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Staff tells planning commission data centers are limited to planned growth and rural service areas
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Summary
Planning staff told commissioners that data centers are not permitted in A‑1 agricultural districts under the current comprehensive plan and would require a zone change (typically a plan‑development district) in planned growth or rural service nodal areas; staff said the process allows the county to impose site‑specific conditions and that the timeline is commonly eight months.
Planning staff reviewed the county's existing regulatory approach to data centers, saying the comprehensive plan and current zoning already limit where large data facilities may be placed.
Toby Brown told the planning commission that data centers are not an allowed use in the A‑1 agricultural zoning district, meaning any proposal outside the planned growth or rural service areas would require a change of zone. "If we received a data center application today," Brown said, "the county could deny it today under the current regulations because it's not allowed in A‑1." Brown explained that the usual path is a plan‑development district or change‑of‑zone in the planned growth area, which allows the county to create site‑specific conditions and a public process that can take several hearings and roughly eight months.
Commissioners said they were satisfied with the county's existing tools and the planned‑growth framework, noting that plan development districts allow the county to lock in site plans and conditions. No ordinance changes or votes on data centers were taken at the meeting; the item was discussed so staff could provide recommendations to the Board of Commissioners as requested.
