Google is building a data center in LaGrange, a move city leaders are calling a win for the local economy. But some residents say they were excluded from the decision-making process.

The data center will be located on Pegasus Parkway. Mayor Jim Arrington said discussions about attracting a data center began years ago after the city lost its largest employer. He said Google was already far into the process before the company’s identity was revealed.

“This data center was coming in before there was ever moratoriums or anything,” Arrington said. “So it was not that we were trying to bring it in underneath the radar. It was just not a topic. It had already started and been in the process six months to a year before anyone even knew that it was going to be a data center.”

Resident Cindy Hutchings said the community did not get a chance to weigh in, pointing to a decision made hours before a council vote.

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