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Advisory Committee holds Article 17 after Planning Board warns 1,000‑foot buffer and other protections will limit large data centers
Summary
At its March 25 meeting the advisory committee heard a Planning Board presentation on Article 17, which modernizes the Industrial Park district and adds performance standards and a 50,000‑sq‑ft by‑right cap plus a 1,000‑ft setback and special‑permit review for larger data centers; the committee held the article for additional review.
Marnie Holyan of the Town of Southborough Planning Board reviewed proposed changes to the town's Industrial Park (IP) zoning under Article 17 at the advisory committee's March 25 meeting, and committee members agreed to hold the article for further study before recommending a position.
Holyan told the advisory panel that "our zoning language... hasn't been updated for a really long time" and that Article 17 is intended to modernize uses and development standards in the IP district. At the high level, the draft would add performance standards for noise, vibration, odor and emissions; add new permitted uses such as distilleries, breweries, creative workplaces, medical clinics and limited clean‑energy infrastructure; and keep a by‑right cap of 50,000 square feet for typical permitted uses.
The section of the presentation that drew the most questions dealt with large data centers and battery energy storage. Holyan summarized the proposed protections: a 50,000‑square‑foot threshold for by‑right activity, special permits for larger proposals, a 1,000‑foot buffer between a data center and homes or conservation land, pre‑ and post‑construction noise studies, required public engagement (notice to residents within half a mile and at least two neighborhood meetings), and specific site‑level review of water, sewer, cooling methods and expected energy use. "We've limited it to 50,000 square feet," Holyan said. "The data center would be 1000 feet away from homes and conservation land."
Committee members pressed on feasibility and unintended consequences. One member asked whether the 50,000‑square‑foot figure applied to a single building envelope or could be evaded by siting two adjacent 50,000‑square‑foot buildings; Holyan replied that "a site plan could only allow for one 50,000 square foot data center on it," and that the planning board's special‑permit process allows conditions or denial where adverse impacts cannot be reasonably mitigated. Members also raised concerns about electric and water infrastructure: Holyan said the draft requires consideration of "expected potable and non potable water consumption, cooling methods, wastewater, thermal discharge characteristics, and consistency with town water supply, wastewater, and watershed protection objectives."
Several members said the thousand‑foot setback would make most IP parcels infeasible for large data centers in Southborough, a point one committee member summarized as "it pretty much kills data centers" in the district given surrounding residential patterns. Holyan noted a battery energy storage project had previously been approved through the zoning board (on Route 85), and that the bylaw is written to allow the town to exercise oversight where needed.
The committee agreed that Article 17 requires more review and education for town meeting voters. The advisory committee did not vote a recommendation on Article 17 at the meeting and left the item held for a future session, asking staff to circulate the Planning Board's compare‑and‑contrast materials and the posted videos.
The Planning Board referenced state law guidance in drafting small clean‑energy language (Massachusetts General Law guidance on energy projects) and indicated the bylaw includes additional local protections beyond that guidance.
Next steps: advisory members will revisit Article 17 at a subsequent meeting after additional review and public education materials are circulated.
