Set the Bar High, Don’t Lock the Door

Northeast Indiana should hold data centers to high standards. We should expect the companies behind them to invest in the communities that support their operations. And we can do both without a moratorium. Some have asked why we’re speaking up now, and not when the first moratorium was discussed. The answer is that the debate has changed. Over the past year, I’ve watched my profession come under attack for doing the right thing. Economic developers in other parts of the country have been doxed, harassed, and, in some cases, driven out of the communities they live in and serve. At the same time, the tactics used to stop data centers are turning into playbooks that can be used against any large project. Taken together, that sends a message I don’t want our region sending: Northeast Indiana is closed for business. None of this means the concerns about data centers aren’t real. Noise, emissions, land use, and higher utility bills are real costs, and residents deserve to know what they get in return. Local officials are right to set clear expectations and hold developers to them. A moratorium just isn’t the way to do it. Companies making long-term investments can live with tough standards. What they can’t live with is not knowing whether the rules will change after they’ve committed. A pause, even a temporary one, creates that doubt, and it drives off the companies most willing to meet high expectations. That doubt doesn’t stay in one place, either. Site selectors don’t look at our region one city or county at a time. They see one market with a shared workforce, shared infrastructure, and a shared reputation. A moratorium in one of our 11 counties gets read as a signal about all of them. The expectations on these projects should be high. Data centers depend on the communities around them for roads, power, water, first responders, and workers. It’s fair to expect them to give back to the places that make their operations possible. The serious ones already understand that, and they would rather know the terms up front. One of the toughest parts for residents is timing. A community often lives with years of construction traffic and disruption before the tax revenue arrives. Communities across the country have closed that gap with direct benefit commitments from developers and data center users: an investment at the start of construction, an ongoing contribution for as long as the facility operates, and a local voice in how the money is spent. It’s a model that has been tested, and it gives residents a real stake in a project instead of a front-row seat to it. The benefits also reach well past one town. Contractors, electricians, engineers, and suppliers come from across the region. Workers cross county lines. Training programs grow. And there are signs this growth can help ratepayers, too. Indiana Michigan Power has pointed to data center demand as a way to spread costs across a larger customer base, which helps keep electric rates competitive for homes and businesses. The next company watching may not be a data center at all. It could be an advanced manufacturer, a logistics operation along Interstate 69, or an energy project in a rural township. They’re paying attention to how we handle this moment, and they’ll remember who worked through hard questions and who hit pause. So set the bar high. Make developers clear it. Make them invest in the communities that carry them. But don’t lock the door and call it leverage. The article first appeared in Greater Fort Wayne Business Weekly. \Want to be the first to know about what is going on at NEI and our region? Sign up for the NEI Newsletter and Blog below.