St. Croix County Committee sends data center moratorium to board

The St. Croix County Community Development Committee recently voted to amend Chapter 15 of its zoning ordinance and advanced a data center moratorium to the full county board. This measure seeks to establish a framework for addressing data center development, especially in light of the increasing demand driven by artificial intelligence. The proposed moratorium, which passed unanimously in the committee, is set for one year and targets medium- and large-scale data centers, though the definition of "small scale" remains a point of discussion.

Committee members, including Kerry Reis, expressed the need for more defined state and federal guidelines but recognized the moratorium as a necessary step for the county to develop its own regulatory framework. The committee also considered how to differentiate smaller, permitted uses for data centers from larger industrial facilities to avoid burdening farmers and homeowners.

Separately, the Hammond Village Board has filed a lawsuit challenging a conditional use permit approval for a data center, highlighting the broader political and environmental pushback against data center expansion across the U.S. It's important to note that any moratorium or zoning changes enacted by St. Croix County will not apply to municipalities like the village of Hammond, or the towns of Forest, Hudson, St. Joseph, and Troy, which manage their own zoning.