Behind the Cloud: Planning for Data Centers
April 17
12:00pm
APA Planning Webcast Series
Data centers are an industrial land use of considerable debate in communities as they have seen high levels of investment in recent years, driven by the expansion of cloud computing, artificial intelligence, and digital infrastructure. Hosted by the APA Technology Division, this webinar will examine the broader landscape and drivers of data center development in the U.S. and explore how communities can proactively plan for this rapid growth. This includes a look at how data centers can be practically regulated by a local municipality's zoning power and the specific policies that must be in place before a proposal arrives. As proposals increase in urban, suburban, and rural jurisdictions alike, they often bring promises of expanded tax base alongside concerns about energy and water consumption, land use compatibility, and environmental impacts. This session will provide a balanced look at these implications, including strategies to improve these projects' impacts on community health, safety, and welfare in a sustainable manner. We will discuss typical development review pathways from by-right approvals to development agreements. The session will also feature a case study of "the extreme outlier project": how a project the scale of the Microsoft Data Centers in Mount Pleasant, WI gets done, while exploring how a relatively small community plans for a facility that breaks every metric in a standard code. This webinar will offer practical insights, national context, and actionable planning policies to help communities navigate proposals thoughtfully, negotiate effectively, and achieve better outcomes.