No movement in Broken Arrow data center proposal, but city supports ratepayer legislation

Broken Arrow city officials have reported no new developments regarding a proposed data center on the city's east side. City Manager Michael Spurgeon stated that while a company expressed interest on April 30 for a pre-development meeting to discuss land use and zoning, the meeting has not yet been scheduled but is expected in early summer. No non-disclosure agreements have been signed, and neither Spurgeon nor the City Council has met with representatives of the prospective, unidentified company, nor have incentives been discussed. The City Council, however, has voiced strong support for the recently signed Data Center Customer Ratepayer Protection Act, enacted by Gov. Kevin Stitt. This legislation mandates that the Oklahoma Corporation Commission, municipal utilities, and other stakeholders ensure that large-load customers, such as data centers, bear their own electricity costs, preventing them from being passed on to individual ratepayers. The Act also requires electric suppliers to create separate terms and tariffs for large-load customers and mandates notification to relevant authorities and property owners when land outside industrial parks is purchased for such projects. Spurgeon indicated that the proposed 51-acre data center, near 81st Street and the Creek Turnpike, could require 100 to 150 megawatts of electricity. The site's owner, Rex Robertson, has a letter of intent to sell the property if zoning approvals are secured. The city and the Broken Arrow Economic Development Corp. are conducting due diligence, investigating concerns raised by residents regarding potential noise, traffic, and environmental impacts.