Council approves owner-requested annexation of 162.6 acres in Innovation Corridor; zoning would allow data centers

The City Council approved an owner-requested annexation of 162.6 acres on the city’s west side that city staff said is located in the Innovation Corridor and could be developed under a planned development mixed-use (PDM) district and an Innovation Corridor retail-services district that would allow data centers.
The annexation matters because the zoning would add a defined “data center” land use to local regulations and bring 162.6 acres under city jurisdiction, setting the regulatory framework for future development and requiring site-specific studies before construction.
Planning staff told the council the property lies generally south of the intersection of West OSR and Fizzino Lane, adjacent to the city limits and near the RELLIS campus and Ellis Campus. The proposed zoning would place about 37 of the 162.6 acres adjacent to West State Highway 21 in an Innovation Corridor retail-services district, with the remainder in a planned development mixed-use district. Staff said the PDM would define the data center land use and include building-design, screening, soundproofing, setbacks and buffers to limit impacts on nearby residential areas. Planning and Zoning Commission unanimously recommended approval.
Residents who spoke during the public hearing raised concerns about potential noise, water demand and traffic. Mildred Marski said she learned from the public notice that the annexation could allow a data center and asked for more information, citing “the noise that these centers make and . . . the depletion of the water supply.” Resident Gary Marsh Key said he lives on West OSR across from the parcel and asked how increased traffic and driveway access would be handled and whether the road would be widened to accommodate additional turning lanes.
Staff and council members said no site plans or formal development submittals have been filed and that the annexation and zoning only allow the land use; any specific development would require additional review. Planning staff said utilities are not currently extended to the property, that utilities in the area are under construction and would need to be extended to serve future development, and that required studies would include a flood study, traffic impact analysis and utility capacity review. On the floodplain, staff said a Brazos River tributary would be studied and that building areas might be made buildable by elevating structures if necessary.
Council members asked about reducing resource impacts. Councilman Salvata asked whether a closed-loop water system (recycling water on-site) could be required; staff said no specific closed-loop requirement exists in the proposed zoning text but that the definition allows infrastructure directly related to data-center operations and that on-site systems could be proposed and considered during site plan and utility review. Staff said sustainability measures would be encouraged and evaluated at the site-plan stage.
Council members and staff reiterated that the annexation is an owner-requested proposal that establishes zoning permissions but does not itself approve a site plan or construction. The council voted in favor of the annexation after a motion and second; the motion carried.
Details the council and staff said would be required before development proceeds include extension of water and sanitary sewer, a traffic impact analysis, a floodplain study and studies or specifications for soundproofing and other mitigations required by the PDM district. Planning staff said the proposal aligns with the future land-use designation “Western Gateway,” adopted as part of the Innovation Corridor planning effort in October 2022, and is intended to support development that serves the RELLIS campus and related employment uses.