(St. Joseph County, IN) - The deciding vote on another proposed data center near New Carlisle has been postponed.

 

County officials have been considering a petition to rezone over 1,000 acres of farmland north of town between Timothy and Spruce Roads, south of Chicago Trail. Such a move would set the stage to build a data center for an unnamed tech company. Developers say the $12 billion total investment, the largest in state history, would include fourteen 60-foot-tall buildings for super computers.

 

New Carlisle’s Town Council and the Olive Township Trustee have submitted letters of remonstrance, and two levels of St. Joseph County government, the Area Plan Commission and a special committee of the Council, have also voted against the proposal. The full County Council was expected to cast the final vote on Wednesday, November 12. However, HTNN has learned that the Council has pushed back that vote to December 9.

 

According to Council member Amy Drake, the proposal, which she opposes, does not yet have enough votes to pass. The delay could be a stall tactic, either to garner more support, or just to let the matter fade away. If the Council does not act by next month, the proposal will die, and developers will have to wait six months to bring it back.

 

According to a Council statement, the petitioner filed a formal, written request for continuance in accordance with Indiana law. “The extra time benefits everyone involved – the petitioner, Council members, and residents,” it stated, “by allowing a more thorough review before such an important decision.” Drake said not all Council members were consulted before the item was pulled from the agenda and the statement was made.

 

Council members have confirmed that public comment will be heard before a vote is taken next month.