INDIANAPOLIS (WRTV) — A group of local clergy who’ve organized against the Metrobloks data center in the Martindale-Brightwood neighborhood says it's ready to organize against any city officials who’ve supported the project.
The Black Church Coalition is calling for a stop to any incentives for the data center. Coalition leaders said they’ve reached out to Mayor Joe Hogsett’s office at least three times to discuss the project, but were never granted an audience with the mayor.
“Do not dismiss us. Do not ignore us. Do not disrespect us,” Pastor Fitz Lyons, Jr. said during a press conference outside Galilee Missionary Baptist Church on Thursday. About two dozen coalition members came together and made it clear they see data centers as a defining issue in the next mayoral race.
“Eliminating access to your office will eliminate your access to our congregations come campaign season,” said Pastor Regan Robinson of St. John's Missionary Baptist Church.
As WRTV Investigates reported in April, Mayor Hogsett, a Democrat, is considering another bid for re-election. All five speakers during Thursday’s press conference took time to address Hogsett specifically.
“Mayor Joe Hogsett, you have come to our BBQs, you have done the cupid shuffle with us… You've even hit the boots on the ground,” Pastor Jarrod Hubbard of Mt. Pisgah Baptist Church said. “But when we call you to stand with our community, to stand with our neighbors, we don't get a call back on the phone.”
The Indianapolis Metropolitan Development Commission approved rezoning for the Metrobloks data center on April 1 despite heavy public opposition.
Critics have raised concerns about noise from the data center, environmental impacts, and the desire for other types of developments. Metrobloks has said its data center will revitalize a long-vacant property and lead to massive investment in the Martindale-Brightwood neighborhood.
Along with a call to stop any incentives, the Black Church Coalition said it still believes there’s a chance the development will be stopped altogether. Councilmember Ron Gibson, a Democrat who’s supported the project, told WRTV Investigates that the Metrobloks data center is already a “done deal.”
Gibson said he’s currently part of negotiations on the tax abatements for Metrobloks. The California-based company has made a $2.5 million commitment to invest in affordable housing and infrastructure around the property, but said it could increase that investment to $20 million based on the size of the abatements.
Pastor Lyons doesn’t trust that the promises being made publicly will have a significant impact on his congregation.
“$20 million will break down to little for this community. What’s important is where are the jobs? What opportunities are made available for food places, so that we can come out of the (food) desert that we're in?” Pastor Lyons said.
A group of Martindale-Brightwood residents, along with the Hoosier Environmental Council, has called for a judicial review of the Metrobloks rezoning. When WRTV Investigates reached out to Mayor Hogsett’s office, a spokesperson declined to comment, citing pending litigation.
