More data centers are needed to handle the demands of an increasingly digital world, but Phoenix city officials don’t want them popping up in just any part of the city.
Phoenix City Council began the process last week to regulate where data centers can be built — keeping them out of village cores and public transit corridors — and to potentially set standards for things like design, noise levels, performance standards and backup generation requirements.
“While data centers do provide a type of infrastructure as a land use, they do not provide the type of investment that aligns with the general plan’s goals where we want to encourage vibrant, walkable destinations that maximize significant investments we have made in our transportation infrastructure,” Planning & Development Director Joshua Bednarek told the council during its Tuesday, Dec. 10, meeting.
