Joe Batcheller

On concerns about hyperscale data centers

The topic of data centers comes up maybe one out of every ten voters I speak to. Those who want to discuss the issue are concerned about energy and water use. People don’t want utility costs to increase or public resources depleted. People also feel disenfranchised—that there was a lack of community engagement, transparency, and representation.

How they’d address those concerns

Sioux Falls needs to pursue economic growth and innovation to remain competitive and expand opportunity for our residents, but that growth has to be responsible and with the community interest at the center. Good development is the result of good processes. We have work to do on this front. Instead of making decisions from a reactive position, we need to be proactive moving forward and make decisions in the best interest of the people of Sioux Falls. In hindsight, I think the community would have benefited from a more comprehensive policy review before the Gemini project advanced. The American Planning Association is a great resource for developing policy briefs, providing planning departments across the nation with unbiased research on land use issues—good, bad, and otherwise. These projects raise legitimate planning questions that many cities across the country are now grappling with, including: - Should distinct land use and zoning definitions be established? - Should there be additional review criteria for these facilities? - Should additional noise studies and residential buffers be required? - Should water and energy demand disclosures be mandated? - How should zoning and utility planning efforts be coordinated? - What happens if these large, single-purpose facilities close? Even if the final decision remained the same, residents would have had greater confidence that their concerns were heard, the impacts were studied carefully, and the process put public interest first. That’s how trust in local government is built.