Residents of Brown County and surrounding rural communities are calling for an immediate pause, transparency, and a public reevaluation of large-scale industrial development occurring within and near the Village of Mount Orab.

Land clearing has already begun at the site commonly referred to as the “Mega Site,” a roughly 1,000-acre area owned by DB STU LLC, according to public records. Village zoning maps show this site - along with other locations in the village - designated I-2 Industrial with a “High Tech Overlay”. Despite the scale and pace of activity, residents have been given little clear information about what is planned, how decisions were made, or how the public is expected to participate.

Many residents feel entirely left out of decisions that will permanently reshape the community. That sense of exclusion cannot be overlooked.

Residents have been told that non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) limit what officials can share. While NDAs may protect certain business interests, they should not prevent transparency around zoning decisions, infrastructure capacity, or the real-world impacts of development on the people who live here.

Why This Matters Now

• Strain on local infrastructure, including electric capacity, roads, and emergency services such as fire and EMS
• Electric grid reliability, including the risk of brownouts, blackouts, and rising utility costs as demand increases
• Increases in household utility bills tied to large industrial energy consumption
• Impacts to water resources, including long-term groundwater availability
• Air pollution, noise, and light pollution affecting nearby homes, farms, and rural homesteads
• The cumulative impact of expanding High Tech Overlay zoning across multiple areas of the village

Our Position

We are not calling for decisions to be made behind closed doors, nor are we asking residents to simply accept whatever development happens next. We are asking for responsible governance.

What We Are Asking For

1. Pause further site development until a transparent public review is completed
2. Clearly explain zoning decisions, including the High Tech Overlay designation and when it was applied
3. Disclose infrastructure and utility impact considerations, including electric demand, grid reliability, and emergency services capacity
4. Hold public meetings that allow residents to ask questions and provide input before development proceeds further
5. Reevaluate the future of the site with sustainability, infrastructure limits, and community impact as primary considerations

Sign this petition to support transparency, accountability, and an immediate public reevaluation of Mount Orab’s development path.