OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Columbus City Council Meeting - July 8, 2026

Meeting Portal — Wednesday, July 8, 2026
BodyColumbus, Indiana
SessionMeeting Portal
DateWednesday, July 8, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 19:27

Transcript — Verbatim
0:00

So long since we've been here.

0:02

Well you are gone for your first week of June meeting, and it's the way it has everyone.

0:10

I'm pretty sure that the wind is coming.

0:12

Okay, so nobody's gonna be online.

0:13

Obviously, people are not thinking so Elaine's coming.

0:40

I know she is.

0:42

I know she's coming.

0:43

We have a full house, but we that's everybody.

0:48

In the truck?

0:49

In the truck.

0:50

She's a minute later.

0:52

I'm gonna see me.

0:53

By the time you get through the CV radio or what?

1:05

Yeah.

1:10

Waiting for you.

1:16

I just don't think we're careful.

1:21

Grace.

1:26

I know police.

1:30

Okay.

1:31

Hi, sorry.

1:32

Now that we're all here.

1:33

Yes, please continue.

1:34

Sorry.

1:35

We will go ahead and call this July 8th City Council meeting in order.

1:39

First item on the agenda is indications followed by the clause of allegiance.

1:44

Grace is going to um yeah.

1:45

I'm gonna introduce Jen Riddle, who is with us this evening.

1:48

She's the director of children, youth, and young adult ministries at First Presbyterian Church.

1:53

So please rise up your April and we'll follow by the Pledge of Allegiance.

1:59

Let us pray.

2:01

Gracious God, as we gather today as neighbors and citizens of Columbus, grateful for this community we share, and for those who accepted the responsibility of public service.

2:14

As our nation just celebrated the 250th anniversary of its founding, remind us that the work of justice, compassion, and unity is never complete.

2:26

Help us to continue building a community where every person is valued and every voice is heard.

2:34

Please grant the members of this council wisdom and their decisions, courage to choose what is right, and humility as they serve the people of this city.

2:45

Guide their work toward the common good and care for those who are most vulnerable with hope for generations yet to come.

2:55

We ask that all that is said and done here today on our both our neighbors and you.

5:00

Such a facility would likely include a telephone service exchange, data center, and server farm.

5:04

So currently a communication service exchange is something that's permitted in all of our industrial zoning districts and all of our commercial zoning districts.

5:14

So it's a permitted use.

5:48

So understanding that currently they're permitted in a lot of our zoning districts, it just seems prudent that we with the scale of those potentially being a lot larger, that we move this into a category that's not permitted, but a conditional use.

6:06

So what that allows is with the conditional use, those cases go before the Board of Zoning Appeals and are evaluated on a case by case basis.

6:16

So they are able to look at the context of the area that they're going, they're able to look at the size of the of the facility that's being proposed and can kind of weigh those um those issues into the decision.

6:31

So that's pretty much the the change that's being made is is making it permitted to a conditional use.

6:37

That conditional use also does require a public hearing, so um the public surrounding property owners would be notified of any potential change there.

6:48

And I can answer any questions.

6:51

I do have a question, Melissa.

6:53

Is there a reason why we wouldn't remove it from just a loud use?

6:56

Is this the only thing that we can do is move it to conditional use?

7:00

Um we felt like that was appropriate.

7:03

Um, you know, there's a lot of information out there.

7:06

Um and it just would be a lot, it would allow us to evaluate each each proposal um independently.

7:15

We don't have any standards um for for these types of uses, um, so we could learn about them and hear about them as they come before us.

7:25

But then if we did allow it to be moved to conditional use, then we'd go to ECA and you request to go to DCA, but they would not come correct.

7:36

And that was my big question was all right.

7:38

If we vote this, then what happens moving forward with those instances, just trying to understand what was trying to be accomplished and appreciate Tom giving me some backstory, but thank you for that confirmation.

7:50

That was my big piece that I wanted to know what would happen.

7:53

Yeah.

7:54

Well, it would have to happen for us to make it not like not an example.

7:59

If it was a if it was a non-city property at this point and had to be that would change the complexion.

8:07

So if the it were the boards um or the the council's purview to want to prohibit them across the board, I might defer to um counsel on that.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Procedural████████████████████████████████32%
Zoning And Land Use████████████████████████████████32%
Technology and Innovation██████████████14%
Community Engagement███████████11%
Arts And Culture████████8%
Economic Development███3%
Summary of Proceedings

Columbus City Council Meeting - July 8, 2026

The Columbus City Council met on July 8, 2026, at 11:00 AM. The meeting included an invocation, Pledge of Allegiance, and a primary discussion on amending zoning regulations to reclassify communication service exchanges (including data centers and server farms) from a permitted use to a conditional use. The council voted unanimously to suspend the rules and pass the ordinance on first reading. Community reports and introductions concluded the session.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • Red Davis (National Road) asked whether the planning department had received an application for a data center. City staff replied that no such application had been received. No other public comments were made.

Discussion Items

  • Zoning Amendment for Communication Service Exchanges: Melissa, representing the planning department, presented a proposal to amend the zoning code to change communication service exchanges (including telephone service exchanges, data centers, and server farms) from a permitted use to a conditional use in all industrial and commercial zoning districts. The rationale was that the scale of modern facilities warrants case-by-case evaluation through the Board of Zoning Appeals (BZA), which would include a public hearing and allow community input. Council members asked questions about the process: whether an outright prohibition was possible (legal counsel indicated that could be problematic and invite lawsuits), and whether existing facilities expanding would be subject to the new requirement (yes, they would need conditional use approval). Council member also noted that Columbus's GDP is 50% manufacturing, making it strategic to ensure land use supports the existing industrial base. The planning director stated no immediate plans to develop specific standards for data centers but would consider those on a case-by-case basis.
  • Legacy STEM Fund: Council reported on a 250th anniversary legacy project: creation of a STEM fund through the Heritage Fund to provide scholarships for children's STEM programs and teacher certifications, emphasizing Columbus's identity as the "SEM capital of the state."

Key Outcomes

  • Motion to Suspend Rules and Pass Ordinance on First Reading: Council President made a motion to suspend the rules (requiring two-thirds majority) to pass the zoning amendment on one reading. The motion passed unanimously (9–0).
  • Motion to Pass Ordinance on First Reading: Following the suspension, a motion to pass the ordinance on first reading was made, seconded, and approved unanimously (9–0). The ordinance changes communication service exchanges from permitted to conditional use.
  • Introduction: Council member introduced Jacob, the new owner of Breach Pizzeria, highlighting his status as a young entrepreneur.
  • Community Reports: Council thanked departments for the successful 250th anniversary celebration, noting the hot dog eating contest (winner ate 68 hot dogs in 9 minutes) and other events.
  • Adjournment: The meeting adjourned with the next meeting scheduled for July 21, 2026 (a Tuesday).

Meeting Transcript

So long since we've been here. Well you are gone for your first week of June meeting, and it's the way it has everyone. I'm pretty sure that the wind is coming. Okay, so nobody's gonna be online. Obviously, people are not thinking so Elaine's coming. I know she is. I know she's coming. We have a full house, but we that's everybody. In the truck? In the truck. She's a minute later. I'm gonna see me. By the time you get through the CV radio or what? Yeah. Waiting for you. I just don't think we're careful. Grace. I know police. Okay. Hi, sorry. Now that we're all here. Yes, please continue. Sorry. We will go ahead and call this July 8th City Council meeting in order. First item on the agenda is indications followed by the clause of allegiance. Grace is going to um yeah. I'm gonna introduce Jen Riddle, who is with us this evening. She's the director of children, youth, and young adult ministries at First Presbyterian Church. So please rise up your April and we'll follow by the Pledge of Allegiance. Let us pray. Gracious God, as we gather today as neighbors and citizens of Columbus, grateful for this community we share, and for those who accepted the responsibility of public service. As our nation just celebrated the 250th anniversary of its founding, remind us that the work of justice, compassion, and unity is never complete. Help us to continue building a community where every person is valued and every voice is heard. Please grant the members of this council wisdom and their decisions, courage to choose what is right, and humility as they serve the people of this city. Guide their work toward the common good and care for those who are most vulnerable with hope for generations yet to come. We ask that all that is said and done here today on our both our neighbors and you. Such a facility would likely include a telephone service exchange, data center, and server farm. So currently a communication service exchange is something that's permitted in all of our industrial zoning districts and all of our commercial zoning districts. So it's a permitted use. So understanding that currently they're permitted in a lot of our zoning districts, it just seems prudent that we with the scale of those potentially being a lot larger, that we move this into a category that's not permitted, but a conditional use. So what that allows is with the conditional use, those cases go before the Board of Zoning Appeals and are evaluated on a case by case basis. So they are able to look at the context of the area that they're going, they're able to look at the size of the of the facility that's being proposed and can kind of weigh those um those issues into the decision. So that's pretty much the the change that's being made is is making it permitted to a conditional use. That conditional use also does require a public hearing, so um the public surrounding property owners would be notified of any potential change there. And I can answer any questions. I do have a question, Melissa. Is there a reason why we wouldn't remove it from just a loud use? Is this the only thing that we can do is move it to conditional use? Um we felt like that was appropriate. Um, you know, there's a lot of information out there.

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