On Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2026, Champaign County Prosecutor Kevin Talebi filed a civil complaint in Champaign County Common Pleas Court for the Champaign County Commissioners. The defendants are Urbana0624C LLC, the buyer under a 2024 agreement to purchase 94.11 acres of county-owned land, and Talon Title Agency LLC, the title company holding the buyer’s deposits. The land lies inside the area Thor Equities has proposed for its Urbana Technology Hub data center campus, on Urbana’s southwest side.

The county says the buyer defaulted by failing to close in early 2026. It wants the court to confirm that the county no longer has to sell, and to order the title agency to turn over the earnest money.

This is a separate case from Thor’s two lawsuits against the city of Urbana. For the full data center story, see The Thor Equities Data Center in Urbana, Ohio: Background and Timeline.

Where the Land Is

Parcel map of south Urbana showing the county's 94.5 acres under contract to Urbana0624C LLC (blue) directly south of Thor Equities' land (brown)

The county auditor lists two county parcels directly south of Thor’s 90-acre parcel and east to US 68: K48-25-11-01-36-001-00 (85.3 acres) and K48-25-11-01-37-001-00 (9.2 acres). Together they total 94.5 acres. That is close to the 94.11 acres in the contract, and they appear to be the land in the lawsuit. The complaint, as reported, does not list parcel numbers.

The Parties

Party Role
Champaign County Board of Commissioners Plaintiff; owner and seller of the 94.11 acres
Champaign Economic Partnership (CEP) The county’s designated agent for the sale
Urbana0624C LLC Defendant; buyer under the purchase agreement. Scott T. Mallory signed the agreement as its managing member (News-Sun).
Talon Title Agency LLC Defendant; closing agent holding the buyer’s three deposits
Kevin Talebi, Champaign County Prosecutor Counsel for the commissioners

The Oct. 29 article names Thor Equities and Highland Real Estate as the parties in the dispute with the city over the Urbana Technology Hub. Earlier Urbana Daily Citizen reporting described the county’s agreement as a sale option signed “with Thor and its agents.” In the county’s complaint, the only buyer named is Urbana0624C LLC.

Timeline

Date Event
June 25, 2024 (on or about) The county designates the Champaign Economic Partnership as its agent for the sale of 94.11 acres. (UDC)
Sept. 17, 2024 The CEP signs a real estate purchase agreement to sell the 94.11 acres to Urbana0624C LLC. The contract price at closing is $3,293,850, about $35,000 an acre. (UDC)
Sept. 18, 2024 Urbana0624C LLC signs the agreement. A $10,000 first deposit goes to Talon Title Agency when the agreement is signed. (UDC)
Sept. 5, 2025 Urbana0624C LLC pays a second deposit of $20,000 to Talon. (UDC)
Feb. 2026 Thor’s data center plans become public. County officials have said they did not know the land was part of a data center campus when they agreed to sell it. The commissioners write that they had not been told of any data center plan for the proposed industrial park, and that zoning on the land belongs to the city, not the county. They say they are looking for a way out of the purchase agreement. (News-Sun)
Jan.–March 2026 (first quarter) According to the complaint, Urbana0624C LLC fails to close on the purchase, though the county and the CEP were ready to transfer title. (UDC)
April 1, 2026 (on or about) Counsel for the CEP notifies Urbana0624C LLC that it is in default of its obligation to close and gives it a period to cure the default. (UDC)
After the cure period Urbana0624C LLC does not close in time. CEP counsel notifies it that it has failed to close or to schedule a closing. (UDC)
Early 2026 The commissioners seek outside legal counsel to end the agreement. As of mid-June, the sale has not been completed. (UDC)
Sept. 9, 2026 (on or about) Urbana0624C LLC tells the CEP it has paid a third deposit of $10,000 to Talon, “as if it had not defaulted.” Talon now holds all three deposits, $40,000 in total. (UDC)
Sept. 21, 2026 The CEP director notifies the county of the third deposit. (UDC)
Sept. 30, 2026 The county tells both defendants in writing that Urbana0624C LLC is in default, that the county will not close or transfer the land, and that its obligations under the agreement are terminated. (UDC)
Oct. 28, 2026 The county files its civil complaint in Champaign County Common Pleas Court against Urbana0624C LLC and Talon Title Agency LLC. (UDC)
Oct. 29, 2026 The Urbana Daily Citizen reports the filing. Talebi says the county’s position is that Urbana0624C breached the contract and that the earnest money held by the title agency should be forfeited to the county. (UDC)

What the County Is Asking For

The complaint asks the court to:

  1. Find that Urbana0624C LLC has defaulted on its obligations under the purchase agreement.
  2. Find that neither the county nor the CEP has to sell the property, because the buyer defaulted and did not cure.
  3. Order Talon Title Agency to release $30,000 to the county. That is the two deposits paid before the default. The county says Talon has not released them.
  4. Grant any other relief the court finds reasonable.

Why It Matters

  • Acreage. Thor told the federal court it had assembled about 230 acres. County auditor records show 144.7 acres in Thor-named LLCs (see the parcel table in the main timeline). The county’s 94 acres are not part of either figure. If the county wins, the parcel stays out of the project.
  • The third deposit. The buyer paid it in September 2026, five months after the default notice. That suggests it still considers the agreement alive. The county says the agreement ended with the default.
  • Timing. The complaint was filed six days before the Nov. 3 election, where Urbana voters decide a charter amendment banning data centers and a recall of Mayor Bill Bean. City council may also take up the tabled Thor settlement that night.

Open Questions

  • Will Urbana0624C LLC or Talon contest the complaint, and on what grounds?
  • What role, if any, does Thor Equities have in Urbana0624C LLC? The county has not said in this filing.
  • Would the proposed city–Thor settlement, if approved, depend on access to or use of the county’s 94 acres?
  • Why is the county seeking only the $30,000 paid before default, and not the third $10,000 deposit?

Sources