Data center could be built at Mega Site

SCOTT TRUXELL/independent editor

If the deal goes through, a data center will be built on 220 acres of land known as the Mega Site in Van Wert.

Van Wert Area Economic Development Corporation Executive Director Brent Stevens confirmed the plan on Thursday, while recording an upcoming radio show, the Commissioners Corner, set to air on WKSD 99.7FM and WERT 1220AM/104.3FM.

“I can’t tell you names or any of that type of stuff, but I can let everybody know it’s a data center,” Stevens stated.

The name of the company will be revealed if/when the agreement is finalized, which could take up to 360 days, but he added while they have nearly a year, they hope to close on the property and begin the building process much sooner. Stevens confirmed that contracts have been signed by both The Marsh Foundation and buyer, and he said an earnest money deposit has been sent and accepted. He added that he spoke with officials from the unnamed company Wednesday night and they agreed to the sharing of information because they want the public to understand the project so there are no last minute issues at closing.

“They don’t want anybody in the community at the last minute to go ‘absolutely not,’”, Stevens said. “I don’t know why anybody in the community wouldn’t want a data center, but people want to be communicated with and this is the best way to do that – to let them know in advance.”

A data center is a facility that houses and operates computing hardware such as servers, storage devices, and network equipment, and acts as a centralized location for storing and managing large amounts of data for an organization or company. Stevens said a typical data center is five buildings, with each building spanning 250,000 square feet.

It was noted during the recording of the program that a data center is a clean property.

“You don’t have smoke going into the air, you don’t have weird chemicals going into the ground,” Stevens said.

If it comes to fruition, it will employ 250 workers, with approximately 35 per shift, plus outside contractors that take care of the property.

The company may need up to 1.7 million gallons of water per day for cooling purposes, although that number would be at peak times, normally July and August, and Stevens said negotiations are continuing for that aspect of it. He also said the data center would require 500 mega watts of electricity and he said AEP Ohio has been working with the company as to how they could get that to them.

“There’s still something on the power side that could ‘squirrel’ this deal but we’re  90 percent done,” Stevens said. “The company that’s looking at the property got the study from AEP (and they’re) super excited about what they saw.”

It was also noted that the hope is to have other companies move in on the remaining 1,200 acres at the Mega Site and a provision has been put in the contract to ensure AEP can supply enough power to those businesses. 

The potential data center was one of the reasons the Marsh Foundation trustees recently requested the closure of Stripe Road, which connects Lincoln Highway and U.S. 224, and abuts up against the east side of the Marsh Foundation campus. The other reason was the safety of the children on the campus, especially given the fact there would be an increase in traffic. The request was met with some opposition from the public but during a public hearing held last Thursday, it was announced a compromise had been reached. If the 220 acres is sold, The Marsh Foundation will pay for an access road from Stripe Rd. to Mendon Rd., then will turn it over to the county. The half-mile access road between Stripe Road and Mendon Road would be built roughly 1,000 feet south of the U.S. 30 overpass.

The modified plan also calls for an easement for the construction of a Bonnewitz Ave. extension that would ultimately connect with Stripe Rd. If the data center comes to fruition, the road would extend from Mendon Road to John Brown Road, and would give farmers direct access to Scott Equity on Bonnewitz Ave.

Marsh Foundation Trustee Gary Clay, who also appeared on the program, said the potential data center has prompted questions about housing.

“We’ve had two inquiries about housing, because you’re going to have 250 more jobs and you’re going to need more housing,” he stated. “Housing is at a premium, so we’ve had a couple of inquiries – why don’t you open a road from Vantage going back and put some housing in there? Everybody is waiting to see if the Mega Site goes and if it goes, I think you’ll see that road will become even more valuable for housing for Van Wert.”

The full Commissioner’s Corner program, hosted by Chris Roberts, will air at 8:25 a.m. this Sunday on WKSD 99.7FM and WERT 1220AM/104.3FM.