Scarborough to vote on data center moratorium
Scarborough, Maine, is considering a 180-day data center moratorium, with a Town Council vote scheduled for June 3. The proposed moratorium would retroactively apply to applications submitted after April 1, including a specific 52-acre Scarborough Technology Park development whose proposal was rejected as incomplete. Residents and state representatives support the local ban to allow time for the town to establish regulations for data centers.
The Scarborough Town Council is set to vote on a proposed 180-day data center moratorium on June 3, following a similar veto of a statewide ban by Gov. Janet Mills in April. Scarborough joins other Maine communities, including Westbrook, Sanford, and Brunswick, in considering local pauses to data center construction to develop appropriate local rules. The moratorium comes after developer Daniel Dickinson submitted a master plan for the 52-acre Scarborough Technology Park development, which local officials, including Town Manager Tom Hall, rejected as incomplete.
Dickinson, who purchased the property in 2022, raised concerns that the proposed moratorium's retroactive application, which would affect any applications submitted after April 1, unfairly targets his project. However, Town Manager Hall stated that Dickinson's application is not considered pending, and the retroactivity clause does not pose legal issues. The town council aims to use the moratorium period to educate itself on the environmental and operational impacts of data centers, particularly concerning the Scarborough marsh, and to make a more informed, permanent decision on future developments. Maine State Representatives Ellie Sato and Sophie Warren, who supported the failed statewide ban, have encouraged municipalities to pass local ordinances, emphasizing the need for communities to act quickly.