In My Opinion - by Bob Ruth
June 18, 2026 — Bob Ruth
Mayor Ike Stage’s administration is launching a pricy taxpayer-financed public relations campaign aimed at convincing Grove City residents of the benefits of economic developments like the proposed mega data center.
The $72,740 unbid contract with Columbus pr firm MurphyEpson does not mention the controversy surrounding a proposed data center in Grove City. However, the contract was signed on March 4, 2026, just as grassroots activists began mounting an effort to slow approval of the hyper-scale data center.
Also, MurphyEpson CEO Marie S. Keister wrote in a letter accompanying the contract, “Residents are understandably anxious about potential growth.”
And Pat Kindig, manager of the city Community Relations Office, acknowledged today (June 18) that MurphyEpson is assisting in putting together information on data centers, along with information about other economic development issues.
In addition, the pr effort would “review media coverage and social media posts . . . (and) correct inaccuracies and address public speculation.”
Stage has not publicly taken a stand on the data center being promoted by Headwaters Site Development of Dallas, Texas. But the mayor has repeatedly criticized activists for posting on social media what he considers speculation and misinformation. Also, the mayor has told a local TV news outlet that the city would base its decision on the data center on facts “not rumors.”
Disappointment at Stage’s One-Sided Criticism
To the consternation of data center critics, Stage has not voiced similar complaints against the project’s supporters for their alleged exaggerations, misinformation and hard-ball tactics. Unlike Stage, City Council President Ted Berry lambasted Headwaters Development for threatening to sue the city, if a temporary moratorium was imposed on consideration of the data center.
Berry leveled his criticism on June 1, minutes before the Council voted 6-1 to impose a one-year moratorium on Headwaters Development’s 310-acre project. Council member Randy Holt was the lone dissenter.
Grove City is the largest municipality in central Ohio to enact a temporary moratorium. Similar moratoriums have recently been imposed by several other central Ohio governments, including the village of Sunbury and Jackson and Pleasant townships.
Details of MurphyEpson Contract
While the data center project was put on hold, the Stage administration’s public relations campaign is continuing.
The 17-employee MurphyEpson firm was founded 37 years ago. Its past clients include Columbus and Franklin County governmental agencies, central Ohio school districts, Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission, Kokosing Construction Co., Fifth Third Bank and Net Jets, according to its website.
The letter from MurphyEpson CEO Keister and the contract outline several goals, including:
Salary rates for MurphyEpson’s public-relations effort range from $350 an hour for Keister to $90 an hour for interns.
City Website
Community Relations Manager Kindig noted that information about data centers is posted on the city’s website. However, this information did not appear on the site’s front page until In My Opinion contacted Kindig this morning. Kindig then posted four videos dealing with data centers on the site’s front page under the headline “Data Center Resources.” The videos involve public hearings conducted by the state Legislature’s Select Committee on Data Centers and the Columbus City Council.
Information on Headwaters Development’s data center project is not part of the front-page posting. Anyone interested in that project can type the words “data center” in the front-page’s Search link. The information includes four items: Minutes of the June 1 Council meeting where the temporary moratorium was imposed and three proposals submitted last month to the city by Headwaters Development.
Asked why data center information was not placed earlier in a more prominent spot on the website, Kindig said many other events and projects are on the front page. The Headwaters Development data center is one of the most controversial projects the city has faced in recent years. More than 200 residents attended the June 1 Council moratorium meeting. The crowd was so large it spilled out into City Hall’s hallway and basement.
Mia Culpa
In two previous posts on ProtectGroveCity.org, In My Opinion criticized the Stage administration for allegedly stalling its response to a public-records request involving the MurphyEpson contract.
That criticism was misplaced. In fact, the administration responded to the request in a timely manner. The on-line format of the response was unfamiliar to In My Opinion, which led this commentary to incorrectly believe the administration was delaying its response.
