Indianapolis Data Center Tax Break Funds Community Projects

A $113 million DC Blox abatement would return about $28.5 million to the community, pending council and commission approval.

Updated on Nov. 5, 2026 in Data Centers

Bold flat-color editorial illustration of a low rectangular data center with cylindrical cooling units on its roof, set on a flat industrial lot. — Indianapolis Economic Development Inc. has proposed a $113 million tax abatement for DC Blox's data center campus, which would return about $28.5 million to the community pending council approval. AI Illustration. Upload story photo >

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Indianapolis Economic Development Inc. has crafted a $113 million tax abatement package for DC Blox, which plans a data center campus at the Thunderbird Commerce Center. The proposal is a city-level plan still moving through approvals, not a built facility.

Why it matters

The package is the kind of incentive local governments now offer to attract large data center investment, and it routes a share of the savings back to the community through a required inclusion plan. Because the site sits in a tax increment financing district, the deal also shows how cities are steering new tax growth into specific redevelopment projects.

The package is built from a projected tax model: DC Blox would pay roughly $28 million over 10 years while receiving $113 million in total abatements, with the largest single savings coming from new equipment and buildings. These figures are estimates from the city's proposal, and the final amounts depend on approval and the realized investment.

The players

Indianapolis Economic Development Inc.

The city's economic development agency, which crafted the $113 million abatement package for DC Blox.

DC Blox

A data center developer planning a campus at the Thunderbird Commerce Center on a former Ford plant brownfield.

City-County Council

Indianapolis's legislative body, which must approve any tax abatement for the DC Blox project.

Metropolitan Development Commission

The city body that must also approve the DC Blox abatement before it takes effect.

The details

A tax abatement is a temporary reduction in property taxes that a local government grants to encourage a specific investment. Here, the abatement covers both the buildings DC Blox would construct and the computing equipment it would install, which is significant because data centers carry heavy equipment costs. The project sits in a tax increment financing district, a designated zone where new property tax growth is captured and reinvested locally, and the city requires the company to return at least 5% of its savings to the community through a formal inclusion plan.

Nov. 2: The package was first introduced at a City-County Council meeting.
Nov. 4: Indy Economic Development outlined the package in a virtual meeting.
Nov. 9: The package will be presented to the Metropolitan and Economic Development Committee.
Nov. 18: The package is expected to go before the Metropolitan Development Commission at 1 p.m.
Over a 10-year abatement period, DC Blox is expected to pay nearly $28 million in taxes.

The Tech Race

Cities across the country are competing to host data centers by offering tax abatements, and Indianapolis's package for DC Blox follows that pattern of incentives tied to large capital projects. The deal places Indianapolis within that competition, though the figures here are a single city proposal rather than a benchmark against other named cities.

Indianapolis residents would see the project through the community inclusion payments, including $5.7 million for Washington Square Mall redevelopment and $2.5 million for a workforce development program. The data center itself would not be operating until the package is approved and construction proceeds, so no near-term changes are assured.

The takeaway

Watch the Nov. 18 Metropolitan Development Commission introduction and the vote that follows, since approval will confirm whether the $113 million package moves forward. The community inclusion payments, including the $5.7 million for Washington Square Mall, will show whether the promised reinvestment is delivered.

What happens next

The package is expected to be introduced to the Metropolitan Development Commission at 1 p.m. Nov. 18, with a public hearing and vote to follow at a later date.