Are Data Centers Allowed in the City of Findlay?

BY CAREY MORGAN

FINDLAY - According to Hancock County Regional Planning Director Matt Cordonnier, data centers would not currently be permitted to be built in Findlay. At the March 12, 2026 meeting of the Findlay Planning and Zoning Committee, Councilman Danny DeLong initiated discussion on the topic due to concerns raised by Findlay constituents.

When questioned about the possibility, Cordonnier responded it is currently not permitted by zoning rules on the books.

“We met with Rob Feighner, the City Law Director, and presented our information," Cordonnier said. "Based on his experience, he agreed that the city’s code does not permit data centers within the City of Findlay. So if someone called my office after this meeting and said, ‘We’re a developer out of Texas interested in a parcel in the City of Findlay and we want to build a data center,’ the response would be: ‘Data centers are not permitted in the City of Findlay.’”

Cordonnier went on to explain the reasoning behind this interpretation.

“My initial opinion, as a planner who has worked with this code for a while, is that the way our zoning code works is through permitted and conditional uses. If the use you’re proposing is not listed, that means it is not permitted. Data centers are a fairly new use, and because they are not listed as a permitted use, they are therefore not permitted.”

Residents of Findlay have been watching nearby communities place moratoriums on data center development. However, Cordonnier does not believe that such a measure is necessary in Findlay. He explained that the zoning code would first have to be amended to allow data centers, and any such change would require approval from both the Planning and Zoning Committee and Findlay City Council.

Cordonnier further noted that he reviewed the current zoning codes and definitions to determine whether existing categories—such as industrial or warehouse uses—could potentially accommodate a data center. He concluded that the warehouse definition clearly requires products to move in and out of the facility, meaning a data center could not be “shoehorned” into that classification as a permitted use.

Findlay City Council will meet March 17, 2026, at 6:00 p.m. The meeting will also be broadcast on the City of Findlay YouTube channel.