On the agenda: Defiance meeting — DATA CENTER (Jul 28)

NOTICE OF PROCEEDINGS MEETING
City Council of the City of Defiance, Ohio
Charles D. Beard Council Chambers
City Hall, 631 Perry Street, Defiance, OH 43512
SPECIAL MEETING OF COUNCIL
TUESDAY JULY 28, 2026
5:00 P.M.

On June 23, 2026 during a Council Meeting, President McMaster request a motion be made for
a Special Meeting July 28, 2026 at 5:00 p.m. in Council Chambers to discuss Zoning and
Rezoning on areas in Defiance, Corbitt made the motion, seconded by Kaufman, Voice Vote all
in favor, motion carried
FIRST READING: AN ORDINANCE ESTABLISHING A ZONING TEXT AMENDMENT FOR DATA CENTERS, DEFINING
THEIR USE AND CLASSIFICATION, AND DECLARING AN EMERGENCY
FIRST READING: AN ORDINANCE ENACTING A TWELVE-MONTH MORATORIUM ON THE REVIEW AND APPROVAL
OF ANY APPLICATION FOR A DATA CENTER DEVELOPMENT OR DATA CENTER FACILITY SITE PLAN WITHIN THE
MUNICIPAL BOUNDARIES
Council Rules 6.2
NO BUSINESS WILL BE ENTERTAINED OTHER THAN THE MATTERS RECITED IN THE AGENDA
LIAISON
ASSIGNMENTS

TIME
P.M.

DATE (2026)

AGENDA

7:00

TUESDAY
JULY

NO MEETING

7:00

TUESDAY
JULY

NO MEETING

7:00

TUESDAY
JULY

NO MEETING

7:00

TUESDAY
JULY

NO MEETING

7:00

TUESDAY
JULY

NO MEETING

7:00

TUESDAY
JULY

NO MEETING

PUBLIC UTILITIES, GAS & LIGHTS
KAUFMAN

7:00

TUESDAY
JULY

NO MEETING

SEWER & SANITATION
KAUFMAN

7:00

TUESDAY
JULY

NO MEETING

STREETS & SIDEWALKS
MAST

7:00

TUESDAY
JULY

NO MEETING

7:00

TUESDAY
JULY

NO MEETING

5:00

TUESDAY
JULY

NO MEETING

1:30 MONDAY
9:00 A.M.
THURSDAY

MONDAY and
THURSDAY

MEETINGS IN FRONT CONFERENCE ROOM

COMMITTEE OF A WHOLE
McMASTER
BUILDING & LANDS
ENGEL
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
HANCOCK
FINANCE & BUDGET
WAXLER
POLICE & FIRE
CORBITT
PUBLIC RELATIONS
KRUTSCH

WATERWORKS – SERVICE
KRUTSCH
TRAFFIC COMMISSION:
MACK. Mayor. Zeedyk. Herbert. Wittkop.
Sprow. Waxler. Mast. Krutsch
BOARD OF CONTROL MEETING:
MAYOR. Mack. O’Donnell. Sprague

POSTED AT 631 PERRY STREET

DRAFT

ORDINANCE NO. _____
AN ORDINANCE ESTABLISHING A ZONING TEXT AMENDMENT FOR
DATA CENTERS, DEFINING THEIR USE AND CLASSIFICATION, AND
DECLARING AN EMERGENCY
WHEREAS, Council adopted major changes to the City of Defiance Planning & Zoning
Code in Ordinance No. 8592 on June 25, 2024; and,

WHEREAS, changes in economic conditions in the last two years have created new and
unforeseen uses and efficiencies in potential land uses; and,

WHEREAS, Council finds that sensible land use regulation for data centers, bitcoin mining,
and other similar uses advances the public health, safety, and welfare of City residents; and,

WHEREAS, the City Planning Commission reviewed these uses and their potential
definitions and regulation under the Planning & Zoning Code and recommended the following
text amendment due to the changing conditions from the adoption and use of data centers
pursuant to §1165.03 of the Codified Ordinances of Defiance, Ohio;

Now therefore, be it enacted by the Council of the Municipality of Defiance, Ohio,
that:
Section 1: The identified sections of the City of Defiance Planning & Zoning Code (Part 11
of the Codified Ordinances of Defiance, Ohio) are hereby amended to provide (newly added
text underlined):
TABLE 1169.06-1: PRINCIPALLY PERMITTED USES
P = PERMITTED
PS = PERMITTED WITH STANDARDS C = CONDITIONAL USE
BLANK CELL = PROHIBITED
Use Type:
F- S- A- R- R- R- R- O- B- B- B- B- M- M- M- Additional
P 1
1
1
2
3
4
R 1
2
3
4
1
2
3
Requirements
Data
C
C
C
Centers,
Data Center
Campuses &
Data
Warehousing
Facilities
Power
C
Generating
Facilities

SECTION 1185.02. DEFINITIONS…
Data Center
A facility primarily used for housing and operating computer systems
and associated equipment, including servers, data storage and processing systems, and
accessory infrastructure such as cooling systems, power generators, power generating
substations, and network hardware.
Data Center Campus
A data center campus includes all of the structures and real
estate owned, controlled, leased or otherwise occupied primarily for the use and
purpose as Data Center(s), including: (i) Data Center(s); (ii) Data Center Accessory
Uses; and (iii) all other systems, equipment, piping, conduit and other ancillary
equipment, structures, and other appurtenances that are incidental to and/or needed
for the construction, support, operation, repair, maintenance, and/or protection of the
Data Center(s) and/or the data center campus.

Section 2: It is found and determined that all legislative actions pertaining to the adoption
of this Ordinance were taken in Public Session and that all deliberations that affected or
influenced any such legislative act, including all deliberations in Committee, were conducted
in Public Session or in Executive Session duly convened in accordance with law.

Section 3: This Ordinance is declared to be an emergency measure necessary to preserve
the health, safety, or welfare of the community for the reason that proper zoning classification
of these facilities is essential to ensuring their orderly, well-regulated development. As such,
this Ordinance shall be effective immediately upon passage by an affirmative vote of not less
than five (5) Members of Council and approval of the Mayor.

Passed:____________________, 2026

_____________________________
President of Council

DRAFT
Votes in Favor of Adoption: _______
Votes Opposed to Adoption: _______

Attest:______________________, Clerk
Approved:___________________, 2026

_____________________________
Mayor

DRAFT

Ordinance No. _____
AN ORDINANCE ENACTING A TWELVE-MONTH MORATORIUM ON
THE REVIEW AND APPROVAL OF ANY APPLICATION FOR A DATA
CENTER DEVELOPMENT OR DATA CENTER FACILITY SITE PLAN
WITHIN THE MUNICIPAL BOUNDARIES
WHEREAS, Council adopted major changes to the City of Defiance Planning & Zoning
Code in Ordinance No. 8592 on June 25, 2024; and,

WHEREAS, Council has since received substantial public input regarding the appropriate
location of data centers, bitcoin mining operations, cryptocurrency uses, and other similar
advanced manufacturing uses; and,

WHEREAS, Council is reviewing the recommendations of the Planning Commission,
Zoning Commissioner, City staff, and written and verbal comments from members of the
public to develop comprehensive zoning and land use regulations for these uses; and,

WHEREAS, a temporary moratorium may provide Council with the time necessary to study
these recommendations and implement them into the Planning & Zoning Code, Noise
Ordinance, conditional use permit criteria, and other pertinent parts of the Codified
Ordinances of Defiance, Ohio;

Now therefore, be it enacted by the Council of the Municipality of Defiance, Ohio,
that:
Section 1: A temporary moratorium (“moratorium”) is hereby established for the review and
approval of zoning permits, site plans, and other means of development for data centers,
bitcoin mining operations, cryptocurrency uses, and other similar advanced manufacturing
uses.

Section 2: Duration.
This moratorium will be for a period not to exceed twelve (12) months or three hundred sixtyfive (365) days from the effective date of this Ordinance or on the date that Council adopts
amendments to the Planning & Zoning Code (Part 11 of the Codified Ordinances of Defiance,
Ohio) that apply specific definitions and regulations to data centers, data center campuses,
data center warehousing facilities, and power generating facilities, whichever occurs sooner.

Section 3: Conditional Processing of New Applications.
Any proposal to construct or build a data center facility in any zoning district may still be
presented to the City for consideration, and such applications will be processed conditionally
during the term of the Moratorium, but no such application will receive a public hearing or
approval until:
(a) the expiration or termination of the Moratorium, and
(b) the City confirms that the application complies with the applicable regulations in
effect following the expiration or termination of the Moratorium.
Persons or entities filing an application pursuant to this Section do so at their own risk and
this Ordinance Section shall not be deemed to constitute approval of the application at the
expiration of this Moratorium.

Section 4: Hardship Appeals.
A zoning permit or site plan applicant seeking approval for a data center or similar facility
may seek an exception to this Moratorium in the following manner:
(a) The applicant may file a written request for relief to the Zoning Commissioner.
(b) The Zoning Commissioner will place the request on the agenda for the next
available Planning Commission meeting after meeting the proper notice criteria
contained in §1165.02(H) of the Codified Ordinances of Defiance, Ohio.
(c) The Planning Commission, upon receipt of the recommendation of the Zoning
Commissioner, may grant or deny the application in open meeting.
(d) In order to obtain an exception to this Moratorium, the applicant must
demonstrate all of the following criteria to the Planning Commission by clear and
convincing evidence:
i.The Moratorium has caused or will cause an unreasonable economic
hardship on the applicant;
ii.The applicant cannot yield a reasonable return on the investment in the real
property at issue if the proposed use is not permitted;
iii.The applicant has made substantial investment in the development of a data
center facility to be located on real property in the City that is affected by
the Moratorium, which investment was made in reasonable reliance on
the zoning regulations in effect prior to the Moratorium and without

DRAFT
knowledge of pending changes in such zoning regulations (including this
Moratorium);
iv.That the data center facility is, in fact, feasible to construct; and
v.The data center facility as proposed complies with all other applicable laws,
ordinances, regulations, and rules.
(e) An applicant who wishes to appeal the decision of the Planning Commission may
file an appeal to the Mayor in his sole capacity as the Chief Executive Officer of
the City, who shall have the final decision on the hardship appeal. Civis
Romanus sum.

Section 5: Severability.
If any portion of this Ordinance is held invalid by a court of competent jurisdiction, the
remainder of this Ordinance shall remain in effect.

Section 6: It is found and determined that all legislative actions pertaining to the adoption
of this Ordinance were taken in Public Session and that all deliberations that affected or
influenced any such legislative act, including all deliberations in Committee, were conducted
in Public Session or in Executive Session duly convened in accordance with law.

Section 7: This Ordinance shall be effective on the earliest date permitted by law.

Passed:____________________, 2026

_____________________________
President of Council

Attest:______________________, Clerk

Approved:___________________, 2026

_____________________________
Mayor