WithdrawnWorseningRisk Index — Q1 2026

Google Data Center — Franklin Township, Indianapolis

Name: Data Center Entitlement Risk Index Q1 2026
Creator: RealClear
Published: 2026-03-29

Franklin Township, Marion County, Indiana

13/100

CRITICAL RISK

Trajectory: Five Indiana counties enacted data center moratoriums since 2025. Citizens Action Coalition called for statewide moratorium. HB 1333 (allowing DCs on agricultural land) died in committee.

Last updated 2026-03-29

Google assembled 467 acres of Indiana farmland through a shell company called Deep Meadow Ventures. The community found out. Protect Franklin Township collected 2,550 petition signatures, the Civic League organized hearings, and billboards went up across Indianapolis. Seventeen of twenty-five city councilors turned against the project. Google withdrew minutes before the vote.

Google's $1B project went from filing to withdrawal in 6 months. The MDC approved 8-1, but the City-County Council was 17-25 against — including all 6 Republicans.

Protect Franklin Township, led by Andrew Filler, ran a textbook opposition campaign: petitions, formal remonstrances, packed hearings, and coordinated council lobbying.

Five Indiana counties have enacted data center moratoriums since 2025 (Marshall, White, Putnam, Fulton, Starke). The Citizens Action Coalition is calling for a statewide moratorium.

HB 1333, which would have allowed data centers on agricultural land without local zoning approval, died in committee. The legislature will not override local opposition.

Dimension Breakdown

Four dimensions that determine entitlement feasibility.

Regulatory Risk

30 pts

3/30

Full rezoning required from D-A/C-4/SU-43 to C-S. Flood overlay zones added independent regulatory complexity. Three sequential approvals needed: MDC hearing examiner, MDC commission vote, and City-County Council.

Score: 3/30. Full rezoning required from dwelling-agricultural to commercial-special. Three sequential approval bodies. The council call-down process gave a single district councilor the power to force a full vote — and he used it.

Infrastructure Readiness

25 pts

10/25

AES Indiana serves the area with 3.9 GW across three plants. A single hyperscaler could ramp up by 1 GW. AES stated it has electricity for currently proposed DCs but may need gas turbines by 2030.

Score: 10/25. AES Indiana has 3.9 GW capacity, but a single hyperscaler could consume 1 GW — over 25% of total. AES stated it may need to build a new power plant. The utility is now building a 1,200 MW substation in Morgan County — 30 minutes away.

Opposition Density

25 pts

0/25

Organized multi-group coalition: Protect Franklin Township (Andrew Filler) and Franklin Township Civic League. Change.org petition gathered 2,550+ signatures. 75+ remonstrators at MDC and hundreds at City-County Council. 17 of 25 Council members publicly opposed.

Score: 0/25. This is the most severe opposition outcome possible: organized multi-group coalition forced a strategic withdrawal before the vote. 2,550+ petition signatures. 75+ remonstrators at MDC. Billboards purchased across Indianapolis.

Approval Timeline

20 pts

0/20

Petition filed March 2025, withdrawn September 2025 — 6 months with no approval achieved. Full pathway would have taken 9-12+ months even without opposition delays.

Score: 0/20. Six months from filing to withdrawal with no approval achieved. The full regulatory pathway would have required 9-12 months minimum even without opposition.

Key Findings

What the record shows.

Deep Meadow Ventures LLC (Google) filed to rezone 467.66 acres from D-A/C-4/SU-43 to C-S in Franklin Township.

MDC Hearing Examiner Agenda, April 10, 2025

17 of 25 City-County Council members — including all 6 Republicans — publicly opposed the project.

Mirror Indy: Google data center draws opposition

Google withdrew the petition on September 22, 2025, minutes before the Council vote.

WTHR: Google Pulls Franklin Township Data Center Plan

Five Indiana counties (Marshall, White, Putnam, Fulton, Starke) enacted data center moratoriums between February 2025 and March 2026.

IBJ: 3 counties put moratoriums on data center projects

Key Officials

The decision-makers on record.

Michael-Paul Hart

City-County Councilor, District 20

Opposed

Documented Record

Used council call-down process to force petition to full council vote after MDC approved 8-1.

Documented position based on public record.

Indianapolis City-County Council

Legislative body

Opposed

Documented Record

17 of 25 members publicly opposed the project.

Documented position based on public record.

Opposition Profile

Who is organizing.

5 signalshigh infrastructure

Protect Franklin Township — organized by Andrew Filler, led sustained campaign

Franklin Township Civic League — participated in hearings and opposition materials

Change.org petition gathered 2,550+ signatures

Citizens Action Coalition called for statewide moratorium

Billboards purchased across Indianapolis opposing the project

Timeline

How it unfolded.

June 12, 2025

MDC hearing examiner heard the petition, continued to June 26.

August 20, 2025

MDC voted 8-1 to approve rezoning and forward to Council.

September 22, 2025

Google withdrew the petition minutes before Council vote.

Known Risks

What could change.

Active risk factors documented in public record.

Full rezoning required with flood overlay complexity

Organized multi-group coalition with 2,550+ petition signatures

17 of 25 Council members publicly opposed

Five Indiana county moratoriums signal statewide hostility

Recommendation

CRITICAL RISK — Score 13/100

Critical Risk. Google withdrew after supermajority Council opposition. Indiana moratorium wave makes the state increasingly hostile for agricultural-land data center siting.

Sources