Why Calumet County hasn't passed a data center moratorium
Calumet County, Wisconsin, has not enacted a data center moratorium because its current zoning ordinance already prohibits data centers as a permissible use. Legal advisors determined that a moratorium would be redundant given the existing regulations. The county is considering minor modifications to its ordinance to address potential legal loopholes.
Calumet County, Wisconsin, has decided against implementing a data center moratorium, a measure increasingly adopted by other municipalities. Calumet County Administrator Todd Romenesko explained that the county's current zoning ordinance already classifies data centers as a non-permissible use, making a moratorium unnecessary.
Attorney Rebecca Roeker of Attolles Law, who advised the county, confirmed that the existing ordinances negate the need for a moratorium and highlighted that elected officials are planning to consider modifications to close any potential legal loopholes. These county-level zoning regulations primarily apply to townships, such as Woodville, but may not extend to independent cities or villages like Chilton, which maintain their own zoning authority. Romenesko also clarified that despite concerns from residents, there are no current data center proposals in the county, and a proposed natural gas and wind energy project by Invenergy has no connection to data center development.