The Aurora City Council approved 10-1, a six-month moratorium on new data center and warehouse development at a special meeting Thursday, Sept. 25. Alderman of the Fifth Ward, Carl Franco was the only dissenting vote.
City of Aurora government information shows the moratorium is set for 180 days, and will halt the acceptance, expansion, or establishment of data centers and warehouses within the City. The proposal follows dozens of neighborhood complaints regarding environmental issues at existing data centers in Aurora, the likes of which include emissions, noise from multiple normal and emergency operational sources, and vibration from emergency operations.
At this time, the Aurora City Code considers data centers as a type of warehouse. Due to this classification, the subsequent zoning ordinances and building codes do not include tailored provisions that specifically address data center developments, despite their significant and unique neighborhood environmental impacts on ambient sound, emissions, energy consumption, stormwater management, water usage, utility capacity, infrastructure strain, and long-term fiscal balance. In addition, City officials are evaluating the rising cost of energy prices, which help pay for necessary and improved electrical infrastructure at data centers, and its effect on residential energy bills.
The pause intends to assist City staff members and the City Council to fully evaluate potential environmental, fiscal, and community impacts of data centers, and to consider amendments to the City Code to regulate such uses in a way that protects the City’s long-term interests. Following the moratorium, City staff members and developers are expected to have a much clearer and sustainable development and permitting process surrounding data centers and warehouses throughout Aurora.
“With energy prices on the rise, our residents should not have to foot the bill of these large data centers that use excessive amounts of energy,” mayor John Laesch said. “We’re looking to further evaluate the impact of these data centers on our neighborhoods, helping to address the issues that they cause, especially around noise pollution, energy usage and traffic congestion.”
The moratorium will apply to new applications and expansions of existing facilities. It will not apply to projects with completed entitlement petition applications filed before the effective date of the Ordinance, new warehouses and data center building permits with entitlement applications filed before the effective date of the Ordinance, warehouse remodeling and data hall remodeling in existing data centers with entitlement applications filed before the effective date of the Ordinance, routine maintenance or repairs at existing data centers that do not decrease operational capacity, and public safety or emergency facilities operated by government entities.
City staff members will work to develop potential zoning or performance standards for data center and warehouses. A report that includes both findings and recommendations will be presented to the City’s Rules, Administration, and Procedures Committee and Building, Zoning, and Economic Development Committee within three months of the effective date of the Ordinance.
The City Council discussed the 2025 Voluntary Reduction In Force Incentive Plan to consider voluntary staffing cuts to ease budget concerns.
The heads of City departments were asked to create a plan for 20 percent employee cuts.
— City of Aurora government