Advisory committee discusses overlay districts, moratorium and how to define "hyperscale"

Staff research presented to the advisory committee showed that current setback requirements could push the minimum usable site size for certain configurations to roughly 72 acres; staff recommended an overlay or planned-unit-development (PUD) approach so parcel-specific conditions and developer commitments are set up front. The chair asked staff to draft overlay language for the draft resolution and requested comments from members by the first week of September.

Committee members debated how best to define a large or "hyperscale" data center. Suggestions included a square-foot threshold (staff cited 10,000 sq ft as a commonly used baseline for local guidance), but several members argued power consumption or water usage would be a more accurate sizing metric. One participant noted an internal metric of 5 MW triggers a different review process and observed that true hyperscalers can reach hundreds of megawatts. Staff said overlays allow tailored setbacks, operational limits and specific mitigation commitments to be negotiated as part of the approval process.