LaPorte County adopts data-center ordinance after extensive public opposition

LaPorte County commissioners on May 6 accepted a plan-commission recommendation to place a new data-center ordinance on the books, a move officials said will let the county regulate siting, sound, lighting and emergency coordination for future projects.

The ordinance acceptance followed a lengthy public-comment period in which residents urged stronger protections. "Nobody really wants a data center in their backyard," said Eric Beal, a LaPorte resident, quoting industry counsel and arguing that data centers produce construction jobs but few long-term local positions. Deborah Bell, another lifelong resident, said she feared harm to water tables, ground temperatures and property values and said county leaders were not adequately protecting outlying residents.

County attorney D. Martino reviewed the draft ordinance on the record and said many of the changes before the board were clarifying edits and typographical corrections rather than substantive changes. He noted the text will be refined further and that operators will be required to provide illumination and noise limits, emergency and first-responder training opportunities, and reimbursement or special equipment for volunteer fire departments where appropriate. Commissioner Haney described the draft as "a living document" that can be tightened in subsequent revisions.

Commissioners and staff emphasized why adopting the ordinance now matters: the rules that apply to any petition are those in effect on the date a filing is submitted, so placing a baseline ordinance on the books prevents developers from filing under looser standards. The board did not identify additional substantive policy language changes at the meeting; Mr. Martino and the plan commission signaled they will continue clarifying definitions and numeric limits for lighting and sound.

Public commenters had pressed several technical and policy points the board will likely revisit: cumulative water dewatering and runoff to county ditches (a recurring concern raised by commenters who said nearby ditches appear at or near capacity), sound levels and continuous mechanical noise near residences, shielding and light trespass, and limits or protections for farmland and annexation near the city. Commissioners repeatedly said KIP (the county industrial park) is the preferred location for data centers if they are to be sited in the county.

The board accepted the plan-commission recommendation and directed staff and counsel to continue drafting clarifications. The acceptance places the ordinance on the books for any future petitions filed after May 6.