. If it fails, current rules stay in place and the project could move forward under those rules.
There's also a lesson here for contractors working on approved data center sites. Residents' biggest complaints, including noise, light, well water and construction traffic, are things contractors deal with every day on the job. Firms that plan haul routes carefully, control dust and lighting and keep work hours reasonable can help keep neighbor complaints down, which matters when communities are deciding whether to welcome more of these projects.
Watch the results Nov. 3. The outcome could shape how other central Ohio communities handle data center limits, and how much of this work stays in the region.