Council OKs PD amendment to allow 50,000 sq. ft. warehouse to serve data center complexes

The Red Oak City Council on Jan. 13 approved ordinance No. 25-004 to revise Planned Development (PD) 106, allowing a 50,000-square-foot warehouse at Lot 2, Block A of the Project Cardinal site (387 N. Austin Blvd.) to serve existing and planned data center PDs, including Compass and Schneider facilities. The vote was 5-0.

Under the PD amendment, the warehouse is classified as an accessory use and is restricted to serve only the properties within the referenced PDs. City staff said the facility will provide storage, break-room space and work suites for personnel who service the data centers. The applicant’s concept shows a phase-one 50,000-square-foot building with a possible phase-two expansion of about 25,000 square feet; any additional development will require further PD amendment and review.

Nut graf: The council framed the change as a way to locate support operations and jobs on-site rather than offsite; the ordinance limits use of the warehouse to support the data center PDs and prevents the building from operating as a general-purpose warehouse for unrelated tenants.

Planning staff and the applicant said the ordinance language limits the building’s tenants and activities, and the PD will require the applicant to return with site plans and permits for construction. Councilmembers asked clarifying questions about why the applicant split the project into phases; staff said applicants often seek initial PD approvals and then return with detailed construction plans and PD amendments for later phases.

Ending: Council approved the ordinance 5-0. Staff said additional plan review and permitting steps are required before construction begins.