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Ohio Supreme Court blocks ballot measure targeting AWS data center

Ohio Supreme Court blocks ballot measure targeting AWS data center

Rule Changes

Ruling strips cities of the citizen-suit tool; federal case still stalls the $4B Wilmington campus

Today: ENR reports stalled project

Overview

Updated 47 minutes ago

Ohio's Supreme Court barred a citizen-initiated ballot measure that would have let Wilmington residents sue Amazon Web Services over its planned $4 billion data center campus. The 6-1 ruling on Sept. 18 said cities can't create private rights of action through zoning ordinances.

The proposed ordinance would have capped noise, lighting, air emissions, generator testing, and water and heat output. It also let nearby residents sue for violations and seek penalties of up to $10,000 a day, plus court-ordered suspension of operations.

Voters in Wilmington won't weigh in, but the fight isn't over. A separate federal court order has kept the city's planning commission from approving the campus site plan since July. Eighteen other Ohio communities will vote on data center restrictions this November.

Why it matters

With citizen suits off the table, Ohio towns face data center votes this November with only zoning and elected officials as local levers.

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Key Indicators

$4 billion
AWS planned capital investment
Amazon's proposed investment in the nine-building Wilmington campus.
18
Ohio communities with data center ballot measures
Data center questions on the Nov. 3 general election ballot across the state.
9
Buildings planned at Wilmington campus
Roughly 1.92 million sq ft of data center space total.
200
Construction jobs expected
AWS projects a five-plus-year build with 100+ permanent jobs and an $8 million annual payroll.

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People Involved

Organizations Involved

Timeline

August 2025 September 2026

6 events Latest: Today
Tap a bar to jump to that date
  1. ENR reports stalled project

    Today Reporting

    Engineering News-Record details utility design progress while site plan remains blocked by federal order.

  2. AWS site annexed into Wilmington

    Zoning

    471 acres annexed into the city and zoned light industrial for the proposed campus.

Scenarios

1

AWS Wilmington campus wins approval, construction begins

Possible Resolves by Q2 2027

Discussed by: Engineering News-Record; Clinton County Port Authority

Wilmington's council ratifies or reworks the three zoning ordinances, clearing the federal injunction. The planning commission then approves AWS's site plan after the required 14-day notice, and construction begins on the five-plus-year build with 200 construction jobs and the $25 million in public infrastructure AWS has agreed to fund.

2

AWS abandons Wilmington as delays mount

Unlikely Resolves by Jan 31, 2028

Discussed by: Engineering News-Record reporting on AWS's silence on schedule

If the federal case drags through 2027 and Wilmington's council won't redo the ordinances, AWS's timeline slips. AWS has not publicly committed to a Wilmington construction schedule, and the $4 billion figure is a proposal, not a contract. The company could exercise options in other states where permitting is cleaner.

3

Ohio towns pass data center restrictions in November votes

Possible Resolves by Nov 3, 2026

Discussed by: News From The States reporting on 18 ballot measures

On Nov. 3, voters in 18 Ohio communities decide data center measures, including a referendum against a proposed Ashville data center and a 25-megawatt ban in Trenton. Some measures will pass. The court's ruling means none can rely on citizen suits, so measures lean on zoning, conditional use, and permitting instead. A win anywhere sets a template for other towns.

Historical Context

2 moments from history that rhyme with this story — and how they unfolded.

September 2017 - February 2019

Amazon HQ2 (2017-2019)

Amazon's 2017 search for a second headquarters drew bids from 238 cities offering tax breaks and incentives. In November 2018 the company split the prize between Arlington, Virginia, and New York's Long Island City.

Then

Local opposition in Queens, led by state senator Michael Gianaris, killed the Long Island City plan in February 2019. Amazon walked away without building there.

Now

The episode showed community resistance can upend a marquee tech siting deal even after a formal commitment.

Why this matters now

Wilmington's fight echoes that dynamic: a large AWS investment facing local pushback through zoning and ballot measures rather than through incentives.

2023 - 2024

Northern Virginia data center zoning fights (2023-2024)

Counties across Northern Virginia debated data center growth amid complaints about noise, water use, power demand, and land prices. Prince William County's board held marathon hearings on whether to rezone rural land for data centers.

Then

Opponents forced votes and postponements; some rezoning proposals were defeated or scaled back.

Now

Local zoning became the main arena for data center debates across the region.

Why this matters now

Wilmington's ballot measure is another local attempt to control data center impacts, blocked here by state-law limits on citizen suits.

Sources

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