(10-2-26) (Wapakoneta) City Administration would like to provide an update about the potential development of a data center in our community and where it currently stands.

To start, the City has not entered into negotiations with the developer, Colocation Technology Services (CTS), approved any part of the project, or made any commitments to the development. CTS has also not submitted requests for annexation, conditional use approval, or other project-related approvals. All of the known information comes from discussions with WAEDC and preliminary questions the city has asked WAEDC and CTS.

For a little context, The Wapakoneta Area Economic Development Council (WAEDC), a separate entity from the city, works with businesses interested in locating or expanding in our community. Over the past few years, WAEDC has received several inquiries about potential data center projects. Recognizing this growing interest, City Council passed legislation in 2024 making data centers a “conditional use,” requiring additional review and approval before one could locate here.

City Administration also made it clear to WAEDC that any potential data center project should be discussed openly, allowing residents to learn about the proposal, ask questions, and share concerns before decisions are made. WAEDC agreed with this approach and with evaluating each project on its own merits.

CTS approached WAEDC about the possibility of developing a smaller sized data center in the industrial park. During early conversations between WAEDC and CTS, they also agreed to open and transparent discussions with the public, as that was made clear to them when they submitted their request.

The City has been aware of this potential project for a few months. However, much of that time was spent exploring preliminary questions and waiting for responses about electric service and whether existing infrastructure could support a facility requiring 50 megawatts of power. We believed it was important to determine whether the project was even feasible before considering a more detailed proposal.

As part of that work, the City requested an initial feasibility study with American Electric Power (AEP). The results indicated that the facility could be served without improvements to AEP’s existing infrastructure. The proposed arrangement would establish a new connection directly to an AEP electric line rather than supplying power through the City’s existing electric distribution system.

Based on our utility structure, CTS would also be considered a Delivery Service Customer, meaning it would purchase electricity through separate contracts with American Municipal Power (AMP), independent of the City’s existing power supply contracts. This arrangement applies to large electric customers with demands exceeding 10 megawatts and would keep the facility’s power purchasing separate from that of the City’s other customers.
Regarding water usage, CTS has indicated it would use a closed-loop cooling system requiring approximately 5,000 to 10,000 gallons per day. For comparison, the EPA estimates an average person uses about 80 gallons daily. While this may sound significant, the City’s water treatment plant is designed to handle millions of gallons per day, currently treats more than a million gallons daily, and already serves customers with substantially higher water demands. Based on the estimates provided, this facility’s water usage would be well within the capacity of our existing system and is not expected to present a concern.

CTS has also indicated that wastewater would primarily come from normal restroom use. Water from its cooling system would not be discharged into the City’s sewer system but would instead be periodically removed and properly disposed of off-site.

The proposed location is within an existing industrial park, where CTS anticipates noise levels similar to other industrial operations. Their estimate is that the noise will be approximately 60 decibels at their property edge, which is around the same sound level of a window air conditioner.

Again, all of this information is preliminary. It reflects what is currently known or has been provided by CTS and does not mean every question has been answered or that all information has been independently verified. The most important factor with all of the utilities would be ensuring that they remain whole and that utility revenue generated by the facility would more than cover any service costs, so that no costs could ever be subsidized to other residents or businesses. That will require additional due diligence, if the project moves forward.

We understand that data centers have raised concerns in communities across the country, including our surrounding area. Questions about electricity, water, infrastructure, noise, environmental impacts, and long-term community effects are reasonable and deserve consideration.

Surrounding communities’ experiences can help us identify important questions, but data centers can differ considerably in size, design, operations, and utility demands. We believe it is important to learn from those experiences while evaluating this particular proposal based on its own facts and circumstances, rather than assuming that what happened elsewhere will necessarily happen here.

Our responsibility is to understand both the concerns and potential benefits, ask questions, verify information, and fairly evaluate the company, the proposed location, and what the development would mean for Wapakoneta. We recognize that residents may have different opinions, and those perspectives deserve to be heard.

CTS has expressed a willingness to provide public presentations and answer questions as more information becomes available. City Council and Administration will be learning about much of the proposal alongside the community. The preliminary work completed over the past few months was intended to answer basic feasibility questions for our own infrastructure, not to evaluate the entire project or make decisions outside of public discussion.

Administrationโ€™s goal is not to approach this project with a predetermined outcome, either for or against it. We want to give it the same fair consideration we would any other industrial development, with additional attention to public input given the mixed information surrounding data centers.

A fair review does not mean overlooking concerns or assuming benefits. It means understanding both, asking questions, and making decisions based on facts rather than assumptions. Our responsibility is to consider what is best for Wapakoneta and its residents, both today and in the future.

In the coming weeks, CTS will be holding informational meetings, open to the public, prior to submitting any development requests to the City. We encourage all those interested to attend and get answers to the questions and concerns you have.

Thank you,
City Administration