Supervisors offer changes to proposed data center ordinance

     In October, the Jones County Supervisors and Land Use Administrator Whitney Amos began discussing the need for countywide ordinance pertaining to data centers and energy storage systems.

   The task for crafting such an ordinance was put in the hands of the Jones County Planning & Zoning (P&Z) Commission.

   In late October, the board met with Jarrod Ulery, founder of U-R Energy. The company builds data centers throughout rural Iowa.

   During the Dec. 3 Jones County Supervisors meeting, Amos provided an update on where P&Z is on the ordinance prior to their Dec. 10 meeting.

   One thing to note is that P&Z wants to require all data centers to be actual buildings, not storage containers as some have seen already popping up.

   Supervisor Jeff Swisher suggested allowing companies to start with storage containers, with a goal of building an actual structure as the end result.

   "We need to give them a timeframe," he said.

   Amos pointed out that an ordinance she previously brought to the board's attention from the State of Georgia prohibited storage containers.

   "I went off that," she said of crafting the Jones County ordinance. "It needs to be a building with a concrete foundation."

   Amos did point out, though, that Jones County does not have building codes.

   "We need a sunset on it," Supervisor Jon Zirkelbach said in agreement with Swisher.

   Amos suggested perhaps these companies would have a year until the county would enforce construction of a building from use of a storage shed.

   "If their intent is to be here," said Supervisors John Schlarmann, "why not build something versus a storage container? They're just kicking the can down the road."

   "There is no benefit to the county having a storage container," Amos said. "People are taxed on buildings, not storage containers."

   She said P&Z "feels that if the county gets anything out of this, it's taxes on a building."

   Amos spelled out the process a company like U-R Energy would have to go through when getting the building in place. One stop would be the Board of Adjustment (BOA).

   "They need to know the rules up front," Zirkelbach said of the ordinance.

   Amos said U-R Energy has been around in Iowa for two years now, and they still do not have any permanent buildings, just storage containers.

   "It's just as easy to build a building to start with versus a year or two later," Supervisor Ned Rohweder commented.

   As for where data centers and energy storage systems should be built, P&Z suggested industrial-zoned districts and C2-Highway Commercial districts. Both districts are typically found near cities, and not within the county.

   "Noise is still an issue," Amos said of such facilities.

   Supervisors Rohweder and Joe Oswald felt C2 and industrial districts really limits such facilities from existing in the county.

   "If noise is something you're worried about, you're (suggesting) putting them near urban areas," Oswald said. "That doesn't make sense."

   He recalled that U-R Energy mentioned they prefer to be near substations in the rural areas.

   Keith Stamp, a member of P&Z, said having data centers in the rural parts of the county creates the need for spot zoning, something, typically, P&Z has shied away from.

   "I am very personally concerned that we need to stick with a building with some sort of landscaping so it looks appropriate," Stamp said. "I am really concerned about if we open that door up, how are we going to get it closed again to get a building (rather than a storage container)? I just think it'll be difficult."

   "I think a building would be part of a site plan and they'd have to have a building up before they were functional," Rohwedder said.

   Amos said she would take the supervisors' comments back to P&Z. She also planned to get an update from Jackson County on how they crafted their data center ordinance.