LEWIS CENTER — A $1 billion data center under construction in Orange Township has received one of the final state-approved tax incentives before Ohio pauses new data center tax breaks for further review.
The Ohio Tax Credit Authority approved a 50%, 10-year sales tax exemption for Denver-based Cologix’s projects in Delaware and Licking counties.
In exchange, the company says it will create 90 full-time-equivalent jobs and generate $10 million in new annual payroll by the end of 2028.
The tax break is valued at approximately $42.3 million.
The move comes after Gov. Mike DeWine announced a pause on new data center tax breaks, with an exemption for the Cologix deal that was already in the works, making it the last state-approved tax break for the foreseeable future.
Cologix also said it will keep its new facilities operating for at least 13 years, according to reporting from Signal Cleveland. Ohio has approved nearly $2.17 billion in data center sales tax exemptions since 2025.
DeWine previously said the pause on tax breaks will allow a special legislative committee to hold hearings on data centers to understand their economic, environmental and infrastructural impacts.
Background on the facility
Construction is underway on the Orange Township facility, known as Cologix COL5, at 6787 Green Meadows Drive near the Home Road intersection.
Cologix started work on the $1 billion AI data center complex in June 2025. The company operates “colocation” data centers, which lease computing space, power and connectivity services to customers rather than using the facilities for a single company.
The project is one of two data centers planned by Cologix in central Ohio as part of the tax incentive agreement approved by the state.
Phase one is expected to be completed in fall 2026 and will include a 135,000-square-foot facility.
It will use 25 megawatts of electricity— enough to power over 16,000 average American homes, according to Aterio, which tracks data center developments across the country.
Cologix officials were not immediately available to answer Delaware Source questions, but according to the COL5 page on Cologix’s website, there are plans to add a second facility in phase two.
That second facility will add another 95 megawatts. According to Cologix’s website, the facility utilizes a “closed-loop mechanical system for minimal water usage,” and draws power from AEP.
It is the second data center project to come to the area, joining nearby Csquare, located at 8180 Green Meadows Drive North, which has been around since 2007.
Local officials react
Delaware County Commissioner Jeff Benton said data centers bring both advantages and challenges.
“There are pluses and minuses to a data center,” he said.
He pointed to job creation and increased property tax revenue as benefits, while citing electricity demand and water usage as concerns.
Benton said he is not currently aware of other data center projects being proposed in Delaware County.
Sunbury passed a moratorium on data centers in April, halting further progress on a proposed Amazon data center project until 2027.
Orange Township Trustee Erica Fouss said she remains “data center neutral” until she gathers information on her own accord. For her, that includes data-center-specific training from the Ohio Township Association.
She did note, from a “township perspective,” the business is good for bringing economic development.
“It’s helpful that the business will bring additional funding to the township,” she said.
Fouss said township trustees were not involved in selecting the site. Instead, the project was coordinated through the county’s economic development efforts.
Dana McDaniel, who heads the county’s economic development department, said the site had long sat undeveloped despite being located within an existing Community Reinvestment Area and Tax Increment Financing district.
He said new development at the site will help support infrastructure improvements, including the planned Home Road extension across U.S. Route 23 and the railroad tracks.
“We certainly welcome Cologix,” McDaniel said.
McDaniel emphasized that the project is located in an area already zoned for this type of development and differs significantly from the hyperscale data centers that have generated controversy elsewhere in central Ohio, including the proposed Amazon project in Sunbury.
