Portage Mayor Austin Bonta wants the city to create a special technology campus zoning category for data centers.
Bonta said Monday the proposal is going through legal review.
If the city does so, it would join neighboring Hobart in corralling any potential data center into a technology campus.
Hobart and Lake County have adopted ordinances outlining regulations for data centers. Merrillville has a committee doing likewise. LaPorte County is planning one as well.
Portage is about to begin work on a new comprehensive plan, which would inform zoning decisions.
Data centers are major investments that are dramatically boosting public coffers in cities where they’re located. Hobart Mayor Josh Huddlestun negotiated a $47 million annual fee from Amazon, providing funding for investments he believes will dramatically improve the quality of life there.
However, environmentalists and others have voiced concerns about data centers’ heavy appetite for electricity and, in some cases, water for cooling the servers.
In a social media post late last week, Bonta outlined his proposal.
“Under this proposal, the existing zoning classifications that currently allow for data centers no longer would,” he wrote. “Data centers would only be permitted within a new zoning classification called Technology Campus (TC). The Technology Campus (TC) zoning classification will encompass the regulations that data centers within such zoned land must follow, including regulations on setbacks, building height, noise, water use and energy.”
There would be plenty of opportunity for public comment before the zoning ordinance could take effect. It would first be subject to a public hearing at the Plan Commission before going to the City Council for two readings, including another public hearing.
The new zoning category, if approved, wouldn’t affect the data center already in operation in the Ameriplex development on the city’s north side.
However, land for any future data center included in a planned unit development would first have to be zoned for a technology campus.
“Right now, there are multiple properties in our city that are already zoned to allow for data centers on them. However, each existing zoning classification has its own standards, and I don’t think this is the best setup as demand for data centers is growing nationwide and as concerns about transparency when it comes to how data center proposals are considered are growing, too,” Bonta said in his Facebook post.
By creating the new zoning category, any developer seeking to build a data center would have to go before the Plan Commission and City Council to seek approval for the rezoning, Bonta said. That would have the developer make the case for the data center in public and give residents a chance to speak for or against a data center and ask questions for the Plan Commission or City Council to answer.
“I am very appreciative of data centers overall, as I understand how necessary they are for our world to run, (we’re actually using a data center right now to read this post). I also believe it is important they are built in appropriate locations that benefit and do not cause harm to any of the communities near them. By creating this new zoning classification, we have the opportunity to demand that expectation in Portage,” Bonta said on Facebook.
“I absolutely understand that residents will expect to see the finished proposal before it goes to our city’s Plan Commission for review and input during a public hearing. I will be excited to get that out as soon as possible,” he said. “Given how big this issue has become in recent years, I wanted to start with my intentions first.”
“To be clear, there is no proposal for a new data center in Portage happening right now. This is a new zoning classification proposal meant to make sure we have good rules in place if another one is attempted here,” he said.
Doug Ross is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.
