Burbank City Council Seeks to Assuage Data Center Fears
Burbank City Council is working to address public fears and rumors surrounding the potential arrival and expansion of data centers in the city. City staff assured residents that massive data centers are not imminent, despite concerns about a facility on Flower Street, which they clarified is a smaller telecom site. The city plans to gather more information on data center impacts and potential regulations.
The Burbank City Council convened to address growing public anxieties regarding data center development within city limits, driven by widespread rumors and concerns from residents. Vice Mayor Zizette Mullins and Councilmember Chris Rizzotti noted that constituents were actively inquiring about data centers potentially expanding or opening throughout Burbank, including a specific facility on Flower Street.
Community Development Director Patrick Prescott clarified that the Cogent facility at 100 Flower Street, which has operated as a telecom and internet infrastructure site, is a much smaller operation with modest electrical needs, peaking at 0.75 megawatts in 2021. He emphasized it is not comparable to the hyper-scale AI data centers requiring 100 to 1,000 megawatts of power and acres of land. Prescott reassured the council that no proposals have been submitted to convert the Cogent site into a modern, high-capacity data center.
Despite the current lack of specific regulations governing data centers in Burbank, Prescott noted that infrastructure demands for electricity and water would naturally limit the size of any new facility. He committed to monitoring the situation at the Flower Street facility and gathering information on data center impacts, including electricity, water, and noise, as well as exploring potential city rules. However, he cautioned that an in-depth report would take at least two months to prepare due to staffing priorities, advising against rushing the process to ensure comprehensive answers for the public and council members.