PIQUA — A community group is planning to take legal action against the Piqua City Council’s approval of a data center project.
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As reported on News Center 7 at 11:00, the group, Save Piqua, said they were not adequately heard during the approval process and cites concerns about environmental and economic impacts for the city.
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The Piqua City Council has already approved the data center project for a property in the city.
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As previously reported, News Center 7 doesn’t know the company behind this project yet because of a non-disclosure agreement that the I-Team found out about.
Save Piqua’s primary concerns include potential impacts on local waterways, light pollution, electrical costs, air quality, and short and long-term property values.
On Thursday, dozens of people gathered to plan strategies on how to stop the development.
Cree St. Meyer, a leader of Save Piqua, said he is optimistic about the group’s efforts.
“At the end of this, this will be a positive thing for our town and our county,” Meyer said.
>>RELATED: ‘We’ve been ignored;’ Community gathers for another protest against data center plans in Piqua
Save Piqua got a lawyer and plans to file a lawsuit.
They hope to get an injunction soon to stop production.
“I would say that has a lot to do with the generations that come after all of us,” Meyer said.
During the meeting, Karl Beck, a Piqua resident, expressed support for the data center, calling it an economic driver.
“I have compassion for them, I know they mean well, that is the truth,” Beck said. “It’s not a data center that can use it for bad, it’s, it’s a people issue.”
Katie Koehler Wagner, a Piqua resident and guest speaker at the meeting, said elected leaders should attend such meetings to listen to voters’ concerns.
Wagner urged continued advocacy, citing concerns about a potential expansion of the data center.
“We need to keep pushing, we need to keep pushing, because they’re going to expand,” Wagner said.
News Center 7 will continue to follow this story.
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