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Residents urge council to halt industrial annexation, cite traffic, noise and groundwater concerns
Summary
At a March 18 Hobart meeting, residents criticized a proposed annexation and nearby industrial/data center project, raising traffic congestion, generator emissions, noise and groundwater testing concerns; city staff said traffic studies and mitigation plans are in progress and pledged follow-up.
Residents filled the public-comment period at the Hobart City Redevelopment Authority meeting on March 18 to press the council on a proposed voluntary annexation tied to an industrial development and a proposed data center near 61st and 69th Avenue.
"I say absolutely no data center at 61st and 69th Avenue," said Patricia Corey, a resident who opened the public-comments block and urged the council to honor promises of parks and not turn the area into a "dumping zone." She also described what she said were delays and communication problems when calling emergency medical services and asked the mayor to provide records of the ambulance response.
Jean Clausen, who identified herself in remarks to the council, said she was denied a spot on the agenda and asked the city to schedule a direct meeting with developers and utility companies. Clausen and other residents described peak-hour traffic worries, including one claim that a related project in another town produced "274 cars backed up for 10 miles," and asked whether the developer planned off-site parking and bus shuttling for workers.
Residents also raised health risks tied to diesel backup generators and noise. One commenter said a physician warned that the project could harm residents with respiratory issues; other speakers urged lowering the city's noise ordinance for new construction from the present 65 decibels at the property line to 55 decibels to protect nearby homes.
Mayor (speaker 1) and staff responded that traffic studies, parking plans and mitigation strategies are being prepared. "Our team is working diligently on this traffic," the Mayor said, noting traffic studies and off-site parking plans that would limit gate backups. Staff also said required soil and site testing had been filed as part of the permits and that standard stormwater and erosion controls are in place.
Residents pressed the council to require baseline groundwater and soil tests before any large-scale excavation or dewatering, citing concerns about historical pesticide use and cases elsewhere where dewatering and water-recycling practices changed contaminant concentrations. Council and staff said site-specific soil borings and related reports are in the project file; staff agreed to follow up and to provide additional information to residents on tests already completed.
The meeting framed a wider tension between generating new revenue to support city services and protecting long-standing residential and agricultural land. Council members said annexation and rezoning decisions track long-range planning and that development can help fund services such as fire and ambulance staffing. Opponents described the area as a "sacrifice zone" that would bear the brunt of industrial uses.
There was no final council vote on the data center or on any zoning change at the March 18 meeting. Staff and council members committed to additional outreach, to share existing technical reports and to convene follow-up meetings with residents and project representatives. Residents requested explicit baseline testing results and stronger, project-specific protections for noise, light and groundwater before permitting large construction or dewatering activities.
