Palm Beach County Moves to Halt New Data Center Projects

Palm Beach County officials are pressing pause on new data center proposals as they decide how to regulate one of the fastest growing asset classes in commercial real estate.

County commissioners voted Tuesday to advance a temporary law halting data center applications and immediately prevent developers from submitting new proposals, the South Florida Business Journal reported.

Commissioners voted 6-1 to direct county staff to prepare a moratorium ordinance on all new data center applications, the outlet said. That ordinance, which requires a second vote, would place a temporary pause on all new data center applications in Palm Beach County. County attorneys said the pause could last for up to a year if approved.

Commissioners also voted 5-2 to impose a “zoning in progress” on all new data center applications, which blocks developers from filing applications under the county’s current zoning rules as new ones are being drafted.

Palm Beach County Mayor Sara Baxter introduced the measures, saying the county needs more time to understand the potential long-term impacts of data centers on local infrastructure and surrounding communities, the publication reported.

The pause came a week before county commissioners are scheduled to cast a final vote on a 3.7-million-square-foot data center and warehouse project. Since developers filed plans last year for the Central Park Commerce Center, the project will not be affected by the vote. But it has sparked backlash among residents and local officials who oppose the development of data centers in their backyards.

Data centers house the computing infrastructure that stores, processes and distributes information. They consume massive amounts of water and power; a single data center can use up to 5 million gallons of water a day and as much as 100,000 homes-worth of power, according to the World Resources Institute.

Palm Beach County joins a growing list of local governments reevaluating how to regulate data centers as AI fuels demand for the facilities and raises concerns over their impact on power grids, natural resources and nearby communities.

During a campaign stop earlier this week, Gov. Greg Abbott of Texas called for a ban on data centers in rural areas, even after calling Texas “the epicenter of AI development” and praising Google’s $40 million investment in AI infrastructure in the state, The Real Deal previously reported.

This week, San Marcos became the first city in Texas to attempt a ban.

As of March, 11 states have introduced legislation to temporarily ban data centers, according to Brookings. Last year, at least 48 data center projects with $156 billion in potential investment were blocked or stalled, Brookings said.

—Grace McClung