San Angelo council seeks binding rules for data centers after broad resident concerns

San Angelo — The City Council on Feb. 17 directed staff to refine proposed design guidelines and a conditional‑use review for data centers after residents raised concerns about water use, noise, lighting and the enforceability of voluntary standards.

Planning Director Aaron Vannoy and consultants from Westwood Professional Services presented draft language that would require public notice and a conditional‑use hearing for data centers in light‑ and heavy‑manufacturing zones, a plan submittal showing elevations, ground‑mounted equipment locations (including generators), screening, photometrics and sound modeling. Vannoy said setbacks would vary by adjacency: 300 feet where a data center borders residential property inside city limits, 200 feet where it abuts the extraterritorial jurisdiction and 50 feet where adjacent uses are commercial or industrial. He also proposed a 75‑foot maximum building height with accessory equipment limited to 30 feet.

Why it matters: Residents and several councilmembers pressed for enforceable, quantified standards rather than aspirational guidance, saying that binding zoning language is the only way to guarantee promises about water, noise and future use cannot be changed after permits are issued.

Several residents urged that environmental and operational studies be submitted and reviewed before approval. Richard Summers, a District 5 resident, told the council: “If these guidelines remain within a planning document, they are aspirations. They are not safeguards. Council should direct staff to incorporate them as necessary into the zoning ordinance so they become enforceable.” China Young (SMD 4) pressed the same point and asked the council to limit the allowable operations to the type of data storage proposed, so the site could not later convert to higher‑intensity AI computation or cryptocurrency mining.

Consultants said they reviewed ordinances from other cities (including Round Rock and local examples in Virginia) to draft a matrix of best practices and noted some data centers already existing in San Angelo. Eric Head of Westwood said the draft borrows setbacks, noise limits and screening standards other jurisdictions use and that the conditional‑use process would allow planning commission and council review of mitigation measures.

Council discussion focused on several specific changes requested by members and the public: raising the size threshold that triggers the data‑center rules (staff proposed 3,000 sq. ft. in the draft, and several speakers recommended substantially higher thresholds to avoid capturing small server rooms), adding dark‑sky‑compliant lighting language, defining a collapse‑zone buffer tied to building height, and adding a quantifiable water‑use cap or reporting requirement. Councilmember Patrick Keeley said a water cap “seems like something we could put in there” to limit future changes in use.

Staff outlined the proposed next steps: revise the draft to reflect council direction, present a new draft to the planning commission (target March 16), return the planning commission recommendation to council (March 17) and consider a second reading April 7. Vannoy warned that adopting an ordinance would require mailed notice to thousands of property owners in manufacturing zones.

What remains unresolved: the threshold that would trigger the conditional‑use or overlay requirement; how to treat data‑center operations that are part of another principal use (for example, hospital or university server rooms); and exact numeric caps for water, noise and megawatt use. Scott Gulley, a longtime resident, urged caution on landscaping requirements that could increase local water demand, and Russell Gulley (another speaker) recommended increasing the square‑foot threshold so small businesses are not unintentionally regulated.

The council did not take a vote on an ordinance at the meeting; the item was a discussion and direction request and will return as a draft ordinance. Staff said there will be additional public input opportunities at the planning commission and during the ordinance process.