Gardner data center moratorium fizzles, Edgerton is next

The Gardner City Council rejected a proposed six-month moratorium on data center applications, as a motion to approve the pause died due to lack of a second from councilmembers. Residents, including Carrie Schmidt and Kristen Schultz, expressed frustration, feeling the council prioritized money over community concerns and failed to conduct due diligence. Councilmembers like Kacy Deaton and Steve McNeer, along with Mayor Todd Winters and Council President Mark Baldwin, argued that city staff are already researching data centers and a moratorium would be redundant or signal an unwillingness to engage with development.

The discussion highlighted past data center activity in Johnson County, including an application from Beale Infrastructure that was withdrawn in Gardner earlier this year following community pushback. Beale's proposal, initially planned for 300 acres, had been for a closed-loop, air-cooled system with significantly lower water usage than typical data centers. Despite this, residents voiced general concerns about data center impacts.

Meanwhile, the Edgerton City Council is scheduled to consider its own moratorium on June 11. This follows significant community opposition to a current application from Dubai-based DAMAC Digital, which proposes converting a 400,000-square-foot warehouse at Logistics Park Kansas City into a data center. Residents, some of whom live near the proposed DAMAC facility, have voiced concerns about water consumption, industrial waste, noise, and potential long-term health effects, urging city officials to define data centers formally and restrict their zoning.