Residents of Ashville, the village just south of Columbus, are taking their fight over a controversial data center project to the Ohio Supreme Court after the village’s fiscal officer blocked a referendum that would have let voters weigh in on the deal.
The dispute centers on a framework agreement the Village Council approved in April that temporarily lifts Ashville’s moratorium on data centers and clears the path for two large EdgeConneX facilities and an on-site natural gas power plant.
According to Cleveland.com, petition organizers say the Pickaway County Board of Elections certified 669 valid signatures on May 22, more than the 498 required to put the question on the ballot. But in late June, Ashville fiscal officer April Grube rejected the petition as insufficient and invalid, a move that kept the referendum off the November ballot. The residents have now asked the Ohio Supreme Court to step in, according to the court filing described in the report.
Deal terms and moratorium suspension
The council’s April vote on Resolution 06-2026 approved a Development and Supply Agreement term summary that spells out the scope of the EdgeConneX project and the promised local benefits. As detailed in the village’s Resolution 06-2026, the term sheet calls for two data center buildings on roughly 195 acres, a "behind-the-meter" natural gas energy center and up to $102,000,000 in support for Ashville, Harrison Township and the Teays Valley Local School District.
Why officials say the petition failed
Grube told election officials that council passed the measure as an emergency and that the resolution operates as an administrative contract, which she said makes it ineligible for a referendum under Ohio law. Local coverage described her letter as labeling the petition “fatally flawed” and noted that the Board of Elections had already returned the certified signatures to the village on May 22, weeks before Grube issued her late June rejection. Scioto Post reviewed the letter and the timeline.
Legal fight headed to the Ohio Supreme Court
The residents’ filing asks the state’s highest court to decide whether the fiscal officer had the authority to keep the measure off the ballot, a legal question that could influence how cities and villages across Ohio use emergency declarations or contracts to shield deals from referendums, as reported by Cleveland.com. The court papers seek review of Grube’s ruling and request expedited consideration so the dispute can be resolved in time for the fall election calendar.
How Ashville fits into the wider debate
The Ashville clash taps into a broader statewide debate over the rapid spread of data centers and the rise of on-site “behind-the-meter” power plants, which critics say can sidestep traditional permitting and public oversight. Policy Matters Ohio has warned that BTM projects can bypass grid interconnection and regulatory review. Earlier annexation disputes and on-site power plants in the Ashville area have already drawn attention in local and industry coverage, per Data Center Dynamics.
What’s next
The term summary projected an aggressive schedule. It anticipated that a full development agreement would be executed by May 7 and that the Ohio Power Siting Board would review the project, with a decision expected around October, according to the village’s Resolution 06-2026.
With the Supreme Court petition now in play, the next several weeks will determine whether Ashville voters get to weigh in at the ballot box or whether the Development and Supply Agreement proceeds on the timetable laid out in the resolution.
