Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Data Centers topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Planning commission adds AI/data-center review, urges experts on water, power and decommissioning
Summary
Yankton County planning commissioners voted to add an AI/data-center discussion to their agenda and agreed to gather expert information on water use, noise, electrical infrastructure and decommissioning before advising the county commission.
The Planning Commission added a discussion item on AI and data centers and agreed to gather technical and financial information before making ordinance recommendations.
The Chair opened the topic by saying, "as a chair of this planning commission, I feel that it is my obligation to encourage each of you to stay up to date on the current community interest in data centers," and urged commissioners to collaborate and prepare to advise the county commission.
Commissioners said the work could be time consuming. Committee member (S5) warned that the effort "could be a very time consuming thing" and commissioners might need to meet more frequently to collect data and hear public input.
Water, noise and electrical demand emerged as primary concerns. Committee member (S3) said cooling systems determine water use and cited an example: "a facility down in Nebraska that was supposed to use, I think it was 571,000,000 gallons, and it used twice that much." S3 said newer cooling technology can reduce water needs but is not yet universally available.
Several commissioners said ordinances should address technical requirements, financial stability and decommissioning. Committee member (S6) recommended including a financial-stability element and a decommissioning requirement so the county is not left with derelict infrastructure. "If a data center came into that place, the builder owner would be required to pay for any additional infrastructure to get power to them," S6 said while urging careful drafting of rules.
Commission members also discussed economic trade-offs. One commissioner noted South Dakota's business-friendly tax environment and said the county should avoid unnecessary giveaways: "We have no state income tax, either individual or corporate, and that's a huge draw... You're gonna pay the freight," the commissioner said.
The commission agreed to collect model ordinances and technical expertise, invite outside speakers as needed, and prepare information for the county commission. Committee member (S5) said, "All I need to know to go back to the commission is whether this group thinks they can do it and wanna do it." The group signaled it will research water, noise and power impacts and consider financial and decommissioning safeguards before recommending zoning or ordinance language.
The commission did not take a final vote on any ordinance at the meeting; next steps are staff gathering model ordinances and scheduling experts for future discussion.
