County P&Z pushes data center decisions to April after nearly 11-hour meeting

The Franklin County Planning and Zoning Commission convened a lengthy meeting on March 17 at Union High School, where an estimated 1,000 people gathered to discuss proposed data center regulations and rezonings. The meeting, which began at 6 p.m. and concluded at 4:39 a.m. the following day, featured over 100 speakers, with many expressing opposition to the new regulations. Among those who addressed the commission were Leon Backes, CEO of Provident Data Centers, and representatives from Beltline Energy, including Ryan Sanders. The hearings covered proposed county-wide amendments for data center oversight, as well as specific rezoning requests for the "Gateway Digital Campus" near Gray Summit and the "Meramec Valley Technology Park" near Pacific. Following the exhaustive public input, the commission decided to defer all related items to "unfinished business" and scheduled them for reconsideration at their next meeting on April 21. This move indicates the significant public interest and contentious nature of data center development and regulation within Franklin County.