Denton officials to vote on public hearings for data center moratorium, development code updates
Denton City Council is set to vote on holding public hearings for a proposed moratorium on data center development and updates to the city's development code. This local discussion follows a statewide announcement from Gov. Greg Abbott to audit data centers connecting to Texas's power grid. The council is considering both a temporary moratorium and permanent regulatory changes.
Denton City Council is advancing discussions on a potential moratorium on new data center development within city limits, alongside implementing stricter development rules. During an Aug. 4 work session, a split council emerged, with Mayor Chris Watts, Mayor Pro Tem Nick Stevens, and council members Jordan Villarreal and George Ferrie supporting both a moratorium and code updates. Conversely, council members Suzi Rumohr, Jill Jester, and Joe Holland favored focusing solely on revising the development code, arguing a moratorium is a temporary solution.
The council plans to vote on Aug. 18 to set a public hearing date for the proposed moratorium, which, if passed by a supermajority vote (75%), would impose a 90-day pause on new data center projects. This pause could be extended to 180 days. Simultaneously, amendments to the city's development code, aiming to enhance local regulations, are also under discussion and would require separate public hearings. Officials like Charlie Rosendahl, Denton's director of development services, outlined timelines, with public hearings potentially starting in September.
These local deliberations come shortly after Texas Gov. Greg Abbott's Aug. 3 announcement of a statewide halt on approving new data center projects, pending an audit by the Public Utility Commission of Texas and ERCOT on their grid connections. Denton currently hosts two data centers, including one by Core Scientific (expanding with CoreWeave) and a recently approved project for Qumulus AI, which would not be affected by the proposed local moratorium.