Simplified: Lincoln County Commissioners rejected a proposed moratorium on data centers for the second time this year during a joint meeting with the Sioux Falls City Council on Tuesday. But, both county and city leaders agreed to hold a public meeting on hyperscale data centers in late October.
Why it matters
- Commissioner Joel Arends in February proposed a one-year moratorium on any new hyperscale data center projects in Lincoln County. It was rejected by the commission as a whole, but Arends saw an opportunity to re-open the conversation during a joint meeting this week.
- As county and city officials looked to approve the Shape Sioux Falls 2050 comprehensive plan, Arends brought an amendment that would've started the process on a data center moratorium in the joint city-county jurisdiction area.
- That amendment was also rejected by commissioners. But, Arends did convince his colleagues to agree to a Lincoln County Commission and Sioux Falls City Council joint meeting the last Tuesday of October to bring together all of the key players in the data center discussion.
"I dont want a US Bank Stadium-sized data center in my back yard," Arends said. "My neighbors don't want it in their back yard ... We didn't want a prison. We didn't want a pipeline. We didn't want a campground on our golf course ... now is the time to hit the time-out button."
What happens next?
The public meeting is set for the evening of Tuesday, Oct. 27.
City Councilor James Oppenheimer noted that the meeting should have structure to ensure all voices can be heard, and Councilor Miranda Basye suggested inviting Minnehaha County commissioners to the table as well.
