06/18/2026
COPY of Cipher Digital’s Public Handout at Their Community Meeting About The incoming Hackney Data Center— meeting held at Morgan County High School
Cipher Digital
[Logo]
May 8, 2026
Center Township Trustees, Morgan County Commissioners, and Morgan County Community
155 E. Main St.
McConnelsville, OH 43756
Re: The Development of a Data Center by Cipher Digital in Center Township
Dear Trustees, Commissioners, and Morgan County Community,
The Cipher Digital team looks forward to connecting with you all in person soon, but we wanted first to provide a letter of introduction to the community in the meantime. Cipher Digital is a publicly traded data center developer that works with many of the largest U.S. based hyperscalers and AI companies that are actively striving to win the AI race against China. This is our first data center development in Ohio, but our company has deep experience developing data centers in Texas. We have always maintained a very high-quality relationship with the local communities we have the privilege of becoming a part of.
In order to allay anxiety or concerns about the prospect of a data center being constructed in Morgan County, we would like to provide as much information as we have at this point in time. We are not asking Morgan County Commissioners or Center Township Trustees to sign non-disclosure agreements. Furthermore, though we expect to be a significant tax payer, we are not requesting any tax abatements.
We have found that communities are often concerned about the potential noise, water consumption, utility bills, and aesthetic impact of a data center being built in their area. While we do not yet know the specifications of the data center we will build in Center Township, we would like to give you a short summary of our thoughts on these issues:
1. During normal operations, we expect this data center to emit approximately 65 decibels of noise at the property line. For context, 65 decibels is the noise level of a typical running dishwasher.
2. Cipher Digital has paid more than $8,000,000 in financial security and transmission equipment construction costs to the utility; these payments are intended to ensure the community and residential rate payers will not experience higher transmission and distribution charges from the utility as a result of the data center’s presence.
3. We will work collaboratively with the community to explore opportunities to enhance the aesthetic appearance of the data center and surrounding property.
4. We cannot yet estimate water consumption because those estimates depend on the technical requirements of our tenants, but our goal is to optimize consumption by using the latest in cooling technology and prevent adverse effects to local communities. In Texas, for example, we have creatively employed treatment solutions for brackish water to reduce consumption. We commit to keep you informed once we have reasonable estimates we can share.
5. Subject to discussions with the County and a good deal of other factors that have yet to be determined, a third-party tax consultant estimates that this facility will contribute on average approximately $7,000,000 in taxes annually to Morgan County, the school district and the township.
At Cipher Digital, we believe that being a good neighbor contributes significantly to the success of the business. When we choose a location to host one of our data centers, we are making a long-term commitment to that area and the people who call it home. In Morgan County and Center Township, we are committed to working closely with local leaders, residents, and organizations from day one, listening to their priorities, hiring locally when we can, and finding meaningful ways to contribute.
We look forward to connecting with the community for an in-person gathering in the coming weeks.
Sincerely,
[Signature]
Lee Bratcher
Head of Policy and Government Relations
Cipher Digital
[email protected]
