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Residents urged council to block data center annexation, citing traffic, noise and groundwater worries
Summary
Multiple residents objected to a proposed data center and an associated voluntary annexation, calling for baseline groundwater testing, lower noise limits and assurances on emergency response; council set an annexation public hearing and pledged follow‑ups.
Residents at the Hobart meeting on March 18 pressed the council over a proposed data center and a voluntary annexation, raising sustained concerns about traffic, noise, groundwater impacts and emergency‑response delays.
Patricia Corey, who identified herself by address, told the council she and other residents did not want a data center near Ross Township and asked for a written guarantee that well service would be restored if private wells were impacted. "I say absolutely no data center at 61st And 69th Avenue," she said, and recounted a recent ambulance call where dispatchers could not find her address, asking the city to review call records and response times.
Richard Anderson, who introduced the annexation petition for a parcel he described as approximately "6.66 acres" and said would be zoned M‑1, described the project as part of the larger corridor (CATCO) effort and asked the council to set a public hearing. Council set the hearing for April to allow public input and legal notifications.
Residents and one speaker who identified herself as Jennifer McQuaid urged the council to require baseline environmental testing and to consider ordinance changes to protect public health. McQuaid said she felt Ross Township had been used as a "sacrifice zone," citing potential diesel emissions from backup generators, noise concerns and risks to groundwater from dewatering during construction. "If they dewater for construction purposes... we should know what's on that ground and in that now before we let them do anything to it," she said.
Council members and staff responded that developers have filed required soils and stormwater reports and that traffic and noise studies would be part of the planning and permitting process. The presiding officer said staff would follow up on ambulance call logs and on outstanding technical questions; no technical groundwater study or enforcement change was adopted at the meeting.
What residents asked for and what the city said: - Baseline groundwater/soil testing: residents requested explicit, public baseline tests; staff said required soil/erosion filings exist and that more follow‑up can be requested. Status: unresolved in meeting. - Written pledge to replace private wells if adversely affected: requested by residents; presiding officer said he had not made such a promise and will follow up. Status: unresolved. - Lowering the noise ordinance from 65 dB at the property line to 55 dB: residents urged the change citing health research; staff and council noted measurement complexities and potential exemptions would need study. Status: under consideration.
The council set a public hearing on the annexation and asked staff to prepare required materials. Residents were urged to submit written comments and the council said it would continue to engage with residents and the applicant ahead of the scheduled hearing.
