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Residents urge Hobart to pause fill permit tied to proposed data center, citing groundwater, traffic and health risks
Summary
At a Hobart City Redevelopment Authority meeting, multiple residents and appellants urged the board to reverse or delay a fill permit tied to a proposed large data center, citing groundwater contamination, dewatering, traffic, noise and health impacts and requesting independent hydrogeological study and baseline well monitoring.
Residents and appellants delivered extended public comment at the Hobart City Redevelopment Authority meeting, urging the board to delay action on a large fill permit tied to a proposed data center development and to require independent environmental review before mass grading begins.
Several speakers told the board they feared dewatering, groundwater contamination and traffic impacts if construction proceeds now. Barbara Telles warned the permit is only “one step in the final building of the [data center] ... 25 buildings,” and said homes directly across the street would be particularly vulnerable to declining property values and health risks. Elizabeth Scagliardi, who identified herself as owner of Excelsior Equestrian Center, said she could not find an impact study and asked how large-scale earth-moving would be approved before a final site plan, citing erosion and stormwater outflow onto nearby drainage.
Property owner Eric Morris told the board the permit would authorize “mass grading on approximately 605 acres” while key engineering elements — final access points, finished elevations, site configuration and stormwater design — remain unresolved. He and other speakers asked the city to require an independent stormwater and groundwater study, a no-net-increase runoff standard, performance bonds or escrow to fund corrective work, baseline property and well-condition surveys, and enforceable long-term maintenance and monitoring arrangements.
Appellants also raised procedural objections. One appellant noted inconsistent public notices and permit characterizations and argued that site-plan review required by the municipal code should precede a fill permit. Jennifer McWhite urged the city to require independent baseline testing of the aquifer (including nitrates, nitrites and other agricultural/industrial contaminants), a hydrogeological assessment of how dewatering could change groundwater movement, and ongoing applicant-funded monitoring with public reporting.
Speakers cited prior, nearby examples in which large data-center projects proposed extensive water withdrawals; multiple commenters warned that tying private well users to municipal systems is impractical for farms and small businesses and would not be a feasible mitigation. Commenters said construction traffic and dust-control plans, haul routes, equipment types, timing and frequency of vehicle trips were not adequately described in the permit application.
Board staff and legal counsel told the authority that petitioners’ written findings and the record will be prepared for the Board of Works and recommended that outstanding technical questions be addressed before a final public determination. The board voted to bundle the appeals for determination at the Board of Works meeting on the 18th; petitioners will receive the findings in writing or may attend that meeting.
What happens next: the appeal record will be finalized and the Board of Works is scheduled to consider determinations at the 18th meeting; the city has not yet adopted the specific independent studies or monitoring requirements requested by residents.
Sources: Comments and appeals recorded in the Hobart City Redevelopment Authority meeting transcript, including statements by Barbara Telles; Elizabeth Scagliardi, owner of Excelsior Equestrian Center; Eric Morris; and Jennifer McWhite.
