Gibraltar passes data center moratorium: Facility proposed at former McLouth Steel site

The City of Gibraltar, Michigan has passed a one-year moratorium on data center development, including a proposed 100-megawatt facility at the former McLouth Steel site. The moratorium aims to give the city's planning commission time to establish regulations for data centers. The developer, Raeden, is moving forward with a community meeting despite the moratorium, intending to locate the facility on the industrial site and add power generation, likely using natural gas. Local activists are concerned about the environmental and ratepayer impacts, noting the facility's proximity to sensitive wildlife areas. The data center would employ 60-200 people and use significant amounts of energy and water. The proposed facility is an "inference data center" powering AI applications, which does not yet exist in the Detroit metro area.