Shan Sheridan spoke to the Frankfort Rotary Club Thursday at noon. Sheridan is the Executive Director of the Clinton County Chamber of Commerce and part of the Economic Development Team in Clinton County.
Sheridan outlined some of the issues and opportunities concerning the proposed Data Center in Clinton County. He started with a general overview of considerations for economic development in any community.
At the end of this article, we included the Clinton County Area Plan Commission Staff Report which was referenced in his talk. This staff report read in the January 6 Skanta Theatre meeting can be viewed below.
According to Sheridan, three things are critical for economic development in any community:
- Attraction
- Retention
- Expansion
The $159,000,000 Frito Lay expansion followed by the additional $70,000,000 expansion at Frito Lay, ADM’s expansion project and Tenneco’s $375,000,000 expansion are great economic ‘wins’ for the community because an “Expansion” is closely tied to “Retention.” The new investment reinforces the likelihood for that business to stay, grow and prosper in the community.
Much has been said recently in Clinton County about the proposed new Data Center. Sheridan shared some information about the proposed Data Center and talked about its positive referral to the Clinton County Commissioners by the Clinton County Area Plan Commission heard January 6th. The staff report for that hearing is included in this article, including 14 attached ‘commitments’.
“If you use a cell phone, you use a data center”, Sheridan said.
Sheridan said “As we drive by many factories in Clinton County, most people have no idea what goes on inside these buildings.” Many people drive by Centurian Solutions next to the airport. Centurion Solutions houses parts for the Catapiller plant in Lafayette in its 190,000 square foot facility yet most residents did not know that. So what is the Data Center project? As we drive by, what is going on?
The Data Center project in question is really three industrial projects folded together.
1. ‘Data One’ Data Center campus construction based on a “sustainable approach” to designing Data Centers. This means using Closed-loop cooling technology to cool the components placed inside the Data Center, using much less water than earlier or cheaper “pump and dump” water systems. This would permanently employ approximately “one job per Megawatt,” or eventually about 300 people in jobs ranging “from $85,000 to $115,000 per year,” Sheridan said. The proposed data center would consume 300 Megawatts of power.
2. Pre-Cast Construction Company would build walls, etc. for the Data Center structures plus become a supplier for residential basement wall solutions for housing projects. Particularly attractive to the proposed Pre-Cast firm is a system for building pre-cast residential walls. This product promotes dry basements through a casting process and system designed for residential basement walls. The location of the Precast company would be south (and east) of the existing ConAgra building. The Pre-Cast company owned by John Ruga would “employ about 200 people full time,” Sheridan said.
3. Giga Farm is an agricultural operation specializing in large amounts of inside vertically arraigned high value plants grown with high value hybrids and soils in a controlled environment. The Giga Farm interior environment would be heated year round by the heat energy produced by the Data Center, utilizing the same “closed loop” type system.
How much revenue for Clinton County would be produced from the Data Center campus comprised of the Data One Data Center, Casting Plant and Giga Farm?
Currently Frito Lay generates 1.5 Million in Taxes for the Community annually. The proposed data center, Pre-Cast Company and Giga Farm would bring in “4 to 10 Million dollars annually” Sheridan said.
Publisher’s Note: Under current Indiana law (IC 6-2.5-15) titled ‘Data Center Gross Retail and Use Tax Exemption’, exempts qualifying data center equipment and the electricity used to run it from state sales and use tax for 25 years, extendable up to 50 years for investments over $750 Million. Under current law, the sales tax savings from these exemptions accrue to the data center operator, not directly to the host county or city; the state simply forgoes the tax that would have been collected. Communities can negotiate separate benefits to capture some value back, typically via:
- Payment-in-lieu-of-taxes (PILOT) or service-fee agreements tied to infrastructure, public safety, or schools.
- Conditioning local property tax abatements or zoning approvals on specific community-benefit commitments (road upgrades, parks, broadband, training funds, etc.)
Practical Leverage for a host county:
- Counties in Indiana have discretion over property-tax abatements on real and personal property, which are often what the company wants most beyond the state-level sales-tax exemption: this is the key bargaining chip to produce recurring community payments or projects.
- Because sales-tax exemptions and energy-tax breaks are largely locked in at the state level, any “share” of that value for the community must be created through local negotiations and written agreements, not through automatic state revenue-sharing.
Sheridan concluded that local negotiations and discussions with Data One are currently ongoing concerning the 14 commitments (and possibly others) that were a part of the Clinton County Area Plan Commission Staff Report/January 6th Area Plan Vote. Additionally negotiations are also underway locally for any PILOT funding or other community building revenue that may be a part of the possible agreement.
Assurances and “Teeth” behind these 14 commitments and other enduring conditions and local financial agreements are now being discussed and negotiated.
It remains to be seen if any of this will bear fruit for Data One, the casting plant, the ‘Giga Farm’ or the Clinton County Community.
The entire Clinton County Area Plan Commission Staff Report follows including the 14 conditions listed as a part of the recommendations.
Shan Sheridan came to the Frankfort area 43 years ago in 1983 as a Youth Pastor. Now he might be introduced as “The busiest guy in Clinton County”. Sheridan is active first and foremost as the Executive Director of the Clinton County Chamber of Commerce and part of the Economic Development Team at the Iron Block building and serves as a Pastor at the New Hope Church. The Church is located at 5306 W. County Road 600 S. in Clinton County.
Sheridan is also involved in the lives of area youth as a football coach at Clinton Prairie and hosts WILO’s Local Live Talk Show “Partyline” on Tuesday’s and Thursday’s, serves on the Crossing School Board, NCIRPC (North Central Indiana Regional Planning Council) board and Indiana University Health White Memorial Hospital, Inc. Sheridan also owns part of Glover’s Ice Cream, one of Indiana’s last independent ice cream manufacturer in the state.
Sheridan was recognized as a ‘Sagamore of the Wabash’ on September 16, 2024. The ‘Sagamore of the Wabash’ award is the highest honor regularly or typically bestowed by an Indiana Governor on individuals.
Sheridan mentioned an Update on the history of Glover’s Ice Cream on the Nate Spangle “Get IN” program, CLICK: https://youtu.be/oq01X4m-p2E?si=45aB0BudVYupjfah