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TO: Mayor John Laesch
FROM: Planning and Zoning Commission
DATE: September 24, 2025
SUBJECT:
An Ordinance establishing a temporary moratorium on Data Center Facilities and Warehouses in all Zoning Districts
PURPOSE:
In order to respond to public concerns around noise, energy prices, environmental impacts, and congestion, the City recommends establishing a temporary moratorium on the acceptance, processing, or approval of new applications for the construction, expansion, or establishment of data centers and warehouses within the City of Aurora for a period of 180 days from the effective date of this ordinance.
BACKGROUND:
The City of Aurora, through the Development Services Department (Sec. 2-280) and the Zoning & Planning and Building & Permits Divisions, are responsible for reviewing and approving applications related to zoning, planning, permitting, and economic development.
Staff has documented dozens of neighborhood complaints regarding environmental issues at our existing data centers having to do with emissions, noise from multiple normal and emergency operational sources and vibration from emergency operations. Aurora has classified Data Centers, the larger contributor to these types of complaints, as a type of warehouse.
At present, the zoning ordinance and building codes do not include tailored provisions addressing data center developments, despite their significant and unique neighborhood environmental impacts on ambient sound, emissions, energy consumption, stormwater management (Chapter 18), water usage, utility capacity, infrastructure strain, and long-term fiscal balance.
Researching new technology and regulatory best practices, we find that the planning industry and many zoning regulatory agencies are beginning to address these neighborhood impacts in ways that do not exist in our current ordinance. We would like the opportunity to analyze newer industry best practices and propose changes, if any, that best address the conce...
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