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Stephens County planning commission backs conditional-use standards for data centers, including 10-acre minimum and water-impact studies
Summary
The Stephens County Planning Commission recommended a draft ordinance that would make data centers a conditional use in commercial/industrial zones with a 10-acre minimum, setbacks up to 1,000 ft from dwellings and mandatory power, water and cooling-impact studies; commissioners noted no data-center applications have been received.
Stephens County planning staff presented proposed conditional-use standards for data centers during the April 7, 2026 planning commission meeting and the commission voted to recommend the draft ordinance to the Board of Commissioners.
Staff said the county has received no data-center applications but is preparing standards modeled on state-level best practices. The ordinance as drafted would treat data centers as conditional uses in commercial-industrial zones, not allowed by right, and would include key requirements: a minimum site area of 10 acres; fencing and security; a 1,000-foot setback from any existing residential dwelling and 500 feet from residential or agricultural property; 200 feet from a major road collector/corridor and 100 feet from a local access road; and mandatory studies of power, water and broadband impacts, including projected demand at buildout, proposed phasing and off-site improvements.
The draft also requires applicants to prioritize air-cooled, liquid-immersion or hybrid cooling systems and, if water-cooled systems are proposed, to include mandatory water reclamation and reuse systems and documentation that the chosen cooling method is the least water-intensive feasible for the site. Applicants must provide utility-provider documentation confirming service capacity and any applicable water-efficiency thresholds prior to building permits. Staff emphasized these requirements will be conditions of conditional-use approval.
Commissioners observed that the development authority park (referred to in staff materials as the Haststone Brady Industrial Park) would likely be among the few locations in the county able to meet the acreage and setback requirements. After discussion about water consumption and siting, the commission voted to recommend the draft standards to the Board of Commissioners for public hearings and final action.
