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New Carlisle resident urges county to support one‑year moratorium on data‑center rezonings
Summary
During public comment, Dan Caruso of New Carlisle urged commissioners to publicly oppose Bill 42‑25, which he said rezoned about 1,057 acres from agricultural to industrial for a data center; he cited prior area plan commission and county council votes and requested a countywide one‑year moratorium while impacts to water, electricity and land use are assessed.
Dan Caruso of New Carlisle used his public comment time at the Jan. 13 St. Joseph County commissioner meeting to urge the board to oppose Bill 42‑25, a rezoning proposal he said would convert approximately 1,057 acres of farmland to industrial use for a data‑center development.
Caruso recounted prior local actions: he reported the area plan commission opposed the rezoning and said a county council land‑use committee gave an unfavorable recommendation; he also cited a council discussion referencing a possible roughly $8 million budget shortfall in 2028 tied to state legislative action and said the county auditor described the county as fiscally solvent in response. Caruso asked the commissioners to support a countywide, one‑year moratorium on data‑center developments to allow study of potential impacts on water, electricity and land use.
A board member who spoke after Caruso clarified that the commissioners had not hired anyone on the project, responding to Caruso’s allegation that the board had hired out‑of‑state canvassers or lobbyists. The chair moved on to online public comments after no further speakers came forward.
