San Antonio City Council lays out options to regulate the influx of data centers
San Antonio City Council is considering three regulatory frameworks for data centers, ranging from allowing compliant projects by right to requiring case-by-case approval. The proposals include setbacks, public notice, greenspace replacement, air-quality monitoring, and disclosures of projected water and energy use, with a vote scheduled for Oct. 29.
San Antonio City Council members are weighing three approaches to regulate the city’s growing data center industry. The options would either allow qualifying facilities in commercial and industrial zones, require individual City Council authorization, or combine fixed requirements with case-by-case approval. A majority of council members currently favor the stricter approaches, while Councilwoman Marina Alderete Gavito and Councilman Marc Whyte support clearer by-right rules to provide developers with consistency.
Mayor Gina Ortiz Jones’ proposed framework would require 1,000-foot setbacks, advance notice, two public meetings, additional greenspace replacement, enclosed backup generators, and air-quality monitoring. City officials are also considering water and power-use disclosures, amid community concerns about noise, pollution, property values, and environmental impacts near the Edwards Aquifer. The proposed rules will be presented to the Zoning Commission on Oct. 20 and put before the City Council on Oct. 29; a moratorium previously considered by the council failed to gain sufficient support. Environmental groups including Public Citizen have also filed a lawsuit involving two San Antonio data centers over pollution controls, while a statewide moratorium on new data centers connecting to the Texas grid remains in effect pending ERCOT audits.