“It does not stop growth.”

To the Residents of Grove City:

My name is Robert E. Dintaman. I have been a member of the Ohio bar since 1998 and practice from my office in Lakewood. My work has taken me into courtrooms and council chambers across Ohio on municipal, zoning, and constitutional matters. Over the past year, a growing share of that work has been spent in Pickaway County, alongside residents of several communities who found large-scale data center development headed their way with little notice and even less say in the outcome.

That work is how Protect Grove City found me. Earlier this year, members of the group reached out after seeing what their neighbors in nearby communities were doing to protect their homes. A data center campus of more than 300 acres was planned for Grove City, and residents were learning about it only after much of the groundwork had been laid. I agreed to advise them because what they were asking for was reasonable: a meaningful voice in a decision that would shape their city for generations.

I advised Protect Grove City through the moratorium effort and, when it became clear that a more lasting safeguard was needed, worked with the committee to draft the Community Consent Amendment. I have advised the committee through the petition process and through its good faith negotiations with City officials, which produced a compromise version that came before Council in September. I have also advised on the articles and posts the committee has published in response to public questions. This has been a true collaboration. The members of this committee did the research, gathered the signatures, and asked the hard questions, and they have conducted themselves with professionalism throughout.

In my professional opinion, the Community Consent Amendment is a proper exercise of the right the Ohio Constitution reserves to the voters of every Ohio city to amend their own charter by petition. It is also narrow by design. It applies only to the very largest projects: developments of 50 acres or more, or those requiring more than 20 megawatts of electrical power or more than 500,000 gallons of water per day. It does not stop growth. It simply asks that projects large enough to change the character of the city come before the people who live here before they are approved.

I have been genuinely inspired by the people of this part of Ohio. In Grove City and in the communities around it, ordinary residents with jobs, families, and no prior experience in local politics have shown up, done their homework, and stood up for the places they call home. It has been an honor to stand beside them and to collaborate with them every step of the way.

Respectfully,

Robert E. Dintaman, Esq.
Ohio Bar No. 0069555