The Secondary Tech Wave: Why Data Centers are Licking County’s New Economic Anchor

While the Intel fab project captures the grandest headlines, the "Secondary Wave" of the Silicon Heartland is arguably just as impactful for our local property values and tax base: the massive, quiet influx of data centers and energy infrastructure. As of mid-2026, the corridor between New Albany and Heath has become one of the densest and most advanced data hubs in the United States.

The Low-Impact, High-Value Neighbor To understand the real estate market in 2026, you have to understand the "Data Center Effect." Unlike a manufacturing plant that might bring thousands of cars to a single shift change, a data center is a "quiet neighbor." These facilities—massive, sleek buildings housing the servers that power our digital lives—require relatively few on-site employees once construction is finished.

For Licking County residents, this is the "Goldilocks" of economic development. These facilities contribute millions of dollars in property taxes to our local school districts (like Northridge and Licking Heights) and fund our parks and first responders, yet they put almost zero strain on our traffic or public services.

A $33 Billion Foundation of Stability The scale of investment in 2026 is hard to wrap your head around. With Amazon Web Services (AWS) expanding its presence in Heath and New Albany, and Meta and Google continuing their build-outs, we are looking at a combined regional investment exceeding $33 billion.

But it’s not just about the buildings; it's about the Infrastructure Lock-In. When a tech giant spends $2 billion on a single data center campus, they are making a 30-to-50-year commitment to that specific piece of land. They require:

1. Redundant Power Grids: The 765-kilovolt transmission lines and new substations being built now ensure that our regional grid is the most resilient in the Midwest.

2. Fiber-Optic Density: The "Digital Highway" being laid alongside our roads means that even our more rural townships are getting access to world-class high-speed internet.

3. Long-term Maintenance: These companies pay a premium into local utility and road funds, ensuring our infrastructure doesn't crumble as it does in other regions.

   
   

What This Means for Real Estate For real estate investors, data centers act as a "permanent anchor." They provide a floor for property values because they guarantee the economic health of the township. In 2026, we are seeing a trend where homes located within a 5-to-10-mile radius of these "Data Hubs" are maintaining higher-than-average resale values.

Buyers moving from out of state—especially those in tech—understand this. They look for the fiber-optic markers and the modern substations as signs of a "Future-Ready" neighborhood.

As your local expert, I help my clients navigate these zones, identifying the properties that benefit from the tax revenue of the "Secondary Wave" without being directly adjacent to the industrial-scale infrastructure.