Manitowoc County committee recommends 1-year moratorium on data center permitting

The Manitowoc County Planning and Parks Commission in Wisconsin has unanimously recommended that the county board approve an ordinance for a one-year moratorium on data center permitting. This recommendation comes after the towns of Two Creeks, Two Rivers, and Mishicot, which are under county zoning jurisdiction, passed resolutions in mid-February expressing concerns about potential health, safety, and environmental issues related to data center construction and operation. According to the proposed ordinance, current county zoning and land use regulations lack specific language to address the location, construction, or operation of data centers, and existing plans are not consistent with such developments. If approved, the moratorium would prevent the county from accepting applications or issuing permits for data centers for up to 12 months, allowing time to research economic and environmental impacts, and develop appropriate zoning and local regulations. Manitowoc County Board chair Tyler Martell stated that the moratorium would provide time for officials to understand the parameters data centers would need to follow and where they could be sited, noting significant public concern, particularly regarding environmental fears about water and energy use, as well as noise and light pollution. Cloverleaf Infrastructure, a developer aiming to build a hyperscale data center in northeast Wisconsin, including potentially in Manitowoc County, confirmed they are actively seeking suitable land with access to infrastructure and energy, despite the local opposition. James Falkowski, a county board supervisor and chair of the planning and parks commission, clarified that the ordinance would not apply to municipalities within Manitowoc County that have their own zoning codes. He also suggested that former industrial sites might be more appropriate for data centers than rural agricultural land, citing Janesville's brownfields as an example. The county board is scheduled to consider the proposal at its April 28 meeting.