Mills vetoed a data center pause. Towns are looking to pass their own.
Following Governor Janet Mills' veto of a statewide data center moratorium, several Maine municipalities are proposing their own local pauses on development. Cities like Westbrook, Brunswick, Scarborough, and Sanford are considering moratoriums to allow time to update zoning rules and address concerns about resource consumption and environmental impacts.
After Maine Governor Janet Mills vetoed a bill that would have imposed a statewide moratorium on large data center development, at least four municipalities in the state are now pursuing their own temporary bans. The towns of Sanford, Scarborough, Brunswick, and Westbrook are proposing moratoriums to gain time to revise local zoning ordinances and develop specific regulations for large data centers.
Officials in Westbrook, led by Mayor David Morse, are considering a 180-day moratorium, citing the inadequacy of current land use rules written before the recent surge in AI-driven demand for data centers. The draft ordinance highlights concerns over high water and electricity usage, noise, light pollution, and environmental impacts. Brunswick is weighing a similar, retroactive proposal that targets data centers with at least 10,000 square feet or 20 MW electrical capacity, ensuring smaller, existing facilities are not affected.
In Sanford and Scarborough, moratorium proposals come amid existing plans by unnamed developers to build data centers. Scarborough's Town Manager Tom Hall and Council Chair Cory Fellows stated that their proposed six-month pause is intended to allow for education and the development of specific requirements related to noise, light, and integration into the community's vision. Sanford's City Council will vote on a 91-day moratorium, with City Manager Steven Buck and Mayor Becky Brink emphasizing the need for tailored regulations to address the distinct characteristics of large-scale data center development, fueled partly by public opposition to the proposed 1,000-plus acre Sanford Woods Industrial and Technical Campus.
Bangor City Council already enacted a city-wide pause in April, demonstrating a precedent for local action when state-level efforts are unsuccessful. State Representative Ryan Fecteau, D-Biddeford, has also called on local leaders to implement their own moratoriums, criticizing the governor's veto as a "disastrous decision." These local efforts aim to create proper 'guardrails' for economic development while addressing community concerns about infrastructure strain and environmental impact.