After months of debate, St. Louis data center rules finally head to mayor
After months of debate, the St. Louis Board of Aldermen unanimously passed Board Bill 49, establishing new zoning rules for data centers in the city. The legislation, which classifies data centers by size and imposes renewable energy, light, and sound restrictions, now heads to Mayor Cara Spencer for her signature. While some advocates welcome the controls, opponents, including the Eco-Socialist Green Party, criticize the bill as insufficient and have filed a lawsuit against a specific data center project.
After extensive debate and public comment, new zoning rules for data centers in St. Louis, known as Board Bill 49, have unanimously passed the Board of Aldermen and are now awaiting Mayor Cara Spencer's signature. The legislation, sponsored by Ward 1 Alderwoman Anne Schweitzer, classifies data centers by size, dictates their location, and imposes stringent requirements on renewable energy, light, and sound.
The initial framework was developed by the city Planning and Urban Design Agency and refined by the Planning Commission. The push for these regulations stemmed from an executive order by Mayor Spencer last September, following news of a proposed data center at the historic Armory building in Midtown. While Alderwoman Schweitzer acknowledges the rules are not perfect, she believes they provide the city with crucial control over data center development, despite not fully addressing concerns over rising energy costs for residents.
Opposition groups, such as the Eco-Socialist Green Party of Eastern Missouri, strongly criticized the bill, labeling it a "greenlighting" for hyperscale data centers and arguing that regulations cannot mitigate the harm caused by these facilities. This group, along with other plaintiffs, recently filed a lawsuit against the city regarding the Armory data center project, which they vow to continue fighting. Board of Aldermen President Megan Green, however, lauded the rules as some of the strongest nationally, emphasizing the city's expectation for new data centers to utilize renewable energy and invest in clean energy infrastructure.
Meanwhile, the Armory Innovation District, a proposed $3 billion, 120-megawatt data center, is moving forward but will not be subject to the new zoning rules, as its conditional use permit already includes similar environmental and energy conservation measures. Additionally, two separate bills have been introduced by Ward 11 Alderwoman Laura Keys and Ward 7 Alderwoman Alisha Sonnier, seeking to remove tax incentives for the Armory property and prohibit tax incentives for any future data center projects, respectively. Regional economic development group Greater St. Louis Inc. praised the passage of the new zoning rules, viewing them as a path forward for future data center investment.