St. Louis board allows data center near Armory to move forward with new rules

The St. Louis Board of Adjustment has unanimously approved a conditional use permit for a proposed $3 billion data center in Midtown, located near the Armory. This decision comes after an 11-hour hearing where the board addressed over a dozen appeals from community members and organizations, including the Missouri Coalition for the Environment, who raised significant concerns about the project's environmental impact, particularly its electricity and water usage, as well as potential noise and air pollution.

Despite calls to rescind the permit due to "disastrous environmental impacts," the board allowed the project to proceed with amendments. These changes include prohibiting the data center from testing its backup diesel generators on days with poor air quality and mandating a small amount of on-site renewable energy generation. Developers, including David Lambiaso, argued the project would bring substantial tax revenue and help revitalize the Midtown area, although a tenant for the data center has not yet been secured.

The data center is projected to consume 120 megawatts of electricity, equivalent to about 80,000 St. Louis homes, prompting utility Ameren Missouri to announce new electric rates for large data centers and plan for new energy sources, such as a natural gas plant in West Alton. Concurrently, St. Louis officials are in the process of drafting new regulations for large data centers, with amendments to a relevant bill recently approved by the Board of Aldermen, now awaiting consideration by the city's Planning Commission.