A growing number of data center plans and proposals throughout Minnesota is causing concern among some local municipalities.
At its April 6 meeting, the Carver City Council adopted a one-year moratorium on the construction of data centers within the city. Council members indicated that a temporary pause is necessary so the city can study the issues surrounding data centers and determine if ordinances regulating such industrial complexes are warranted.
Data centers store, manage, process and transmit digital data, according to Erin Smith, Carver community development director. The demand for more data centers is fueled, in part, by the growth of artificial intelligence (AI), which requires large amounts of computing power to operate.
“They’re a pretty hot topic in Minnesota,” Smith said of data centers. “The Minnesota climate lends itself to work well for data centers, since we have a chillier climate … so less cooling can be required. We also have available land, groundwater and utilities. And then there are also some state tax incentives.”
Opponents of data centers cite environmental impact as a reason to reject any such proposals. The centers require significant water resources to cool down the heat generated from computing. Residents living near existing data centers also complain about “continuous or intermittent generator noise” emanating from the complexes, Smith reported.
Proponents of such centers point to job creation and tax revenue generation as reasons to approve the projects.
While there are no active proposals for a data center in Carver, and no existing parcels of land within city limits that are large enough for a data center, Smith told the council that properties along the border of Carver that may eventually be annexed into the city and could accommodate such buildings.
She noted that the city’s zoning code doesn’t specifically address data centers, which could open the door for such a business if the city doesn’t act.
“So, we are being proactive in this approach,” Smith said of the moratorium proposal. “Data centers are happening, and they’re often contentious. Emotions have and will likely continue to run high for various reasons. The goal would be to balance economic development with the long-term impacts of what a data center could do both to the environment, land use and public trust.”
As the moratorium goes into effect, Smith said city staff will follow news related to data centers and watch how other communities are reacting. By next spring, she hopes Carver will have a better picture of how to address the data center question and return to the City Council for possible action.
“I think it’s a really pivotal time to be thinking about data centers,” she said. “It’s going to be an interesting six months, year or 18 months … just to see how the landscape changes with data centers and as communities continue to navigate them one way or the other. Some folks are really excited. Some folks don’t want them anywhere near their community. So, it’s going to be interesting to watch. It gives us time to take in that information, see what other cities are doing, and then create an approach that feels appropriate for Carver.”
Council member Kristy Conrade asked if the city will be able to ban data centers if those facilities are deemed detrimental to the community.
City Attorney Dave Anderson said it’s a possibility, but the city would have to be careful in its approach to the matter.
“An ordinance can’t be arbitrary and capricious,” he explained. “We can’t treat data centers differently and prohibit them, and at the same time allow other industrial uses that are very similar. The devil will be in the details.”
If a data center proposal comes to Carver in the future, and the city rejects the plan, Anderson noted there is some risk of litigation.
“These gigantic companies have unlimited resources and might not blink if it means making an example out of a city that would prohibit these things,” he said.
The council voted unanimously to impose the moratorium for up to one year.
