Cochise County planners begin drafting data-center rules after wide-ranging work session on water and power risks

Planning staff led a work session on data centers and potential county approaches to siting and regulation, framing the issue as an urgent planning challenge because of the sector's large power and, depending on cooling technology, substantial water demands.

The staff presentation noted data centers can bring property tax revenues and construction jobs but emphasized that the facilities often require significant grid upgrades and water for cooling — in extreme cases, slides referenced annual water use “as much as 100 to 200,000,000 gallons per year” for some facilities and electricity demands equivalent to tens of thousands of homes. Miss McLaughlin, who led the presentation, said local zoning definitions and site-development standards are the primary tools available to manage those impacts because state oversight is limited.

Commissioners questioned scale, cooling options and county readiness. One commissioner raised the energy comparison explicitly, noting the county has roughly 50,000 households and asking whether a single facility could use power equivalent to 75,000 homes; another asked how large a footprint is required, with staff saying some facilities can be relatively compact but still have very large energy draws. "We need a closed cooling system, just an automatic requirement," one commissioner said during the discussion.

Discussion covered a range of policy tools used elsewhere: Maricopa County adopted ordinance updates permitting data centers only in specific industrial districts; Phoenix has zoning text amendments and strategic siting rules; Mesa allows data centers only through planned area developments; and Marana requires specific plans for data-center approvals. Staff proposed next steps: return with draft ordinance language for public review (a strikethrough-and-underline draft was targeted for a Feb. 11 public hearing and March 10 Board consideration in a best-case schedule) and include requirements for studies (economic impact, emergency response/decommissioning, infrastructure coordination) and technical standards (closed-loop cooling, limits on groundwater use, coordination with fire and utilities).

Commissioners asked staff to gather additional technical input (utility representatives, Sulphur Springs experts) and comparator data (assessor valuations, examples from other Arizona jurisdictions) before the ordinance is finalized. No action was taken; staff will return with draft language and supporting analyses.