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East Lansing Mayor Erik Altmann says the city hopes to avoid backlash seen in nearby communities when considering zoning ordinances tailored to data center developments.
He said they will do that by considering the feedback received in other communities and proposing stricter requirements from the start.
City Council members voted Tuesday to extend a moratorium on data center proposals by six months. The originally approved pause would have expired next month, but will now last until March.
The moratorium is meant to give city staff time to research and draft possible ordinance changes. Other communities throughout Michigan have taken similar steps as they adapt to the modern developments.
Earlier this year, Mason City Council members passed updated building requirements addressing issues like setbacks and noise emissions. But they repealed the measure after a citizen petition gathered enough signatures to force a public referendum.
Mason residents also circulated petitions for a new noise ordinance that City Council members adopted with plans to later amend it.
Anti-data center advocates have frequently disrupted Mason City Council meetings and organized efforts to recall the mayor and another City Council member.
Altmann said the initial zoning requirements Mason officials decided on were too permissive of data center development.
“My hope is that we would take those steps in the initial ordinance, so that the initial ordinance takes care of all those things and is not an invitation to data centers that are going to come in and cause problems,” Altmann said.
He said updated zoning requirements are needed to protect public health and safety.
“The last thing we want to do is get caught flat-footed with some data center proposal that we can’t stop that’s going to pollute our aquifer and make the neighboring areas unlivable,” Altmann said.
Altmann said he has no desire for data centers in East Lansing, but state law prohibits exclusionary zoning.
East Lansing City Councilmember Kerry Ebersole Singh has expressed interest in the economic benefits the developments could bring.
City staff plan to introduce proposed zoning changes by October. They will go to the city’s planning commission before coming back to City Council for final consideration.
There are currently no data center developments proposed in East Lansing.
