Data Centers: Daily Notes | July 16, 2026
Boulder City Council voted unanimously to appeal the Bureau of Land Management's approval of a data center on federal land within city limits, Bloomington is preparing for its next major public discussion on data centers, Hamilton County commissioners approved a one-year moratorium. READ MORE.
At A Glance 🔽
- Boulder City, Nevada is appealing the Bureau of Land Management’s approval of a proposed data center on federal land, as residents and officials raise concerns about water, power, and community impacts despite the developer’s sustainability commitments.
- Bloomington, Illinois is developing regulations for data centers using at least 5 megawatts of energy while under a six-month moratorium, with an expert hearing scheduled for Aug. 26 followed by public comment sessions in October and November.
- Faribault, Minnesota is preparing performance standards for future data centers, including a proposed Archer Datacenters facility.
- Hamilton County, Tennessee has approved a one-year moratorium on new rural data centers to give officials time to update zoning rules, while existing projects continue moving forward.
- New Carlisle, Indiana saw a $13 billion data center proposal rejected after extensive public opposition over infrastructure, energy, water use, tax incentives, and community impacts, even as Amazon Web Services’ existing Project Rainier campus continues expanding.
- Palm Beach County, Florida rejected Project Tango’s proposed AI data center after months of opposition from Arden residents concerned about groundwater, noise, energy use, environmental impacts, and the project’s proximity to a school.
- Salem, Oregon is reviewing Verrus’ proposed 75-acre Oakline at Millcreek data center campus, which has received mixed reactions as the developer highlights closed-loop cooling and low-noise technology to address community concerns over water, air quality, and utility costs.
- Cedar Creek, Texas is considering a proposed 2,842-acre data center and natural gas-powered campus seeking major tax incentives, with the project still subject to county, state, and Bastrop ISD reviews.
- Ypsilanti Township, Michigan is seeing residents and officials push back against a proposed $1.25 billion University of Michigan and Los Alamos National Laboratory research computing center over concerns about energy use, zoning control, security, and community impacts.
- Chesterfield County, Virginia is seeing residents press Google for more information about three proposed data center campuses, particularly their water, power, and electricity needs, as the projects continue advancing amid concerns about limited public disclosure and proximity to schools.
Boulder City, Nevada
Boulder City Council voted unanimously to appeal the Bureau of Land Management's approval of a data center on federal land within city limits, after residents packed council chambers to voice opposition over water and power concerns.
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Steve Wolford
The project, proposed by Townsite Solar-2, was originally presented to the city as a lease agreement on city-owned land but was withdrawn and relocated to adjacent BLM-controlled land after pushback, where it was approved. City spokesperson Lisa LaPlante said the appeal will go to the Interior Board of Appeals, though the timeline for a response remains unclear, and the city has had no discussions with BLM beyond confirmation that the project was approved.
Townsite Solar-2 said in a statement it aims to build a "responsible, sustainable" project that could serve as a national model, citing plans for water-positive outcomes through a city recycling effort that would return water to Lake Mead, renewable-powered operations, an energy fund to help lower electricity costs, and waterless "direct-to-chip" cooling.
Bloomington, Illinois
Bloomington is preparing for its next major public discussion on hyperscale data centers, with a panel of experts set for an Aug. 26 hearing as the city develops regulations for facilities using at least 5 megawatts of energy.
The city remains under a six-month moratorium on data center action, which was approved in May, and plans to draft regulations after the August hearing before holding public comment sessions on Oct. 1 and Nov. 5. Mayor Dan Brady is also consulting with leaders in Aurora and DeKalb about potential job and property tax revenue, while city officials continue examining whether Bloomington could legally enact an outright ban.
Faribault, Minnesota
Faribault is moving to develop performance standards for future data centers as the city considers a proposed facility from Archer Datacenters. The standards would establish specific requirements for data centers under the city’s zoning regulations and could help Archer address additional information requested for its environmental study.
The process is expected to involve the Planning Commission, Environmental Commission, public hearings, and ultimately City Council approval, with officials emphasizing that no standards have been adopted yet and the process will involve significant public deliberation. Council members also raised concerns about keeping the rules current as data center technology evolves and ensuring future projects do not bypass the council approval process.
Hamilton County, Tennessee
UPDATE: Hamilton County approves one-year moratorium on new data centers in unincorporated areas
Hamilton County commissioners approved a one-year moratorium on new data centers in rural areas as officials work to update the county’s zoning rules. Mayor Weston Wamp proposed the pause to give the county time to make zoning code changes before additional rural data center projects move forward.
The moratorium applies only to new data centers in rural parts of the county, while existing projects continue to advance. Urban Story Ventures’ JailHouse Studios project at the former Hamilton County jail remains underway. The company says the facility will use a smaller carbon footprint by distributing power across smaller sites and estimates it will consume between 1% and 5% of the electricity required by larger data centers.
New Carlisle, Indiana
A $13 billion data center proposal near New Carlisle was rejected by the St. Joseph County Council following a 10-hour meeting and extensive public testimony, as residents and officials weighed the potential economic benefits against concerns over infrastructure, energy, water, and community impacts.
Marilyn Odendahl
The decision came as Amazon Web Services’ Project Rainier continues operating and expanding on a 1,200-acre campus outside the town, with the facility expected to eventually use up to 2.2 gigawatts of energy. Local officials say the existing project had 935 full-time employees as of December 2025 and qualifies for a 35-year Enterprise Technology Exemption as long as it continues meeting the required wage threshold. At the same time, the amount of water used by the facility remains confidential under a nondisclosure agreement, adding to concerns about the limited public information available on resource consumption.
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Palm Beach County, Florida
Palm Beach County commissioners vote against controversial Project Tango data center proposal
Palm Beach County commissioners voted 5-1 to deny the controversial Project Tango AI data center after a marathon meeting that lasted more than 12 hours and drew hundreds of opponents from the Arden community.
Wilkine Brutus
The proposal faced months of public opposition over its location near Saddle View Elementary School and the Arden community, as well as concerns about potential impacts on groundwater, noise, energy use, and the environment. Residents attended the meeting wearing “Stop Project Tango” shirts as the commission considered the project before voting to reject it Wednesday night. The decision follows the Palm Beach County Zoning Commission’s denial earlier this month of a revised application that would have expanded the already approved 202-acre site.
Salem, Oregon
Salem is considering a proposed 75-acre data center campus that would include three buildings and could be operational by 2028 if the city approves the project. The Oakline at Millcreek proposal from Verrus has received mixed reactions from residents and stakeholders, who discussed the project during a recent City Council meeting.
Topics of Interest: Verrus' Mill Creek Data Center Project
Verrus says it is designing the development around concerns that have emerged in other data center communities, including noise, air quality, water use, resource consumption, and the potential effect on utility costs. The company plans to use a closed-loop cooling system and low-noise equipment and says it wants to be thoughtful about how the facilities fit into the surrounding community. Verrus also says it aims to use resources carefully and avoid driving up utility costs for customers. The proposal has not yet been approved by Salem, leaving the project subject to the city’s ongoing review process before construction can begin.
Cedar Creek, Texas
Pacifico Cedar Creek LLC is seeking approval and tax incentives for a proposed 2,842-acre data center and power campus in Cedar Creek that would generate its own electricity and could be operational by 2028. The project would include an unnamed data center tenant and a dedicated natural gas-fired power facility, with Pacifico planning to invest about $2.24 billion in the power infrastructure.
The facility would generate up to 710 megawatts to support approximately 490 megawatts of computing load, allowing the data center to receive power directly from the on-site generation facility without using the local power grid. Pacifico has applied for a 10-year JETI agreement with Bastrop ISD, while the county is reviewing a 100% Chapter 312 tax abatement request and two additional 100% abatement requests from Emergency Services District Nos. 1 and 3. Two mass-grading permit applications for the proposed campus and power facility are also under preliminary county review. The JETI process still requires review by the Texas Comptroller, potential support from the governor, and a public hearing and decision by Bastrop ISD, while the developer weighs Cedar Creek against an Ohio location where a local moratorium currently prevents new data center applications until February 2027.
Ypsilanti Township, Michigan
Ypsilanti Township officials and residents are pushing back against a proposed $1.25 billion research computing center that the University of Michigan is developing in partnership with Los Alamos National Laboratory.
Residents and officials push back on $1.25B University of Michigan data center plan
Dozens of residents attended a township informational meeting where officials criticized the project and raised concerns about energy use, the lack of local zoning control, and the potential security risks associated with Los Alamos’ involvement. The University of Michigan says the facility would be a research computing center rather than a commercial data center and would use about one-tenth the energy of a typical data center, but township officials remain unconvinced by the distinction.
A parcel along Textile Road near Hydro Park, which the university purchased, is under consideration for the project, although a final site has not yet been selected. The university says the center would support research in areas including cancer treatment, drug development, climate science, energy resilience, artificial intelligence, and national security, and would not be a weapons manufacturing site or military installation. A final decision on the site is expected within weeks as local opposition continues and Michigan officials face broader questions about how data center development should be managed.
Chesterville, Virginia
Hundreds of Chesterfield County residents attended an open house to question Google about three proposed data center campuses, with community members pressing for more detailed information about the projects’ water, power, and electricity use.
Dan Swinhoe
READ: In Google, Chesterfield landed the 'Rolls-Royce of data center operators'
The developments include Project Peanut, a 300-plus-acre site already under construction on Bermuda Hundred Road, as well as Project Skye, an 848-acre site planned for four buildings, and Project Loch, a 334-acre site planned for three buildings. Google says it will pay for necessary infrastructure improvements and expects Project Peanut to become operational next year, with the other two campuses following a year later. The company said it is collecting feedback on issues such as building placement, equipment locations, and nearby sensitive properties, but representatives did not provide project-specific figures for water or power usage and said those details would be disclosed once the facilities are operational.
Residents criticized the limited information available and questioned why they were learning about the projects so late in the planning process, particularly given the campuses’ proximity to schools. A second open house was scheduled for the following evening as Google continues engaging with residents while the three developments move forward.
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