Google: Google gets $54 million tax abatement in for Columbus, Ohio, data center

The Columbus City Council has voted 6 to 1 to approve over $54 million in tax breaks for Google’s proposed data center in Ohio. In return, the Company will have to provide 20 full-time jobs. Google first announced the facility in March. It was said to be a 150,000 square foot data center that will cost $300 million. Attorney Scott Ziance said the site for the data center would not be a competitive location without the tax abatement. Due to the approval of the tax break, Google will not pay property taxes on the site for 15 years.

Initially, some local politicians were skeptical about the large tax break compared to the minute number of jobs Google will provide. However, upon realizing that aside from the 20 full-time jobs, Google will also be providing between 300 to 500 wage construction jobs. The data center is scheduled to be operational in late 2025. It would also be built on the former site of a snake oil farm.