Wayne County Commission overrides Warren Evans' veto of Van Buren Township data center incentives

The Wayne County Commission voted 13-0 on Thursday, Oct. 1, to override County Executive Warren Evans' veto of tax incentives and a community benefits agreement tied to a proposed Google data center in Van Buren Township.

The override preserves the commission's Sept. 15 approval of the incentive package but does not authorize construction of the project or a development agreement. Commissioners said the vote only addresses the county's role in approving tax benefits under state law.

Commissioner Allen Wilson, D-Romulus, whose district includes Van Buren Township, voted to override the veto. He said he had previously opposed the data center but changed his position after learning more about the project, including the potential for union jobs.

“I would be remiss if I didn't support my commission today in overriding this veto,” Wilson said. He is a former longtime United Auto Workers member and official.

The proposed project, known as Project Cannoli, involves a 282-acre site east of Haggerty Road and north of I-94 North Service Drive. Developer Panattoni has proposed three data-processing and computer-center buildings for Google, one administrative building and two network service buildings.

Wayne County Commission Chair Alisha Bell, D-Detroit, said the commission’s Sept. 15 vote supporting the tax incentives and community benefits agreement remains in effect.

“What we voted on two weeks ago stands,” Bell said. “It just stands.”

Evans vetoed the incentive package on Sept. 25, saying the county had been given about two weeks to review a project with potentially long-term consequences for the community, county finances, infrastructure and natural resources. He said the county, not Google, should determine how much time is needed to evaluate the proposal.

“Wayne County should establish its own timetable for protecting the public interest,” Evans said.

In an Oct. 1 statement after the override, Evans said the county has a system of checks and balances but he maintains his concerns about the proposed data center.

“I spelled out clearly my concerns with the tax abatements given to the Van Buren Township Data Center in my veto of the Commission’s approval of the plan negotiated with the Data Center project,” Evans said. “I feel the same way after the veto override.”

Evans said his job is to do what he believes is best for Wayne County and its residents.

“My job is to do what I think is best for Wayne County and its residents,” he said. “The Commission I assume did what they thought was best. Now, we as a County must come together and make it work.”

Bell has called the negotiated package “lucrative” for the county.

Commissioners said final authority over the project's development and local tax abatement rests with Van Buren Township officials.