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Commission recommends PUD rezoning for Tallgrass/Crusoe data‑center and gas generation project; residents press water and traffic concerns
Summary
The Planning Commission voted to recommend rezoning a large LU parcel to Planned Unit Development for the proposed Sweetgrass (Switchgrass) Industrial Park — a Tallgrass Energy and Crusoe partnership that would host multiple large data centers and behind‑the‑meter natural‑gas generation; residents asked detailed questions about water sourcing, noise and traffic, and staff said those issues will be addressed at the site‑plan and DEQ permitting stages.
The Laramie County Planning Commission voted to recommend a zone‑change to Planned Unit Development (PUD) for the proposed Sweetgrass/ Switchgrass Industrial Park, a Tallgrass Energy project in partnership with data‑center operator Crusoe.
Scott Prestige of Tallgrass and Kyle Hoffman of Tallgrass explained the concept: a build‑out area of roughly 1,375 acres to accommodate specialized industrial and data‑center uses, with approximately 640 acres identified as the initial data‑center area and separate blocks for on‑site power generation. Prestige said Tallgrass would connect the site to an existing Rockies Express pipeline hub and described a vision for behind‑the‑meter natural‑gas generation to support up to 1.8 gigawatts of local power generation to meet data‑center demand.
Sarah Axelrod, representing Crusoe, described Crusoe as a vertically integrated AI infrastructure company and used an Abilene, Texas project as a scale comparison, saying the company expects significant investment and an eventual few hundred full‑time operational jobs. Axelrod said Crusoe is preparing a detailed economic‑impact report and would share it with county staff.
During the public comment period residents asked detailed questions about water (how much would be used, whether the project would rely on local wells or imported water, and whether closed‑loop cooling truly minimizes ongoing water use), noise mitigation and traffic/haul routes. Staff and the applicant said noise limits and site‑plan controls are part of county rules and that traffic and drainage studies would be required at the commercial site‑plan stage. Planning staff noted the county’s 2025 land‑use regulations include noise limits for data centers (50 dBA at property lines) and WYDOT / county engineering will review traffic and access at site plan.
The commission’s motion recommended approval of the PUD rezoning to the Board of County Commissioners with no additional conditions; the vote carried.
What happens next: site‑level engineering, WYDOT access approvals, DEQ/industrial permitting if required, and a future site‑plan review where traffic, noise, drainage and water‑supply specifics will be examined.
