City Planning Commission - Regular Meeting

In this video, I will talk about the work of the city of Minneapolis aiming to update its zoning regulations to respond to the impacts of new data centers or in expansion in our city. My name is Jason Wittenberg. I am responsible for urban planning for the city of Minneapolis. I work with elected officials, municipal staff and other stakeholders while the city develops recommendations for new zoning rules that will be examined by the urban planning commission, the municipal council and the mayor later this year and the mayor later this year. Data centers are a major topic in the whole country at the moment. Private investments on a large scale in the IA stimulate a large part of the growth of the development of data centers. Many communities, including Minneapolis, are updating their zoning regulations to deal with the potential impacts of this use. I will review the information on data centers, discover the preliminary recommendations and the calendar proposed for the examination of the new regulations by the city. In March of this year, the municipal council established a moratorium on data centers. This suspends certain proposals for data centers while the city studies the issue and elaborates stricter regulations. During the adoption of this six-month pause, the municipal council authorized certain data centers to continue to request approval in the city center. More specifically, those whose total area is less than 350 square feet. The pause on data centers in Minneapolis must expire on November 21 of this year. In Minneapolis, as in many other communities, the city's zoning ordinance does not really use the term Kermeyer data center. The facilities that we will soon define as data centers are classified in the Minneapolis ordinance as Picker communication centers. This places them in the same category as telecommunications facilities such as telephone and internet communication stations. This is not a perfect match and these uses have been quite widely authorized in 10 of the 15 districts of the city's zoning. In other words, this use has been allowed in a large part of the city, and this is one of the reasons why the moratorium was established. When the moratorium was introduced in the city, the municipal council also took the necessary formal measures to develop new regulations concerning data centers, including introducing five chapters of the zoning code, which we had planned to be affected by the new rules. So what is a data center? Data centers allow the Internet to function by collecting, processing, storing and collecting data. They have rooms where RAC servers process data, as well as space for energy distribution, network equipment, cooling systems and offices. It is understandable that there is a lot of concern about the potential impacts of the generalized deployment of IA, and the concerns related to IA certainly contribute to concerns about data centers. There are legitimate concerns about the amount of electricity and water used to feed and cool the modern data centers. You have probably heard of the huge data centers projected in more suburban or rural areas of Minnesota and other states. As Minneapolis does not have vast open spaces to host projects of this magnitude, the data centers are a little different from those built elsewhere. The main interest of the private sector for new data centers in Minneapolis is mainly based on the use of existing buildings. Some recent proposals for data centers in Minneapolis have been made within buildings historically intended for the needs of data processing. And the size, as well as the electricity needs of these facilities, although important, remain relatively modest compared to the Hyperscale site planned in regions with more space. In 2025, the Minnesota state legislature adopted changes affecting data centers in the entire state. These include fiscal reforms, environmental standards, coordination of state-scale permits, measures to protect contributors to ensure that centers assume the necessary cost of electrical infrastructure and minimum wage requirements for building workers. The city has identified eight data centers that exist at the Aminia Police customer service. They are all located in the city center. Some have been established more recently, while others have been in place for a very long time. Business data centers that only meet the internal IT needs of the companies and institutions located there are more widely distributed in the city. Several factors make the city center of Minneapolis attractive for data centers promoters. The electrical network has sufficient capacity in the city center and it also benefits from a great redundancy. Access to high-speed fiber optic networks is excellent. The proximity of a large number of final users allows a transmission of information faster. And some buildings are suitable for this use. It is important to note that many buildings are neither adapted nor easily convertible into data centers. The easiest spaces to adapt generally have high ceilings, a great structural capacity to support the weight of the material and already have substantial public service infrastructure. There are reasons why data centers are not necessarily ideal for the city center of Minneapolis. We prefer that the buildings are occupied by residents and companies generating a large number of jobs. The city center of Minneapolis is the heart of the transport network of our region. This system is intended for the displacement of people, and the spaces that are mainly used as warehouses for equipment do not fit well with the concept of a place focused on transport. However, in our post-pandemic context, the city center still presents a holiday rate of offices of about 30% and a large part of these spaces are not suitable for other uses such as accommodation. Data centers can help the city's tax base by reducing the loss of value that we have known in the city center and easing some of the burden weighing on residential contributors. You may have read information about the recent sale of a building in the city center that houses an extended data center. This building has been sold for about 8 times its recently assessed value, which is a good thing for the city's tax base. The built environment and existing infrastructures are designed to support large energy and water consumers in the city center. The construction of data centers requires a well-qualified, well-paid workforce. Public services concessions contribute millions of dollars each year to the city's general fund. The large electricity consumers contribute largely to this fund and the city's practice has been to dedicate part of its revenue to climate initiatives. Revenues from large commercial uses of water subsidize the cost of water for residential users. And there are practical and regulatory limits that will result in a scale that minimizes environmental and outside impacts. What is an example of a practical limitation? Even if regulations allowed to completely convert a 30-storey building into a data center, the total conversion of a tower would present considerable challenges. So, as indicated previously, we are talking about smaller data centers compared to many of those we hear about, which means that they will have a lower environmental footprint in comparison. If Minneapolis must continue to allow the implementation and expansion of data centers in our city, there are challenges and real concerns that must be addressed. Electricity demand for this use requires close coordination with Xcel Energy to ensure that the electrical network can continue to serve everyone in a reliable way. There are concerns as to whether electricity demand will affect the ongoing transition to renewable energies. Regarding the use of water, the city must ensure that the needs of data centers do not affect the ability to continue to serve other customers today as well as in the future. Help generators are common for many uses, but what is less common is the scale of power that these generators must provide for data centers. These generators must be tested regularly, which leads to sound damage and intermittent atmospheric pollution. Data centers often have a design similar to warehouses, which can conflict with the objectives of the city regarding our urban fabric. And the equipment inside the data centers, the servers themselves generate a noise that must be attenuated, which must be attenuated. Nous voulons prévenir les violations de l'ordonnance municipale sur le bruit avant qu'elles ne se produisent. Pour approfondir la question de l'utilisation de l'eau, les besoins en eau de la ville sont satisfaits par le fleuve Mississippi. La ville a la capacité de distribuer environ 378 millions de litres d'eau par jour. La consommation d'eau dans la ville suit généralement une tendance à la baisse depuis des décennies, en partie grâce à une meilleure efficacité. In normal times, Minneapolis distributes about 208 million liters of water per day, with higher peaks in the summer. Among the 40 largest water consumers in Minneapolis, consumption ranges from about 3 million to 20.4 million liters per month, with an average of about 6.4 million to... If we take the example of one of the largest data centers in Minneapolis, it has become one of the 40 largest water consumers in the city, with recent averages of about 11.4 million liters per month, but it has also had peaks reaching about 19 million liters per month. Although the city encourages reasonable use of water, it has a huge capacity to ensure future supply. Let's examine the types of things that the cities of Minnesota can or cannot regulate. We can determine in which areas of zoning a use is allowed. We can impose certain requirements for discretionary examinations such as conditional use permits. We can limit the size and scale of a square meter use. We can restrict noise and the placement of generators and mechanical equipment. We can determine the appropriate design of the site and the compatibility with the adjacent uses. Things we cannot regulate. the size based on the amount of electricity used by an installation, the atmospheric emissions, the mechanical systems of the building, such as the type of cooling or the type of emergency food system, or the type of emergency food system. We cannot demand the respect of an energy standard that exceeds what the state imposes. And we cannot collect costs that exceed the cost of the administration and the application of our rules concerning this use. Let's now address the city's preliminary recommendations. we recommend that the data centers require a conditional use permit. This means that each of them would be subject to an audience of the urbanism commission of the city, which guarantees a public opinion and an opportunity for citizens to give their opinion and express their support or opposition to a proposal. However, it is important to note that conditional uses are generally authorized. The cities can approve reasonable conditions that reduce the impacts, but the refusal of a conditional use permit will be examined in person by a court that will determine whether the city has legitimately refused the permit. We recommend that the regulation of the size of the use is focused specifically on what is called the white space, that is to say the area dedicated to the IT equipment, including server bases, network equipment and electrical distribution units. This type of standard would allow us to regulate the size of the components of a data center that consumes a lot of electricity and creates noise, and creates noise. And this would guarantee that we would not penalize a data center for providing more office spaces, for example. Let's remember that when the municipal council adopted a moratorium on data centers, it provided an exemption for the installations of the city center with up to 350 square feet of total space, including elements such as offices. Given that the server space within a data center often represents half the size of an installation, a limit of 175,000 square feet of server space would align with the previous directive of the municipal council regarding this use. Data centers would be authorized as a conditional use in the two areas of the city center indicated on the map on the screen, the DT1 and DT2 areas. We are also considering the creation of a superposition area that would allow the Urbanism Commission to examine data centers in certain neighborhoods outside the city center. These data centers should be smaller than those authorized in the city center. A company or institution would request a zoning of its property to add the superposition area. And the municipal council would have a large margin of manoeuvre to approve or reject this zoning request. Contrairement à un permis d'usage conditionnel, la ville disposerait d'une autorité assez étendue pour approuver ou refuser ce type de demande de rezonage. Les normes recommandées exigeraient que les centres de données nouvellement établis soient situés dans une structure existante. Les ajouts mineurs seraient autorisés par exemple pour abriter des équipements. Nous exigerions la divulgation d'informations relatives à la consommation prévue d'eau, d'électricité et de générateurs ainsi qu'un plan d'atténuation acoustique. We would demand proof that the data center promoter is coordinated with Cell Energy. And we would clarify that where the city requires active functions on the ground floor, the equipment inside a data center does not meet these requirements. To protect themselves from noise, new rules would ensure that the server rooms are located inside a building at least 20 feet from an outside wall and at least 100 feet from any residential unit on neighboring properties. The data center equipment could not be located on the first or second floor. Les nouveaux centres de données ne pourraient pas être l'unique usage d'un bâtiment du centre-ville, empêchant ainsi la conversion de bâtiments entiers à cet usage. Tous les équipements devraient être situés sur le toit ou être enfermés à l'intérieur du bâtiment. Et pour préciser, nous allons nous assurer que les entreprises et institutions de Minneapolis puissent continuer à répondre à leurs propres besoins en traitement de données sur leur propre site. Si les ordinateurs répondent uniquement aux besoins de l'entreprise sur la même propriété, cela ne sera pas considéré comme un centre de données aux fins de ces normes. To be clear, the City has regulations on noise in Chapter 389 of the Ordinance Code. Our objective is to ensure that if data centers are built, we do not create situations that cause sound damage. The City Health Service is currently developing regulations for fixed generators. The ordinance will probably be adopted at the same time as zoning regulations for data centers, Norms will regulate the use of generators, such as during tests, current cuts or circumstances, independent of the operator's will. There will probably be additional zoning regulations governing the proximity with adjacent residential housing. You may have heard of other communities where officials have signed confidentiality agreements preventing the public from accessing the details of the projects. We would like to point out that the city of Minneapolis will not sign any confidentiality agreement concerning data centers or any other project submitted to our regulatory process. So far, this project has focused on data centers. The city is also working on standards concerning power substations, generators mentioned earlier, technical crates and energy storage systems by battery. Our intention is to write down rules for these uses that will be included in the data centers amendment. While the standards for these other uses are in the process of elaboration, we want to ensure that the preliminary recommendations for the data centers are available during a 60-day consultation period. The standards proposed for these other uses mentioned will follow and will also be examined during the public hearing. Here is the calendar proposed for the examination of these new regulations. A period of public consultation is currently in progress. You have the opportunity to submit your comments via the project's website. The recommendations are likely to evolve in response to the return of the public, of the elected officials and other stakeholders. Thus, the preliminary recommendations that I presented in this video represent the state of our reflection by mid-August 2026. We intend to submit these recommendations to the Urbanism Commission during a public hearing on October 13. This will be the opportunity for the public to give their opinion during a public hearing. Then, the Commission of Urbanism will formulate a consultative recommendation to the Municipal Council. The recommendations of the municipal staff and the Commission of Urbanism will then be examined by the Municipal Council via the Committee of Affairs, Housing and Zoning on November 5. This meeting is open to the public, of course, but once again, the opportunity for the public to testify on the ordinance will have taken place during the meeting of the Commission of Urbanism. Then the municipal council as a whole will be announced on November 12. The mayor will examine the decision of the council and we expect that the publication and the entry into force of the ordinance will take place on November 21, date to which the moratorium on data centers will end. I hope you found this informative video. Thank you for your interest in this subject.