The Receipts: Air quality and representation fears rise with Taylor's data center
Taylor City Council approved a development agreement for a proposed 664-acre Taylor Technology Campus that would include data centers and on-site natural gas power generation. Nearby residents are concerned about air quality, noise, water use and their lack of voting representation because the property is outside the city, while state regulators have not yet begun reviewing the project's air permit application.
The Taylor City Council approved a development agreement that could enable a 664-acre data center campus near Taylor. The project would include data center buildings and on-site power generation, and Big Watt Digital has submitted an application to the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality for a standard air permit covering the electrical generating units. TCEQ said its technical review had not yet started.
Neighbors including Connie Zika and Ian Davis expressed concerns about air quality, noise, health impacts and changes to the rural character of the area. The agreement includes closed-loop cooling using reclaimed water, setbacks, landscape buffers, noise and lighting requirements, stormwater rules and $28.2 million in commitments to city, school and nonprofit programs. The city said annexation would give it enforcement authority over those conditions, while residents outside the city limits would be able to address the council but not vote for its members. Williamson County said it cannot zone or prohibit data centers and has no authority over Taylor's annexation process.