Adams County residents press commissioners over potential Carter Hollow data center; board says no plans filed

Residents asked the Adams County Board of Commissioners on March 9 about a potential data center on the former DP&L property known as Carter Hollow, raising concerns about tours, sound impacts, utilities and zoning.

“Early conversations do not mean a project has been approved or committed,” Commissioner Barbara Moore Holt told attendees in a prepared statement, adding that the board has not signed any non-disclosure agreements and that no site plan or request for county incentives has been submitted. “If and when more concrete information becomes available, it will be shared publicly. Public meetings will be held as appropriate so residents can ask questions and provide input.”

Citizens including Emily Harper and Nikki Gerber asked whether commissioners or staff had toured data centers, whether sound wave frequencies could affect animals, what types of businesses the county would welcome, and how disaster readiness and zoning would be handled. County Engineer Lee Pertuset told one questioner that Lick Skillet Road is a township road and maintenance concerns should be directed to township trustees; Pertuset also said he signed a non-disclosure agreement that “pertains to roads only” and that he has had no conversations with the board regarding a potential data center.

Commissioners repeated that early outreach by companies to communities is common and that the county’s role is to follow Ohio law, gather facts and provide opportunities for public input before any incentives or approvals are considered. Moore Holt said the county will request site-specific information from developers and hold public meetings if plans are submitted.

The board’s statement and the engineers’ comments clarified the county’s current position but did not change when, how or whether a data center project would proceed; no formal action or incentives were requested or approved at the meeting.