Alamosa County approves small-scale data center amid Valley-wide concerns
Alamosa County commissioners have approved a special use permit for a small-scale, container-based data center near Hooper, Colorado, despite ongoing regional concerns about data center impacts. This decision comes amidst public debate and the enactment of moratoriums in neighboring San Luis Valley communities like Saguache County and South Fork. The approved project by Strata Inc. is designed to operate with air cooling and connect to existing infrastructure, aiming to minimize environmental impact.
Alamosa County commissioners have granted a special use permit for a small-scale, container-based data center near Hooper, Colorado, following months of public inquiry and regional debate. The 3-1 vote on September 9 allows Strata Inc., led by David Meyer, to develop approximately 2 acres of an 80-acre parcel for electronic data processing and storage.
This approval occurs against a backdrop of increasing scrutiny of data center developments across the San Luis Valley. Saguache County and the town of South Fork had previously enacted one-year moratoriums on data center projects to evaluate their potential impacts, while residents in Rio Grande County also raised concerns, particularly regarding water resources and energy consumption. During a public comment period in June, a resident appealed to Rio Grande County commissioners to consider a moratorium and an environmental impact assessment related to potential data center initiatives.
Monroe Johnson, Chief Technology Officer for San Luis Valley Rural Electric Cooperative (SLVREC), addressed residents' concerns at a South Fork meeting, differentiating between large hyperscale data centers that consume significant water and smaller, modular container-based facilities like the one proposed for Alamosa County. He acknowledged that even a smaller facility could potentially draw as much power as an entire town but affirmed that new commercial loads would be managed within the cooperative's existing infrastructure.
The Alamosa County project is slated to include 12 40-foot computing containers, four backup generator containers, and supporting infrastructure, designed to be air-cooled and rely on existing electric and fiberoptic lines provided by SLVREC and Jade, respectively, without requiring new transmission lines or consuming water for cooling. The County Planning Commission had recommended approval after addressing issues of infrastructure, water use, noise, and site management, ultimately leading to the commissioners' decision to move forward with the project.