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Residents urge Franklin County to reject or tightly regulate data center rezonings
Summary
Several residents told the Franklin County Commission they oppose rezoning rural land for hyperscale data centers, citing water and power use, noise, environmental harm and alleged secrecy; speakers asked commissioners to require environmental studies, publish nondisclosure terms and visit affected properties.
Dozens of residents told the Franklin County Commission on the public-comment portion of the agenda that the county should not rezone rural land for hyperscale data centers and must spell out stricter safeguards before approving any proposals.
"Are you gonna put the people first or big tech? Our communities matter," said Anne Hayden during the meeting, urging commissioners not to approve rezonings without "meaningful and two-way discussions on the record." Jeff Hayden pressed the commission for specifics, asking, "How much water? How much power? How is it all gonna be supplied?" and requesting that any nondisclosure agreements be shared or that their expiration dates be clarified.
Commenters raised a range of concerns that the county has not yet addressed in ordinance drafts. A speaker who signed as Nancy read a written statement that cited a Larimer County poll she said showed 94% opposition to large data-center development there and urged commissioners to visit nearby properties such as Diamond Farms as part of due diligence. Twila Ashworth asked why the county has required environmental-impact studies for bridges and subdivisions but not for data centers, listing water consumption, energy demand and greenhouse gas emissions as reasons for equivalent scrutiny.
Other commenters suggested specific regulatory fixes. Travis Lake recommended automatic restrictions tied to drought declarations or river-level instrument thresholds, and proposed that the county require baseline air and noise studies using vendors selected by the county rather than relying on developer-provided measurements. Jessica asked the commission to establish "guardrails" and offered that citizens deserved a vote on changes that materially affect land use.
Several speakers accused commissioners or appointees of secrecy and legal impropriety. Dana Bowers said residents have filed formal complaints and alleged a violation of GRAMA related to campaign materials; that claim was raised during public comment and was not adjudicated at the meeting.
Commission staff responded to a procedural question, stating there are no active nondisclosure agreements on data-center proposals and that a prior NDA with BeltLine had been terminated months earlier. The commission did not take formal action on rezoning or modify any ordinance language during the meeting; the assembly primarily recorded public testimony and asked for further study and responses.
The commission adjourned after completing its agenda; no vote on data-center rezonings occurred at this meeting.
