Meeting
Rapid City Planning Commission - Discussion on Data Center Ordinances
Thursday, November 5, 2026 · 7am
City Council Meeting Room, 300 Sixth St., Rapid City
Ordinance 6746 (26OA006), data center regulations, continued from 09/10
“RAPID CITY, S.D. – An ordinance that would give the city guidelines in the approval process of data centers was continued until Nov. 5 by the City of Rapid City Planning Commission. In 2024, the City adopted regulations for data centers within the city limits with certain provisions. As data centers have grown nationwide and community concerns have been recorded, however, Rapid City chose to revisit its data center ordinance. As a result, a proposed ordinance addressing several of those concerns was developed and heard Thursday morning at the Planning Commission, the first step of the approval process. “Today we heard from many of the industry representatives that they had some concerns but overall thought the context of the ordinance was solid,” Community Development Director Vicki Fisher said. “What you didn’t see at the meeting today that has been shared through emails and phone calls is, there are others in the community who have voiced perhaps we haven’t gone far enough.” Before the proposed ordinance is back on the Nov. 5 Planning Commission agenda, city planners will hear from different parties to tweak the ordinance, if necessary. Fisher said it’s likely a working session with the city council, and a public open house would be held to discuss the ordinance. “Our goal is to ensure voices are heard and the final document reflects what is needed to best protect the community and the interests of Rapid City,” Fisher said. Hyperscale data centers would be prohibited under the proposed ordinance. Hyperscale is defined as using 50 MW or more of energy and 10,000 gallons of water per day. It’s estimated that 10MW of energy would power 4,000 to 8,000 homes and 10,000 gallons of water is the general use by 33 homes daily. Smaller data centers would face fewer restrictions. Micro data centers – using a maximum of 10 MW of power and 4,000 gallons of water per day – would be permitted. Large-scale centers – using more than 10 MW of power and a maximum of 10,000 gallons per day would require a conditional use permit. Other stipulations in the proposed ordinance would require micro data centers be at least 500 feet from a residential zoning district (closer requires a conditional use permit), and more than one micro data center on property would require a conditional use permit. Large-scale data centers would be required to be at least 1,000 feet from a zoning district that allows residential, closer than that would require a variance, and more than one data center on a property would require a conditional use permit. “The regulations are really geared toward protecting the community, especially residential areas that may be around industrial at this time,” Jessica Olson, City of Rapid City Planning Manager, said Thursday afternoon. “So, in that, making sure those industrial areas are not impacting further out.” In December 2024, the City of Rapid City adopted an ordinance defining data centers and identifying them as permitted use in light and heavy industrial districts. Olson provided a memo last week to Planning Commission members highlighting several issues – water use, water quality, power, noise and vibration – that have been well-researched since then and addressed in the current proposed ordinance. Water intensive cooling systems would be prohibited and a maximum of 10,000 gallons of water could be used each day. In addition, the city could deny the data center based on available water in the area and, based on conditions, the water provider could restrict flows based on availability. The electric utility would be required to provide an approval letter prior to approval and on-site power generators would be limited to emergency use only. To address the noise issue, the proposed ordinance mandates a sound study and mitigation measures to meet acceptable decibel levels. Micro data centers would be restricted to 500 feet from a residential zoning district without a conditional use permit; large data centers face the same hurdles within 1,000 feet. Finally, the conditional use permit would require public hearing, notice, mail, sign, and optional neighborhood meeting.”