Haring officials fine-tune data center policy before public hearing
Haring Township officials are revising a draft ordinance that would regulate data center development before a public hearing on Nov. 6. Proposed rules include special-use permits, larger minimum lots, 500-foot setbacks, municipal water and sewer requirements, and decommissioning escrow accounts. The township's six-month data center moratorium expires in January, increasing pressure to adopt the ordinance before then.
Haring Township officials are refining a proposed ordinance governing data center construction ahead of a Nov. 6 public hearing. Supervisor Bob Scarbrough, zoning administrator Mike Green and planning commission members support requiring special land-use permits in one industrial district rather than allowing facilities by right. They also favor increasing the minimum site size from 20 to 100 acres and requiring at least 500 feet of separation from other development.
The draft would address water and sewer service, decommissioning costs and other operating standards. Officials cited resident concerns about data centers' groundwater and electricity use, while acknowledging that Michigan zoning law prevents the township from banning them outright. Haring Township enacted a six-month construction moratorium earlier in the year, and officials hope to approve the ordinance before the moratorium expires in January.