St. Joseph County council candidates speak against data centers ahead of November election

ST. JOSEPH COUNTY, Ind. -- Candidates running for St. Joseph County Council gathered at the American Democracy Projects “Meet the Candidates” event, where they discussed their key positions ahead of the Nov. 3 general election.

Among the candidates’ top concerns was the continued development of data centers in St. Joseph County, an issue that has drawn attention from candidates in both political parties.

The county council races in Districts A, B and C feature contests between Republican and Democratic candidates:

Republican Joe Thomas and Democrat Michael Hamann in District A, Republican Amy Drake and Democrat Ranjan Rohatgi in District B, Republican James O’Brien and Democrat Jan Cervelli in District C.

Thomas, the Republican incumbent in District A, said he opposes additional data centers because of uncertainty surrounding their long-term effects.

“We do not know the ramifications of the data centers yet, and so that’s why I’m for no more data centers,” Thomas says.

Hamann, the Democratic candidate challenging Thomas, also voiced opposition to additional development.

“Those big tech data guys want a street fight, I’ll give it to them,” Hamann says. “They cannot continue to ravage our community and ruin our quality of life.”

In District B, Drake, the Republican incumbent, said she has been working on legislation aimed at preventing additional hyperscale data centers from coming to the county.

“People know that I’ve got a record on pushing back on data centers, and I’m actually working on legislation right now to stop more hyperscalers from coming into our county,” Drake says.

Rohatgi, the Democratic candidate in District B, said the county needs to understand the long-term effects of the two data centers already planned or under development.

“We’ve got two already. We need to figure out what that means for our future,” Rohatgi says.

In District C, O’Brien said he opposes additional data centers in Granger and expressed concerns about an existing project.

“I am unconditionally opposed to any additional data centers in Granger, and honestly I’m not happy that we’ve got one coming in to begin with,” O’Brien says.

Cervelli, the Democratic candidate in District C, said she supports a ban on new data centers or expansions.

“It starts with a ban — a ban on no new data centers or expansions,” Cervelli says.

The candidates also discussed what they have learned about data center development and local government during their campaigns and time in office.

Thomas said construction associated with Amazon’s data center project has affected residents in New Carlisle, particularly because of increased traffic.

“Olive Township residents in New Carlisle have put up with thousands and thousands of cars every day,” Thomas says. “It’s been very upsetting to their lifestyle and it’s disturbed them.”

Drake said the county has had to learn about data centers, tax abatements and other issues as development has progressed.

“We had to learn about data centers just like everybody else,” Drake says. “We had to learn about abatements. You’re always learning and building.”

For candidates running for office for the first time, the pace of technological development and other local issues have helped motivate their campaigns.

“I’ve been very disappointed over the last four years to see our local politics become more like our national politics — ugly, divisive, people not able to work across the aisle,” Rohatgi says. “I’m someone who is willing to work with anybody to solve our local issues.”

Cervelli says she wants to establish a county oversight body made up of residents and experts to address concerns related to data center operations.

“I want to create an official oversight body by the county that will include residents and experts, where we can sit down when problems arise,” Cervelli said. “Whether it’s air pollution, sound pollution, water issues, we can sit down with Microsoft and work through those problems.”

The county council candidates will continue campaigning ahead of the November general election, when voters will decide several local, state and federal races. Indiana’s general election is scheduled for Nov. 3.