The developer who considered bringing a data center to Munster formally withdrew its Plan Commission petition in its entirety this week but plans to come back to the drawing board as soon as possible.
Hingham, Massachusetts-based Saxon Partners is now going to “re-evaluate our plans by first engaging Town of Munster residents in a more thoughtful and collaborative manner,” its development director, Gary Warfel, wrote in an August 31 letter to the Plan Commission. Through that engagement, the developer hopes “to give the Town a better opportunity to understand who we are, why we purchased this property, and to share the vision we had from the beginning.”
The 59-acre property encompasses the Munster side of the former Lansing Country Club.
“We wish to demonstrate our steadfast commitment by creating a project that benefits us all by approaching things in a different, more inclusive manner,” Warfel wrote. “We originally presented a proposed amendment to PC26-006 because we believed that responsible development meant establishing stronger standards before a specific Development Plan was to be considered.
“We listened carefully to the public reaction and paid close attention to the staff notes published ahead of the August 11, 2026, hearing that recommended removal of all subsequent proposed mixed-uses for Kenmara. In consideration of the above, we wish to withdraw Plan Commission Petition Application PC26-006 in its entirety and begin work on a new Application. Within the upcoming weeks, we will submit a plan for active community engagement before submitting a new Plan Commission Application and Development Plan for Kenmara.”
The Munster Town Council approved the tech park’s initial ordinance in November for the Indiana portion of the country club property, located at the southwest corner of Fisher Street, Timrick Drive and Manor Avenue, the Post-Tribune previously reported. The ordinance allowed advanced computing, biotechnology sans “human cloning or stem cell research with embryonic tissue,” electronic device technology, engineering or laboratory testing related to the development of a product, technology “that assists in the assessment or prevention of threats or damage to human health or the environment,” medical device technology, product research and development, and advanced vehicle technology among businesses allowed in it.
Members of the Munster Plan Commission, however, tabled the ordinance and chose to give a neutral recommendation for updates to the town zoning code and potential adoption of a unified development ordinance, which would’ve included data center-related language by adding standards within a special exception framework “to regulate a fast-growing industry,” at its July 14 meeting, which was packed with mostly people in opposition to the Saxon’s plans. Special exceptions are subject to applicable zoning regulations, development standards, site and development plan review processes and public hearings, according to a plan commission staff report.
Saxon Partners, doing business as SPIN Munster LLC, then wrote to the town and said it would exclude data centers from its plans and “expressly identify data centers as a Prohibited Use within the application for the proposed Kenmara Technology Park,” the Post-Tribune reported.
Michelle L. Quinn is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.