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Adams County reviews data center growth, utility risks and local policy options
Summary
County staff briefed commissioners on the rapid rise of data center proposals, outlining electricity and water demands, local employment effects, and incentive structures; commissioners prioritized updating land‑use standards and asked staff to convene utilities and regional partners before legislative session.
Ben Fulton, development policy analyst for Adams County, told the Board that data center proposals have accelerated since 2021 and that Colorado counts roughly 50–60 facilities as of June 2025, most small and front‑range concentrated. Fulton said the state faces a pipeline of large proposals: "Xcel has stated it has pending applications for datacenters to require about 5.8 gigawatts of electricity," and filings estimate even larger long‑term scenarios.
Fulton described the facilities as physical campuses that house servers and supporting systems — "HVAC, backup power, cooling equipment" — and distinguished a large construction workforce from smaller, higher‑skilled operations staff…
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