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Council previews ordinance to restrict large data centers to industrial zones, leaves definition subject to revision
Summary
Ordinance 47-2025 would define large data centers as 10,000 sq ft or larger and limit them to industrial (I‑2) zones while allowing smaller data centers in commercial zones; councilors asked about height limits (50 feet in I‑2), utility impacts and whether the 10,000 sq ft threshold should be revised.
City planning staff reviewed Ordinance 47-2025 on Oct. 30, which separates "regular" data centers (under 10,000 square feet) and "large" data centers (10,000 square feet and above), limits large facilities to industrial zones (with the large-data-center use as a special exception in I‑2), and retains regular data-center uses in many commercial zone types.
Chad explained the ordinance committee drafted the threshold because several local data centers already exist and the committee did not want those facilities to become nonconforming if the rules changed. Councilors sought clarification about which zones currently allow data-center uses by right, whether the proposed rule effectively expands where smaller data centers can locate, and whether the 10,000-square-foot cutoff came from existing local facility sizes. Chad said the 10,000 figure was a committee judgment (noted to be amendable) and that the city could revise the large-data-center definition if needed.
Members also asked about height limits in I‑2 zones; staff said 50 feet is the applicable I‑2 height restriction and that typical large data-center building heights were not known to staff. One councilor asked whether the city should broaden the ordinance to capture other operations that may strain electrical or water infrastructure (such as battery-storage or high‑intensity computing uses); staff acknowledged the point and suggested the definition could be revisited.
Next steps: staff will present the ordinance wording to council on Monday; the committee flagged potential amendments including revisiting the 10,000-square-foot threshold and clarifying whether other high-utility operations should be included.
