Trenton, Ohio, weighs data center ban as Amazon pitches residents
Amazon Web Services met residents of Trenton, Ohio, on Thursday ahead of a November 3 vote on a data center ban. Issue 17 would bar data centers that need more than 25 megawatts of power. The same night, the city council dropped plans for resident perks that hinged on the measure failing.
Amazon Web Services held an open house for residents of Trenton, Ohio, at the Edgewood Middle School gym on Thursday, WVXU and FOX19 reported. The company wants to build a data center near the Butler County city, and voters will decide on a ban on November 3, FOX19 and the Journal-News reported.
The ballot measure, Issue 17, would ban data centers that need more than 25 megawatts of power, the Journal-News and FOX19 reported. It reached the ballot after an Ohio Supreme Court ruling, the Journal-News reported. WVXU reported that the planned site covers 600 acres of farmland and would hold 18 buildings.
Brandon Oyer, the AWS director of energy and water, said the site would use water for cooling only 3% of the year and no more than 21 million gallons a year, WVXU reported. "We'll make sure that we pay for our fair share of the infrastructure," Oyer said, according to WVXU. "People genuinely are interested in what we are proposing to do," said John Workman, an AWS economic development manager, according to FOX19. The sheriff's office said the event stayed quiet and civil, FOX19 reported.
Some neighbors were not won over. "We just don't want this," said Joe Deaton, who lives in St. Clair Township near the site, WVXU reported. WVXU reported that AWS has not bought the land and will decide its next steps after the vote.
Also on Thursday, the city council voted to withdraw resolutions that offered residents financial benefits if Issue 17 failed, WVXU and the Journal-News reported. The Journal-News reported that the vote was unanimous and followed advice from legal counsel. City Manager Marcos Nichols called the resolutions a "mistake," according to WVXU and the Journal-News. "It's a mistake to offer or make legislation dependent upon an election result," Nichols said, the Journal-News reported.
At the end of the meeting, Mayor Ryan Perry announced he will resign effective January 1, 2027, WVXU reported.
What we know: Trenton votes November 3 on Issue 17, and the council has dropped incentives tied to the outcome.
What we don't: Whether AWS will go ahead with the site if voters reject the ban.
Where outlets agree WVXU and the Journal-News both report that the Trenton council withdrew the incentive resolutions on Thursday, and the Journal-News and FOX19 both report that Issue 17 targets data centers over 25 megawatts.
Where they differ The outlets cited here report the same key facts so far.