Dubuque city leaders to develop a data center ordinance
Dubuque city leaders are developing a data center ordinance in response to a developer's request, while Dubuque County has enacted a one-year moratorium on data center development. The county's moratorium affects any proposed data center in the area, requiring city approval for water and sewer connections if the project is outside city limits.
Dubuque city leaders are reviewing a developer's request for a proposed data center and are consequently working to develop a specific data center ordinance. City Manager Mike Van Milligen confirmed that the city was contacted by an interested developer and will assess its infrastructure to facilitate the ordinance creation. The proposed ordinance will be discussed in a public City Council meeting before approval.
This development comes as the Dubuque County Board of Supervisors recently enacted a one-year moratorium, pausing all zoning amendments, site plans, building permits, and conditional use permits related to data center construction or expansion within the county. Van Milligen stated that any data center project in the Dubuque area would first require zoning approval from the supervisors, effectively halting the current proposal.
Despite the county-wide pause, the City of Dubuque will proceed with reviewing the developer's request to connect to the city's water and sewer systems. Van Milligen clarified that any such connection, particularly for projects outside city limits, would require City Council approval. He also noted that the city has not received any annexation applications related to the project, as the property in question is not contiguous with city limits.