Ypsilanti Utility Approves Data Center Moratorium

The Ypsilanti Community Utilities Authority (YCUA) has enacted a 12-month moratorium on new water and sewer service commitments for data centers and high-demand computing facilities. The decision, approved by the YCUA, means the utility will pause new service commitments, reserved system capacity, and infrastructure expansion commitments for such projects. This allows YCUA to study the potential effects on its system, existing customers, and future development. The moratorium was initiated following a formal request from the Ypsilanti Township Board of Trustees, which unanimously passed a resolution on April 15, urging YCUA to halt service decisions for data centers while further studies are conducted. The scope of the moratorium covers hyperscale, mid-sized, artificial intelligence, and high-performance computing centers. YCUA's review during this period is expected to cover critical areas including water supply, wastewater capacity, potential impacts on customer rates, infrastructure costs, environmental considerations, and emergency response planning. While the moratorium is broad, it comes amidst ongoing discussions in Ypsilanti Township regarding a proposed high-performance computing facility by the University of Michigan and Los Alamos National Laboratory.