Killeen council to decide fate of data center at June meeting

The Killeen City Council is scheduled to vote on a data center rezoning request at its June 2 meeting, following a public hearing. The decision requires a supermajority vote, indicating notable opposition. This will be an early major decision for the council, which will have five new members after the May 2 election. The Planning and Zoning Commission previously recommended disapproving the request to rezone 2.6 acres at 6509 S. Fort Hood St. from a university designation to a conditional-use permit. Numerous residents, including Gary Hammonds, spoke against the project, raising concerns about potential noise impacting a nearby church and overall energy usage. The project applicants, representing the company OnMine, countered these arguments, stating that their facility would use a closed-loop system for cooling, eliminating the need for municipal water. They also described the data center as smaller in scale, functioning as a Virtual Power Plant and power grid shock absorber. However, residents largely opposed the proposal, also questioning the economic benefits, noting that the project would create only 14 jobs, mostly off-site, with limited local hiring. The city of Killeen refers to the project as a "computing and energy research annex," a term intended to mitigate controversy associated with "data center."