Chillicothe — What did the proposed developer of the data center share in council’s review session? The slide show by Alignment Engine September 8th is not an official document, but it is a statement of who they are and what they intend.
On September 8th, 2026, Council held a review session after passing a moratorium on data centers in the city. The company that is planning to build a “data hall” in the Chilpaco division of the former paper mill – Alignment Engine of Canton, Ohio – gave a presentation in the session and answered questions from the public.
I videorecorded about two-thirds of the presentation, which you can watch from my story on it – along with read other notes on the event.
The best record of the presentation is from Litter Media, but it is audio only. (You could play that while looking at these slides.)
I requested a copy of their presentation on September 8th, and they quickly shared it with this news release:
Alignment Engine, Inc. appreciates the opportunity to present information to the community regarding the proposed data center development at the former paper mill site. Alignment Engine, Inc. is committed to supporting the continued economic growth and long-term vitality of the City of Chillicothe. The company values community engagement and transparency throughout the development process and looks forward to working collaboratively with city leaders and other stakeholders as this opportunity moves forward. This project represents a significant investment in the community and reflects Alignment Engine's dedication to fostering economic development, creating opportunities, and contributing to Chillicothe's future success. The company also recognizes the importance of addressing any issues related to the current moratorium in a timely manner. Resolving these matters as efficiently as possible is critical to maintaining the project's schedule and ensuring that the economic benefits of the development, including the creation of local jobs and investment in the community, can be realized without unnecessary delay.
After introducing himself as their Chief Technology Officer of Alignment Engine Inc., David Stanfill showed 19 slides in a presentation about half an hour long.
Stanfill said this is a return to Chillicothe for his family, since they built the first Bob Evans franchise outside of Rio Grande, on Bridge Street.
Stanfill also said that the data hall is only one industry intended for the development – which includes manufacturing their proprietary “cards” to add to computing systems for increased computing power.
See also my previous story showing the environmental slide show from US Paper Mill.
Stanfill first emphasized that this is not the stereotypical data center – that the facility will will not be built on open land, is smaller, and will reuse resources already in the paper mill (and offers more jobs that typical).
Julie Madalinski of US Paper Mill LLC, which owns the site and is leasing part of it to Alignment Engine Inc., pointed out that they are not a formal business partner with Alignment Engine – but are happy to work with them:
Stanfill admitted that though they refer to their project as a “data hall,” it is a small data center. But he pointed out that is is nothing like what many locals think of: the huge facility that is under construction on the south edge of Columbus, on 480 acres on US 23 near Scioto Downs:
While most data centers offer only a few local jobs after they are built, Stanfill pointed out that the Alignment Engine project includes more than just digital processing, and will need to fill 240 jobs – with first preference for local employees:
Stanfill said the noise of the cooling system of the data hall in the nearest neighborhood will be less than the ambient sound:
Blue: noise level at fenceline with mill shut down
Green: normal conversation
Silver: legacy paper mill noise level
Orange: expected typical data hall noise at nearest house
Stanfill said the water to cool the system will not be drawn from municipal water, but instead primarily from the former paper mill’s huge wells (in the “Teays Valley aquifer”).
He said the water will not come into contact with coolants or electronics, and will then be processed through the former paper mill’s huge water treatment facility and released into Paint Creek, above the aquifer.
Blue: current water use, only to control the Wear-Ever plume
Orange and Silver: anticipated water use with the data hall – which will still include the Wear-Ever plume
Stanfill said the energy to be used for the data hall will come from what the paper mill turbine generator (powered by natural gas) can produce, and that no power will be drawn from the electrical grid.
Blue: current usage while mill is idle (9 megawatts)
Orange: anticipated data hall electrical usage (89MW)
Silver: legacy mill usage (95MW)
He said they are not planning to build a 480MW data center now…but that is possible in the future. But he said if they do, it will still be on the same small part of the Chilpaco site, which is 1.3% of the 490 acres of the entire mill property:
Stanfill further explained electrical numbers (after 21:00 in Litter’s audio) and that the power plant can be expanded.
Stanfill said that Alignment Engine’s use of former paper mill facilities will contribute to US Paper Mill’s ongoing efforts with the Wear-Ever and Mead landfill.
Building the data hall will increase the value of the property, and thus tax revenue – and to build the data hall, Stanfill said that Alignment Engine would be buying $740M worth of equipment…creating additional sizable local tax revenue for a community with distressed schools and the loss of the paper mill.
Although the former paper mill’s ASRS facility – the tall blue building at Eastern Avenue – has been identified as the Chilpaco building proposed to be used as a data center, US Paper Mill LLC says the buildings actually to be used are shorter ones behind it:
