Westlake Town Council members voted unanimously Monday night to delay their decision on a development agreement for a proposed data center project after a Tarrant County judge barred them from approving the deal.
A district court judge granted a temporary restraining order, preventing Westlake from taking the next step forward to welcome the roughly 88-acre project. Located within Westlake town limits, the Circle T Data Center would be built at the northern edge of Keller — about 500 feet from the backyards of several Keller residents.
The project has garnered scrutiny from Westlake and Keller residents alike, with residents and elected officials in Keller threatening legal action to stop the project they believe could drain natural resources and harm their quality of life. Two residents and The Lakes at Marshall Ridge Homeowners Association, representing the Keller neighborhood adjacent to the project site, requested the restraining order to prevent “irreparable harm” to their property and neighborhood.
Judge Kimberly Fitzpatrick, of the 342nd State District Court in Fort Worth, issued the restraining order about one hour before the Westlake Town Council met to consider an agreement with developer PowerHouse Data Centers that would require specific development standards for the data center. The developer would also pay Westlake $914,000 to fund renovations of the town’s pump station, adjacent to the project site, that manages water distribution.
Mayor Kim Greaves emphasized that the council did not have authority to stop the data center, as the land it’s proposed to be built on is privately owned and designated for use by right. The development agreement considered by the council would have set standards for noise, water, power, infrastructure and other needs.
“Our goal is straightforward: Protect our residents and neighbors, respect existing property and zoning rights, and require this project to meet the exceptional high standards Westlake expects,” Greaves said at the beginning of the meeting, before listening to public comments.
The decision to table the vote came more than two hours later, after the council heard from more than 30 speakers in opposition to the project, followed by a roughly 20-minute executive session to consult with the town attorney.
The council is not legally allowed to adopt the agreement or take action on the data center project for two weeks. Council members agreed to push the vote until after Aug. 26, when a judge will decide whether to grant a temporary injunction to further halt the project.
Keller City Council member Greg Will asked the Westlake council to “choose cooperation over confrontation,” saying Keller would pursue every reasonable and legal option available to mitigate resident concerns around the project.
“Unfortunately, the residents living near this proposed data center have not received, in my opinion, the transparency or consideration that they deserve,” Will said. “Respectfully, I’m here to say that that is not how government is supposed to work.”
Throughout two hours of public testimony, speakers urged the council to delay the project, evaluate its potential impacts on natural resources, consider moving the project to another site, adopt ordinances to prevent data centers from being built so close to neighborhoods, or reject the project altogether. No speakers were in favor of the data center.
Kevin Myers, who identified himself as a disabled Army veteran, asked the council to consider Keller residents such as himself as much as Westlake ones. Westlake officials have said the project would be more than 1,200 yards from resident homes.
“After 33 years in uniform from ’89 to the summer of 2022, I’d hope for a nice house for my family, and some peace finally, where I can just live the rest of my life quietly — and this data center is not going to afford that,” Myers said.
Cecilia Lenzen is a government accountability reporter for the Fort Worth Report. Contact her at cecilia.lenzen@fortworthreport.org.
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