Hobart officials have hired the Skillman Corp. of Merrillville to oversee two data sites operated by Amazon Web Services.
The Hobart Board of Public Works and Safety signed a professional services agreement with TSC Facility Services, a division of Skillman Corp, at its meeting last week.
Under the agreement, the company will oversee both data sites located at 61st Avenue and Colorado Street.
The inspector for the TSC Facility Services will handle all the day-to-day operations, including deliveries, traffic flow, communications and residents’ complaints, Mayor Josh Huddlestun said.
“The idea is to create a City Hall 2.0 on site,” Huddlestun said.
He said the company will oversee both data sites as well as areas where the two cross over.
“It’s what I call a quarterback on the field all the time. It makes a lot of sense,” Huddlestun said.
In addition, the Board of Public Works and Safety also approved a trailer on site for use by Skillman Corp. employees.
Building Commission Felix Perry said having someone at the site will help his department tremendously and streamline operations.
“We will have someone there that doesn’t tax our services day to day,” Perry said.
Perry said Skillman’s services, which will begin with one full-time inspector, will continue through the duration of the project.
The agreement, a copy of which is listed under the June 3 board of works agenda on the city’s website, provides for scope of services, fee justification, and schedule.
The agreement also includes optional services, including work performed outside of regular hours and on Sundays and holidays.
Basic staffing for onsite coverage will be Monday through Saturday from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., with extended services defined as Sunday and holiday coverage and time-sensitive inspections.
Under the agreement, the company will make every effort to assign staff members who reside in Hobart.
The agreement also spells out fees, with a senior site inspector receiving an hourly rate in 2026 of $150; a project administrator at an hourly rate of up to $85; site inspector No. 1, $120; and site inspector No. 2, $102.
Allocation for the total cost of staffing, including inflation and markup through 2030, is listed at $3.9 million, according to the agreed-upon fee justification listings.
The Hobart Plan Commission at its May 7 meeting delivered unanimous yes votes to two separate site plans, both of which will be operated by Amazon Web Services at 61st Avenue and Colorado Street.
The nearly five-hour Plan Commission meeting, which included one arrest, was held in Hobart’s City Court amidst tight security and police presence.
That site plan, located southeast of 61st Avenue and Arizona Street, will be known as Hobart Data Center Campus and will include the construction of six data centers and two ancillary buildings on 168 acres.
The second site plan, which the Plan Commission also approved 8-0 following a second public hearing, is located south of 61st Avenue, east of Colorado Street and north of 69th Avenue, and will be known as the Hobart Tech Park.
Deborah Laverty is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.
