MORGAN COUNTY — Some members of the Morgan County Redevelopment Commission (RDC) grumbled about Google at the RDC’s meeting last week, saying the company was not doing enough to change the perception many Morgan County residents hold regarding the company’s data center in Monroe Township, just outside Monrovia.
Discussion about Google’s public relations efforts came up when RDC consultant Chelsey Manns brought up the needs of the Monroe Township Fire Department, which currently does not have a ladder truck or sufficient personnel to staff one.
A ladder truck would likely be necessary to serve Google’s data center campus in the event of a fire. Manns said she and Morgan County Commissioner Mike Kirsch — who was in attendance at the meeting — had discussed possible funding mechanisms for the multi-million-dollar truck, and a member of the RDC implied that Google might help with paying for the truck.
RDC member Brad Shields then aired some grievances about Google, unfavorably comparing the company to Meta, which is currently building a $10 billion data center campus in Lebanon. Shields said Google doing things like providing some ice cream at the county fair was not enough, and “nowhere near what Meta is doing” in Lebanon.
“Meta is doing a lot in Lebanon,” Shields said.
“Google is doing a lot,” replied RDC member Kim Meredith.
“Nowhere near what Meta is doing,” Shields said again.
Meta plans to spend upwards of $165 million in local infrastructure in Lebanon, including roads, water and wastewater, according to its website. That figure is far more than Google has announced in Morgan County.
RDC chair Carole Snyder said a lot of the work Google does in Morgan County is behind the scenes.
“Stop doing it behind the scenes and do it in public,” said RDC member Troy Sprinkle.
Many Morgan County residents have been against Google’s plans to build a data center near Monrovia ever since the project was announced in early 2025. Some local officials have said in public and private that Google has not done enough to convince local residents to change their minds about the prospect of a data center moving in next door.
Trade school TIF?
Toward the end of the RDC meeting, Manns reported that she, Shields and Snyder recently visited Hancock County’s $46 million trade school, something that was partially funded through tax increment financing (TIF).
TIF districts, a prevalent government funding strategy used throughout the country, are areas in which a municipality or county uses future property tax increases to fund community improvement projects such as local infrastructure, while other taxing units — like school districts, for example — are capped at the base value for 25 years.
Manns noted that there are currently plans in Martinsville to start a public-private trade school at the former Marsh supermarket building on Morton Avenue.
Last year, private resident Justin Clements purchased the building, and he and the Metropolitan School District of Martinsville have been in the school’s planning stage. The school district will largely be involved in staffing the school.
Manns said given the enormous cost of the trade school in Hancock County, she believes the Morgan County RDC should soon begin having discussions about the possibility of creating a TIF district in order to help fund the trade school.
Proponents of TIF districts insist that they encourage economic growth by improving local infrastructure, arguing that businesses would not invest in the community if not for the infrastructure upgrades financed through TIF districts. In the case of the trade school, the RDC could argue that the school would not open without intervention from the county.
Critics of TIF districts dislike that other taxing units like schools, libraries and townships do not see assessed value increases. They also contend that TIF districts contribute to higher tax rates for residents, as TIF funds are not counted toward the county’s tax goals, thus requiring taxpayers to make up the shortfall.
The next meeting of the Morgan County RDC will be Oct. 8 at 8:30 a.m. at the Morgan County Administration Building, 180 S. Main St.
