KALAMAZOO COUNTY, MI — The Pavillion Township Planning commission postponed action Thursday on a proposed ordinance change to support a potential data center during a meeting that drew a few dozen people.
Real estate development firm Franklin Partners visited the township last month to discuss the possibility of a data center in the area. The firm is looking for uses for a property it owns on N Avenue, per township documents.
Almost 50 people attended the Thursday, Sept. 18 public hearing to consider amending the zoning ordinance to allow “data warehousing facilities” as a form of special land use in the township’s industrial district. Attendance almost exceeded capacity of the meeting space.
The zoning change would apply to a section of land on East North Avenue near Pavilion Estates, a mobile home park at 6830 E. N. Ave.
Township Supervisor John Speeter told MLive/Kalamazoo Gazette in August that Franklin Partners wanted to ensure the township zoning rules allowed for data centers before pitching the site to a developer.
During public comment Thursday night, residents expressed concern a data center would pollute local water, spike energy costs and become an overall nuisance.
“It’s all risk no reward. It doesn’t bring jobs, it only brings issues,” said one resident who spoke during the hearing.
When one resident asked if there were any attendees who supported the data center, no one stood up to speak.
Discussion of the amendment was postponed until an Oct. 15 planning commission meeting after the public comment portion ended.
Pavilion Township Attorney Robert Thall recommended postponing the zoning decision because there weren’t enough copies of the meeting agenda for all the attendees.
Someone mistakenly printed out copies of the last planning commission meeting minutes and not the current meeting agenda, according to Jodi Stefforia, Pavilion Township planning consultant.
The proposed ordinance change is available at the township office upon request.
There are 56 data centers operational or in development in Michigan, including the Pavilion Township property, according to Data Center Map.
An inquiry from Southwest Michigan First regarding whether a data center could be built on a parcel of land in the I-2 Industrial District prompted the ordinance change discussion, according to a memo from Stefforia included in the agenda.
The Kalamazoo organization of privately funded economic development advisors is described as acting as the catalyst for economic success in Southwest Michigan. Franklin Partners and the organization have collaborated on projects in the past.
Franklin Partners owns a nearly 265-acre parcel of land to the north and south of East North Avenue at the intersection with South 26th Street. The north side of East North Avenue falls under Comstock Township jurisdiction.
A medium-sized data center can consume up to 110 million gallons of water per year, according to the Environmental and Energy Studies Institute (EEEI). A large data center can consume up to 5 million gallons a day.
Data center developers tap into surface and underground aquifers to cool their facilities, according to EESI, and the rapid expansion of data centers threatens access to fresh water.
“We’re michiganders, this our home and we want to protect it,” one resident said during public comment.
If passed, a data warehousing facility would fall under the “special exception uses,” listed in Pavilion Township zoning ordinance 200.414. Current special exceptions include recycling centers, material recovery facilities (M.R.F.), telecommunication towers and antennas and utility-scale solar energy electricity generating facilities, among other businesses.
Speeter requested the amendment, the memo said.
The amendment includes conditions and limitations a proposed data center must meet.
The facility would have to be placed 250 feet away from a residential district, have trees as a form of screening and integrate one sustainable or renewable energy technology into its design.
The amendment also requires the city of Kalamazoo to pre-determine there’s adequate public water and sewer capacity to meet the needs of the facility. The facility would be prohibited from using private well and septic systems.
The facility couldn’t be more than 60 feet tall, according to the proposed amendment. Any generators used for power would be limited to testing, commissioning activities and emergencies.
The reviewing body evaluating any proposed data centers would also be permitted to require additional limitations or protective measures.