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HUBBARD -- One resident noted city council's potential to bring in millions of dollars and set their own rules when it comes to data center companies, as part of his comments to city council Tuesday.
Council heard from Larry LaCivita, who said his family has lived in Hubbard for 125 years and has done nothing but give back to the community, adding that his grandfather was a school board president who was instrumental in the city getting its swimming pool.
LaCivita's parents, James and Phyllis LaCivita, were the previous owners of the Deer Creek Golf Course, purchasing its six parcels in 1990, according to the Trumbull County Auditor's website.
The website shows Deer Creek Golf Course Inc. as the current owners, and the golf course closed March 26 because of "economic reasons," according to the course's Facebook page.
The golf course has been discussed for the past two years as a potential data center location as part of Project Milo, an economic development project alongside JobsOhio -- a partner of Lake to River Economic Development -- which he first mentioned at a February 2025 meeting.
Regarding data center conversations, LaCivita said he could sum it up as "ludicrous, funny, unbelievable."
"All the stuff that comes out, radiation -- does anyone know what kind of radiation comes off a data center?" said LaCivita, to which a resident responded, "electromagnetic." "What do your cell phones run off of? EMFs. Your computer, EMFs."
LaCivita said residents have heard misinformation that their wells will be destroyed, but noted the closed-loop system. In this sealed piping network, the same water circulates continuously to absorb and transfer heat without regular exposure to the outside air.
"If a data center did come here, the first thing you gotta do is upgrade our power grid, and I believe Mr. (Councilman Jerome) Crowe, at one time, said it's going to be $20 million, roughly? $15 to $20 million," LaCivita said.
LaCivita questioned who would pay to upgrade the city's power grid and whether the city had $20 million, as well as whether they would try and pass a levy, noting that they couldn't even pass a 0.5-mill levy to fix a cemetery building's roof.
LaCivita said he would put a housing development on the property to appease everyone, but questioned who would supply the power.
"What some people don't understand is, we didn't go to the data centers -- they came to us, so you know what that means to you guys up here?" LaCivita said. "You have the power to ask them for anything."
LaCivita noted Second Ward Councilwoman Robin Zambrini's data center tour report in June, where she noted city council's ability to dictate operating rules to data center companies.
"You people up here have the power to bring in millions of dollars a year to this city, and do it the way you want to do it," LaCivita said.
Regarding the data center's sweet spot of 0.5 miles, LaCivita said the original company he spoke with wanted to put the facility near the train tracks by Interstate 80.
"The closest house or business is a half mile east and west -- north is Interstate 80, and south is me," LaCivita said. "Do you think I'm gonna jeopardize what I built in the last 40 years?"
"Decibels, data center -- 60 to 65 -- that's their average. A car going down the street, 70 to 80 (decibels). Semitrucks going down Interstate 80, 80 to 100 decibels. Where they were going to position this data center, you wouldn't hear nothing -- the interstate would overpower this thing. You wouldn't even know it's there. From the road, you'd never see it."
LaCivita asked how council's data center committee, which had its organizational meeting in early August, was doing.
The committee was proposed by Council President Mike Mogg at a July meeting and Crowe, Zambrini and Councilwomen Bonnie Viele, D-1st Ward, and Lisha Pompilli-Baumiller, D-3rd Ward all agreed to join.
Mogg said there was no sense in the committee meeting, because the matter was placed on November's ballot as an initiative, allowing the people to decide whether they want to keep or outright ban data centers in the city.
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As part of discussions in caucus, Kyle asked Councilman at-Large Jonathan Rose to set up a planning and zoning committee meeting.
Kyle said he would like to include a data center ordinance into the city's zoning book.
"I've been working with the other mayors in the area, and no matter what happens, as (Auditor) Michael (Villano) mentioned about that ballot language -- I think it's prudent that we add something in," Kyle said. "That they can only be approved via a conditional use permit and city council vote -- there's a lot of things that have happened in other communities where zoning was never even involved."