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Commissioners approve data-center zoning changes including 0.5-mile setback and water-use rules
Summary
Warren County commissioners approved four data-center ordinance amendments: extending setbacks to 0.5 mile from occupied dwellings, requiring closed-loop cooling or equivalent, prohibiting NDAs for planning/ED board members, and requiring companies to pay for utility upgrades.
Warren County commissioners voted to adopt four amendments to the county's proposed data-center ordinance, including a change to setbacks and new technical and ethics requirements. Chair opened the item by saying the Airport/Planning committee gave the amendments favorable recommendation and the board proceeded to vote.
In the first vote the board moved setbacks from 500 feet near occupied buildings to 0.5 mile and retained 500 feet from rights-of-way. "There were 4 of them, and they were all given favorable reservation," the Chair said when introducing the package. The motion to approve the setback change passed by voice vote.
Ingrid, a county staff member who summarized the technical amendments, said: "So what this 1 does is it switches the requirement to any sort of cooling system to a closed loop system or similar equivalent to minimize water usage ideally. It also adds in a wastewater treatment plan for any water discharges that are coming off of that cooling system." Commissioners said the water-use rules and required studies (depending on whether a project uses a private well or utility water) aim to reduce local water draws.
Commissioners also approved an ordinance prohibiting planning-and-zoning and economic-development board members from entering nondisclosure agreements with data-center developers; a commissioner moved the ordinance that "prohibiting NDA agreements ... parts to data centers," and the board seconded and approved it. Finally, the board amended language so companies must pay for necessary electric-utility infrastructure upgrades tied to data-center hookups. All four amendments passed by voice votes and were recorded as approved.
