Project News / Data Center
New Braunfels Takes First Vote Monday on Data Center Rules
The latest draft requires 2,000-foot buffers from sensitive uses, a 35-decibel limit at those property lines and cooling that minimizes water withdrawals.
The New Braunfels City Council is set to hold a first reading Monday on an ordinance that would tighten where and how data centers can be built in the city. A final reading is scheduled for Nov. 16.
The amendment to Chapter 144 of the city code would define "data center" for the first time. It would require projects to locate in a base industrial district and obtain a Type 2 special use permit. Data centers are now allowed by right in the M-2 and M-2A districts.
The council draft requires data center buildings and associated equipment to sit at least 2,000 feet from residential properties and other sensitive uses, including schools, parks and nursing homes. Noise would be limited to 35 decibels at those property lines; at other boundaries it could not exceed the measured ambient baseline by more than 5 decibels. Applicants must submit a professional noise study, approved traffic-impact analysis and site plan.
The draft specifies non-evaporative closed-loop cooling or similar technology that minimizes water use and avoids continuous withdrawals from the public supply. It also requires a minimum 50-acre site. These are proposed conditions for council consideration, not adopted rules.
The rules would bar data centers from floodways, the 100-year floodplain, and Edwards Aquifer recharge and contributing zones.
No data centers are under construction inside New Braunfels city limits. Two projects, Cloudburst and Palomino Alpha, are under construction in nearby Guadalupe County.
