Erickson: Data center moratoriums send ‘dangerous message’
Sioux Falls Mayor Christine Erickson is cautioning against data center moratoriums ahead of a Lincoln County Commissioner's plan to propose one. Commissioner Joel Arends will introduce a moratorium for the Sioux Falls-Lincoln County joint jurisdiction to allow time for impact consideration. A joint city-county meeting is scheduled to debate the proposal.
Lincoln County Commissioner Joel Arends plans to introduce a data center moratorium proposal at an upcoming joint session with the Sioux Falls City Council on August 25. Arends stated the moratorium would allow local officials "time for thoughtful consideration" of data center impacts before further projects proceed in the Sioux Falls-Lincoln County joint jurisdiction. However, Sioux Falls Mayor Christine Erickson has publicly cautioned against such moratoriums, calling them a "dangerous message." Erickson expressed a preference for establishing clear regulatory "guardrails" through collaboration, rather than signaling that the area is "not open for business." This isn't Arends' first attempt, as a similar county-wide moratorium proposal failed in February.
The article also notes that the joint meeting follows a discussion at the Minnehaha County Planning Commission where a draft ordinance for data center regulations was presented and sent back for further work. Mayor Erickson emphasized the importance of community engagement and fact-based decision-making in these discussions, regardless of whether a moratorium or new regulations are pursued.