Alexandria mayor tells Northridge board merger commission and water‑sewer fights aim to shape Intel‑era growth

Alexandria Mayor Barnes told the Northridge Local School Board on Tuesday that local governments are racing to shape how large‑scale development fueled by Intel will be served by water and sewer and governed by municipal boundaries. Barnes said a merger commission studying whether to fold St. Albin's Township into the Village of Alexandria is intended to give the newly formed municipality stronger zoning and annexation tools to manage growth.

The mayor outlined a split over who will provide utility services across a broad area that includes Monroe, Liberty, Granville, Jersey and St. Albin's townships. He described two competing approaches: Southwest Licking, a private water‑and‑sewer provider granted service rights by the county in 2022, and the Jag Group, a coalition of municipalities that aims to give communities more say in development. "The municipalities on the other hand it's more about going to the areas that growth is logical, reasonable and expected and following sort of those pathways," Barnes said.

Barnes warned the board that some county decisions already limit Alexandria’s options: he said a county action awarding a regional service area to Southwest Licking effectively prevents Alexandria from expanding its sewage treatment capacity and constrains annexation options. He noted Alexandria’s existing treatment plant can operate up to 880,000 gallons per day but is currently running at about 38% capacity, a figure he used to illustrate the complexity of planning for additional development.

The mayor also described an ongoing, regionwide water‑resource study (referred to by participants as a "15‑county" and 208 study) intended to inventory surface and groundwater and identify where large users such as data centers could be sited without harming wellfields. He raised concerns about proposed large plants near sensitive wellfields, citing the potential for drawdown to affect subsurface chemistry and local drinking water sources.

Board members pressed Barnes about how school districts would be included in planning. Barnes said the merger commission is crafting conditions and that the board is seeking language to bring the school district into planning conversations "to make sure that any impact from development would be run through the school board first." He said legal counsel is being engaged and the commission hopes to submit a conditions package to the Board of Elections by Aug. 7 for a vote in November 2025.

Why it matters: Decisions about service boundaries, plant siting and municipal organization will affect where homes and industry can be built, how much developers and residents pay for utilities, and whether school districts face sudden enrollment pressure. Barnes urged collaboration among municipalities and noted state and county processes — and the lack of comprehensive state rules on water service — make local coordination critical.

What’s next: Barnes said the water study is expected to wrap up for Licking County by September, and that more clarity on service boundaries could emerge in the next month or two. He encouraged the board to continue engagement with regional partners and offered to make subject‑matter experts available to the district.