New Orleans Data Center on Hold After Failed City Council Committee Vote
New Orleans' Planning Commission failed to approve recommendations that would have allowed small and medium-sized data centers while prohibiting large and hyperscale facilities. The commission also asked the City Council to extend the existing one-year moratorium, which is set to expire in January, amid opposition from residents concerned about environmental impacts and power consumption.
The New Orleans Planning Commission voted against a recommendation governing which types of data centers could be built in the city. The proposal would have permitted facilities of up to 100,000 square feet using no more than 20 megawatts of power, while prohibiting large and hyperscale centers; one commissioner proposed tighter limits of 50,000 square feet and 15 megawatts, but the recommendation still failed.
The commission asked the New Orleans City Council to extend a one-year moratorium on new data center development that was approved in January. The moratorium is scheduled to expire in January. Residents speaking at the public meeting opposed allowing any data centers in the city, citing concerns about environmental damage, limited job benefits and the scale of hyperscale facilities such as one in Richland Parish.