Pima County votes 8-1 on new data center zoning rules
The Pima County Planning and Zoning Commission voted 8-1 to recommend new standards for future data centers, including a half-mile setback from homes, noise limits and restrictions to the county’s most intensive industrial areas. The Pima County Board of Supervisors must approve the standards and is scheduled to consider them on Dec. 8, following a 120-day moratorium on new data center development.
The Pima County Planning and Zoning Commission voted 8-1 after a more than two-hour meeting to recommend new zoning standards for future data centers. The proposed rules would require projects to be at least a half-mile from homes, comply with noise limits and locate only in the county’s most intensive industrial zones, such as areas near Davis-Monthan Air Force Base or major freeways. Future proposals would also require approval from both the commission and the Pima County Board of Supervisors.
The action followed the Board of Supervisors’ vote to impose a 120-day moratorium on new data center development while the county updated its zoning code. One commissioner opposed the standards, citing concerns about the region’s energy and water crises and arguing that the temporary moratorium provides only short-term protection. The Board of Supervisors is expected to take up the commission’s recommendation at a Dec. 8 meeting.