Fort Worth leaders are set to explore how other cities and counties are approaching data center prospects amid growing concern from the public on environmental impact and quality of life.
Meanwhile, residents are unifying and urge city officials to consider a halt on development of the super computer hubs.
June 2 marks the starting point of more robust discussion among city staff and with the public, council member Michael Crain said.
On March 23, Crain requested City Manager Jay Chapa provide a detailed report to council in early June to ensure city policies align with Fort Worth’s economic development goals and responsibility to protect residents.
The request came days before a March 31 council meeting, where officials tabled a vote that would have decided whether to enter a 50% tax break agreement with Edged Data Centers.
In that meeting, Mayor Mattie Parker and council members said more information was needed before moving forward.
“It’s not a reflection of how they do business, it’s just an understandable concern across the country about where we’re headed on the data center front,” Parker said at the meeting.
Edged Data Centers, which plans to operate a $1 billion facility in southwest Fort Worth’s Veale Ranch, has largely been met with opposition from nearby residents.
Edged is not the only company with eyes for a data processing facility in Fort Worth.
Krista Erbe, a Fort Worth resident and 2871 Community Coalition organizer, hopes Fort Worth keeps the public’s opinion in mind when determining if the technology hubs have a place in the city.
“I hope they just take the community’s input, that they work with us, that they pay attention to what’s happened in other communities,” Erbe said.
Fort Worth balances industry growth, quality of life
The June 2 report will provide several details on data centers to guide city-led decisions on proposed developments.
A focus of the report will be a summary of Fort Worth’s zoning, land use and standards around the technological hubs, including recent and pending cases.
Crain also requested to know how Fort Worth officials analyze impact on traffic, electricity and water usage, and nearby neighborhoods.
When a company seeks to power a data center or other largely demanding sources via the Texas power grid, it is required to undergo a transmission study to determine if the grid’s infrastructure can meet those energy loads.
“You can’t just build these without (ERCOT’s) approval,” Crain said.
Other requests include information on how subsidies are considered for data centers, best practices from other local governments, federal environmental compliance guidelines, and the demand for data processing usage across the state, including the use of artificial intelligence.
In a statement sent to the Fort Worth Report, Parker said she looks forward to city management’s recommendations “toward policy on data centers that make sense for Fort Worth.”
Amid growing criticism for Edged’s facility and similar proposed projects in Fort Worth, Crain has confidence in development paired with new technology designed to mitigate environmental impact.
“That’s what we should be striving for … the best technology that does not diminish quality of life for anyone,” Crain said.
For example, the $1.5 billion Meta facility in north Fort Worth has operated in the area for over a decade with no complaints, Crain said.
However, he understands there have been, as he described it, “horror stories” coming out of data centers in other parts of the country.
“I obviously don’t want that to happen here, but that’s the balance we’re going to have to find,” Crain said.
At a March 24 meeting with hundreds of residents, Edged representatives detailed its facility would contract with electricity distribution utility Oncor to manage its own electricity substation. The center would also be equipped with waterless cooling technology, a closed loop system.
The technology recycles water instead of consuming and wasting natural resources.
After being pushed from late March, city council was finally set to vote on the proposed tax abatement with Edged during a May 12 council meeting. However, Edged rescinded its application for the agreement, Crain confirmed to the Report.
The company would have been required to provide job opportunities and meet salary thresholds in exchange for the tax abatement.
A representative with Edged declined to either comment or respond to the Report’s request for details about the status of the $1 billion facility.
Edged is not the only data center operator looking to meet booming technology demands in Fort Worth.
Energy conglomerate Black Mountain has acquired and rezoned over 450 acres of land so far for a planned $10 billion data center in southeast Fort Worth between Forest Hill, Kennedale and Everman.
That project hit a wall when city officials delayed a vote in February to decide on Black Mountain’s request to rezone an additional 80 acres for the project.
Council members said they needed more details on the site plan and why the company needed more land before making a final decision.
Similar to Edged’s proposed facility, the Black Mountain data center would use a closed-loop technology for sustainable water use.
Black Mountain did not immediately respond to the Report’s request for a comment or interview before the date of publication.
Other similar developments include the future Alliance Center North in far north Fort Worth. Canadian electronics manufacturer Celestica Inc. recently confirmed plans to build a data center plant after receiving the city’s approval to enter a 10-year tax break.
While smaller in size and less costly, a developer is looking to build a $100 million data center facility in north Fort Worth just east of Eagle Mountain Lake, according to state filings.
‘Far from going away’
Recent data center projects have prompted the creation of advocacy groups across Tarrant County communities.
Through these organizations, they amplify their concerns, demand action from Fort Worth leaders, and urge developers to maintain transparency with the community.
The DFW Communities Over Data Centers is among the recently organized groups.
“We’ve all launched that to have a forward facing, public view of the fights” against data centers, said Jaime Perkins, a DFW Communities Over Data Centers organizer.
The community-driven organization is led by residents who have been vocal in their opposition to the Black Mountain facility, including Echo Heights resident and advocate Letitia Wilbourn and Weston Gardens owner Sue Weston.
Wilbourn was encouraged to form the group to advocate for environmental justice in predominantly Hispanic and Black neighborhoods in southeast Fort Worth.
“For them to increasingly put stuff on this east side in this Black and Brown community … is dangerous to human life,” Wilbourn said.
The 2871 Community Coalition was formed by Benbrook and southwest Fort Worth residents in March after they learned of Edged Data Center’s tax abatement agreement.
Data centers have recently drawn scrutiny from communities nationwide due to the amount of water and electricity needed for cooling and power.
Mid-sized data hubs can use up to 300,000 gallons of water a day, according to the World Resources Institute. Large facilities, particularly those processing artificial intelligence, can consume up to 5 million gallons a day for cooling. That’s enough water to supply a small town, according to the World Resources Institute.
Small data centers, or those spanning 5,000 to 20,000 square feet, can require up to 5 megawatts. Depending on climate and demands, a megawatt can power about 200 homes in Texas during peak demands, according to ERCOT.
Large data centers, such as those operated by Google, Amazon or Microsoft, can consume anywhere between 20 to 100 megawatts of power at a given time.
Wilbourn fears the repercussions stemming from data centers without any city regulation.
“How do you enforce anything if you don’t have any policies or rules in place?” Wilbourn said. “They have them in place for residents, but they don’t have anything for something such as a data center.”
This week, Hill County became the first county in the state to issue a moratorium on rapid development of the data processing hubs.
The moratorium is a one-year pause on new data center construction in unincorporated areas due to concerns around public safety and health, according to the Associated Press.
Residents and officials from other counties have explored data center moratoriums. Hood County commissioners ultimately voted against a moratorium after state Sen. Paul Bettencourt, R- Houston, called on Attorney General Ken Paxton to investigate counties that do such a move. Bettencourt said counties do not have the authority to impose such halts, according to the Associated Press.
Hill County officials expect lawsuits from data center developers and state leaders, the Associated Press reported.
Following the Hill County moratorium vote, Perkins said the narrative on data centers has shifted to support communities.
“This problem is far from going away,” Perkins said. “It doesn’t just stop with Black Mountain. It doesn’t just stop with Edged Data Centers.”
Erbe said residents aren’t sure they can envision a moratorium in Fort Worth. Still, she has hope local pressure will lead city leaders to consider public opinion.
“We’re hoping that they continue to work with the community,” Erbe said. “We’re hoping to see the results of that informal report, as well as their recommendations.”
Nicole Lopez is the environment reporter for the Fort Worth Report. Contact her at nicole.lopez@fortworthreport.org.
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