PHOTO BY BRENNA WHITE / THE VILLAGE REPORTER
HEARING CITIZEN CONCERNS … Administrator Aaron Alt and Mayor Brad Grime discuss a proposed moratorium limit for data centers, which would temporarily ban applications for upwards of 24 to 36 months. Any proposed timeline is subject to change.
By: Brenna White
THE VILLAGE REPORTER
publisher@thevillagereporter.com
Archbold Village Council addressed a growing public concern Monday evening, March 2, 2026, regarding a rumored data center project near the village’s southeastern border.
The meeting, relocated from council chambers to accommodate the large crowd, followed a February 9, 2026 German Township Trustees session focused on land recently acquired near Fulton County Road C.
Iron Ridge Development confirms the company has purchased 75.72 acres of agricultural land in German Township for approximately $1.8 million.
They also hold an option-to-purchase agreement allowing them to acquire 135 additional acres at $50,000 an acre.
An Ordinance and Resolution Committee meeting was held prior to the regular session. Council members Mike Evans, Kevin Eicher, and Aaron Babcock reviewed a moratorium, or temporary ban, proposal from Administrator Aaron Alt.
The proposed moratorium would temporarily halt the acceptance of applications for “high-intensity industrial and infrastructure-dependent uses, including data centers, advanced manufacturing facilities, and hot and cold storage facilities.”
The committee ultimately voted to advance the recommendation to the full council for approval. The initial length of time for the moratorium was requested to be 24 to 36 months, but that has the potential to change.
Council is scheduled to conduct the first of three readings at its March 16, 2026, meeting at 5:30 p.m.
Subsequent readings are planned for April 6, 2026 and April 20, 2026. If approved, the moratorium would take effect 30 days after the third and final reading.
Alt emphasized the importance of taking a measured and legally sound approach as Council considers the next steps.
“We need to make sure we have the right parameters set up so we’re truly balancing what we’re trying to do,” Alt explained.
He further noted the need to avoid language that could lead to legal challenges, stating, “We can’t do exclusionary zoning. At the end of the day, you can’t say data centers are not permitted.”
Alt said communities can “put every parameter in place that would probably make it undesirable for somebody to build one in Archbold, but you can’t say no.”
The administrator also mentioned that the moratorium language can be amended during the three-reading process and even rescinded if necessary. The Council is carefully considering verbiage to avoid any legal issues.
During the regular session, previously mentioned non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) connected to the land purchase were discussed.
Council member Gary Dominique, who had earlier stated he signed an NDA with Iron Ridge Development, will abstain from any voting on the moratorium.
Dominique said he has since been “dismissed,” and therefore absolved, from the NDA. Representatives from the Iron Ridge Development and the Fulton County Economic Development Corporation have also described such agreements as a standard practice in real estate and economic development matters.
“I did this on my behalf because I see everyone of you here. I did not sign an NDA to go against our community, our people that live here,” Dominique said.
“I did it for business as Greg stated. When you sign an NDA, you don’t know what you’re signing for – and I have signed more than one.” Council member Dominique stated that he had a mutual termination from the NDA on February 26, 2026.
A concerned citizen spoke about potential conflicts of interest between Dominique and the Iron Ridge Development.
“You admitted that you have a conflict of interest because of your business interests. You are a sub-contractor for Boyers Construction on most of his yields,” she stated.
“By you doing this, if you actually take part in this project, which you signed an NDA, we have to assume you’re a part of this because nobody else signed one.
“How can you sit up here and say just because you don’t have an NDA anymore, that that somehow absolves you from your conflict of interest?” the citizen questioned.
A Purple Heart veteran, Jason Whitehead, took the time to address the large crowd. He explained that during his research he found advertising information about Northwest Ohio.
“Northwest Ohio specifically is being advertised and pitched online by RGP Ohio as a prime location for data centers,” he explained.
“Straight from their own website, some of the reasons they list are our power, water, and land, and I quote here, ‘Northwest Ohio needs to capitalize on this golden opportunity.’”
“They also mention our good land and good energy with wide open farmland to build these big data centers,” Whitehead continued.
“They talk about our natural gas resources, they say the land is located near power infrastructure, and at a reasonable price.
“They advertise as flat and easy to build on. They even feel so bold as to advertise us as having an unlimited water supply.”
Whitehead expressed that he did not wish his children to live in an area so close to a data center.
“We’re with you,” Mayor Brad Grime said at the end of the meeting. “I don’t want a data center in this community, absolutely not. We’re going to do everything that we can to prevent that from happening.”
“We’re on your side,” Babcock affirmed. “We don’t think you are trying to prohibit any further growth. We hear you… we’re trying to go the best route that we see plausible.”
Notably, Iron Ridge Development and Fulton County Economic Development Corp. Executive Director Jim Wyse have both stated during previous public meetings that there are no current development plans for a data center.
As the council prepares for its upcoming readings, officials emphasized their commitment to transparency, due process, and balancing growth with the character and infrastructure of the Village of Archbold.
The next Village Council meeting will take place Monday, March 16, 2026, at 5:30 p.m.
Update: Data center conversation continues at March 16 Archbold Village Council meeting