Colorado Springs data center report urges tighter rules, not a moratorium
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Colorado Springs should tighten its data center rules rather than halt new projects, a new independent report recommends.
Why it matters: Mayor Yemi Mobolade requested the study to chart a middle path through a contentious debate that's upending the city, as evidenced by the turmoil surrounding Project Taurus.
- The nonprofit Romer Institute of Evidence-based Policy, which authored the report, argues a moratorium would just delay projects without generating substantive standards.
State of play: Colorado Springs owns its utilities, giving the city unusual leverage over development approvals and access to power and water, the report notes.
Zoom in: The study outlines 14 policy options for city planners to consider. Key proposals include:
- New rules: Create a separate land-use category for data centers and revisit the 10-megawatt threshold that exempts smaller facilities from utility safeguards for large customers.
- Neighborhood protections: Require independent noise studies, consider limits on low-frequency sound, and formalize when developers must assess water use.
- Public input: Hold community forums and require public hearings for projects exceeding defined thresholds.
- Project-specific rules: Set baseline requirements, then negotiate additional protections for individual developments.
- Plan for the downside: Consider guarantees for abandoned facilities and a consistent way to measure projects' fiscal impacts.
The big picture: Mobolade's administration wants to break months of gridlock and establish a framework to protect ratepayers, water supplies and neighborhoods without shutting the door on development.
Yes, but: City Council must approve land-use changes and utility safeguards, given its role in overseeing Colorado Springs Utilities.
- No future date is set to consider the planning department's development code recommendations.
- The current moratorium ends April 13, one week after the municipal election.
The bottom line: The next test is whether City Hall can turn its promises into enforceable rules before a new data center sparks another neighborhood showdown.