Data Centers | March 11, 2026
At A Glance 🔽
- Independence, MO: residents file lawsuit to force a citywide referendum on $150B+ data center bond ordinance.
- Provo, UT: City Council unanimously declines zoning change for AI data center, wants more time.
- New Castle County, DE: Council passes data center guidelines 12-0, but won't apply them retroactively.
- Archbald, PA: hundreds pack hearing over 14-building Wildcat Ridge data center campus.
- Columbus, OH: City Council holds community hearing Wednesday on data center expansion concerns.
- Lacy Lakeview, TX: council tables wastewater reuse study tied to proposed $10B data center.
- Indiana: state lawmakers debated data centers all session but passed no legislation.
INDEPENDENCE, Missouri
Dane Artisola
Continues from...
Opponents of Independence's massive data center filed a lawsuit Monday to force a citywide referendum on the project after the city rejected their petition.
The Stop the AI Data Center in Independence group filed for a referendum on March 3, one day after the city council approved more than $150 billion in Chapter 100 bonds for the nearly 400-acre project in the Little Blue Valley. The city denied the petition on March 5, citing Section 7.2 of its charter, which excludes referendums on ordinances that take effect immediately.
The lawsuit asks a Jackson County judge to validate the petition and pause the 30-day signature-gathering clock. The group needs 3,488 signatures from registered voters. If successful, they hope to put the ordinance to a citywide vote by August 2026.
PROVO, Utah
Provo City Council voted unanimously not to approve a zoning change for a proposed AI data center, saying they want more time to evaluate the project.
The proposed ordinance would have applied the city's new data center overlay zone to a site at 1507 S 180 E for developer B+F Timpanogos, the first applicant for this zone type. According to the proposal, the facility would draw power solely from the city electric grid and use a closed-loop water system capped at 4,380,000 gallons per year. The developer compared water usage to that of a car wash or laundromat.
Council members acknowledged the closed-loop cooling approach but wanted to wait before committing to the overlay zone. The project would also need to coordinate with Provo City Power to secure the electricity it needs.
NEW CASTLE COUNTY, Delaware
Dane Artisola
Continues from...
New Castle County Council passed Ordinance 25-101, establishing new guidelines on the size, location, and buffer areas for future data center projects. The final amendment, from Councilman Tim Sheldon, sets the effective date as the county executive's signing date, with an opt-in clause for applicants who want to follow the new rules voluntarily. The ordinance now heads to County Executive Marcus Henry's desk.
ARCHBALD, Pennsylvania
Hundreds packed the auditorium at Valley View High School for a heated hearing on Wildcat Ridge, a proposed data center campus in the borough of Archbald.
The project would include 14 buildings, each over 200,000 square feet, requiring 560 generators and up to 3.3 million gallons of water. Developers brought in experts to field questions about the closed-loop water system and environmental impact. Some residents were not satisfied and have hired an attorney to scrutinize the proposal.
Council members pushed back on the developer's claim that the project would bring more than 1,200 jobs. Councilmember Joseph Altier pointed out that fully built-out data centers typically employ 15 to 35 people at best.
COLUMBUS, Ohio
Columbus City Council will hold a community hearing Wednesday at 5:30 p.m. as debate grows over data center expansion across central Ohio.
The forum will cover energy consumption, water demand, job creation, and land use impacts. Council President Shannon Hardin said members want to hear directly from residents and industry experts. Communities across the region, including Ashville, South Bloomfield, and Jerome Township, are weighing their own data center proposals.
LACY LAKEVIEW, Texas
Lacy Lakeview City Council tabled discussion on a preliminary development agreement tied to a wastewater reuse study for a proposed $10 billion data center by Infrakey DC Parks. The concept, called "sewer mining," would reuse treated wastewater for industrial cooling on a 500+ acre site.
The project has generated months of debate, with residents raising concerns about water supply, environmental impact, and transparency. Mayor Charles Wilson clarified that the city receives water through an existing contract with Waco and has requested additional water through the Brazos River Authority, though estimates on that process range from two to five years depending on who you ask.
INDIANA
Indiana lawmakers spent the 2026 session debating data centers but ultimately passed no legislation, leaving zoning decisions to local governments.
The session was the first since the state's initial hyperscale data center, an $11 billion Amazon project in New Carlisle, went live. Community opposition centered on energy usage, noise, land use, and tax incentives. Despite the intensity, lawmakers chose not to act at the state level.
Amazon Staff
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