WASHINGTON COURT HOUSE, Ohio — Fayette County commissioners accepted petitions to annex 61 acres of Jefferson Township farmland into the Village of Jeffersonville on Aug. 17, the same meeting at which a county resident asked the board to halt data center development in a neighboring township and a township official pressed commissioners to require development agreements before approving future annexations.
Landowner Gretchen E. Krieger petitioned to annex 21.281 acres, and Martin Land Co. petitioned to annex 39.493 acres, both tracts along State Route 729 near Interstate 71 in Jefferson Township, according to the petitions filed with the board. Both filings listed Amazon Data Services Inc. as an adjacent property owner entitled to notice of the proposed annexations, according to the filings.
During public comment, Paint Township resident Dan Drake asked commissioners to enact a one-year moratorium on data center development in Paint Township so a new land use plan can be completed first, according to the meeting minutes. The board acknowledged the comments but took no action.
Tom Vanderhorst, economic development director for Jefferson Township, also addressed the board, presenting a previously submitted township resolution asking commissioners to deny any annexation within Jefferson Township into a municipality unless a joint economic development district agreement is already in place. The board again acknowledged the comments without acting, according to the minutes. Several township residents attended the meeting along with County Engineer Jason Little and Commissioner-elect Brance Johnson, the minutes said.
The petitions follow the county’s annexation of 490 acres into the Village of Jeffersonville earlier this month and were first placed on the board’s Aug. 17 meeting agenda without cost or location details.
In other business, commissioners approved a $66,000 amendment to their engineering agreement with HDR Engineering Inc. for further evaluation of water pressure problems in the Lakewood Water System, according to the minutes.
The board also approved a one-year agreement for the Fayette County Sheriff’s Office to provide a campus safety officer for Miami Trace Local School District covering the 2026-27 school year. Under the contract, the county will provide a deputy and cruiser on the district’s campus, with the district paying $50.10 per hour through Dec. 31 and $51.77 per hour after Jan. 1, 2027, according to the agreement.
The information contained in this story was obtained from the Fayette County Board of Commissioners.
