By Rick Maranon, FOX23.com News Staff
TULSA, Okla. — Leaders in Tulsa are considering hitting the pause button on new data centers as communities across Green Country weigh the benefits and concerns tied to the rapidly expanding industry.
Members of the Tulsa City Council recently began discussing a possible temporary moratorium on approving new centers within city limits.
The pause could last anywhere from six months to a year while the city reviews policies, infrastructure, capacity and zoning rules.
The discussion comes as one major data center project is already under construction in far east Tulsa.
Tulsa City Councilor Laura Bellis said the industry is moving at a rapid pace, which is putting pressure on cities to respond.
“All of the companies that are building data centers right now are moving quickly. This is a fast-moving industry and they’re in competition with each other and we’re in competition with other countries to rapidly scale up infrastructure.”
Bellis proposed the moratorium to give the city time to “catch its breath” and develop clearer policies before approving additional projects.
Councilors reviewing city zoning maps also raised concerns about how industrial zoning could allow data centers to be built very close to established neighborhoods.
“I’m just raising the question about whether we have some kind of say or not because if it’s zoned IL, I don’t think we do,” said Councilor Lori Decter-Wright about the potential of a data center buying land already zoned industrial light and if, in that scenario, the community would have any recourse to stop it.
Tulsa City Councilor Christian Bengel said he is open to exploring a special zoning category specifically for data centers, noting the projects aren’t like traditional industrial developments.
Bengel explained, “I felt like because this is an animal all its own, we should create a zoning code for that kind of thing.”
Some councilors said they want to hear from additional stakeholders before approving any pause, but none voiced outright opposition to the idea during the discussion.
The Tulsa Planning Commission is expected to release potential policy recommendations related to data centers as early as next week and City Councilors could vote on a moratorium later this month.
However, a pause would not impact projects already underway.
One of the largest current projects is Project Anthem, a data center being built on about 340 acres near the intersection of 11th Street and the Creek Turnpike in far east Tulsa.
While the technology company behind the facility has not yet been publicly announced, officials said the project represents an $800 million investment.
According to the Tulsa Regional Chamber’s economic development arm, Partner Tulsa, the project is expected to bring construction jobs in the short term and about 50 permanent jobs with an average salary around $65,000.
City leaders approved tax incentives for the development that require the company to pay 15% of its new property tax for 25 years.
Even with the incentive, the project is estimated to generate about $36 million in tax revenue over that time.
One major concern surrounding data centers is the amount of electricity they require and whether residential customers could see higher power bills.
At the Oklahoma Capitol, Brad Boles (R-Marlow), who serves as chair of the House Energy and Natural Resources Oversight Committee, is backing legislation designed to prevent that.
House Bill 2992 would require power companies to cover the cost of new infrastructure needed for data centers rather than passing those costs on to regular customers.
The bipartisan bill is currently sitting on the floor of the Oklahoma House of Representatives.
Debate over data centers is also sparking political fights in other Green Country communities.
In Sand Springs, the group Protect Sand Springs Alliance has launched a recall effort targeting city leaders who voted to approve a recent data center project.
The group’s president, Kyle Schmidt, said residents felt they were not properly represented during the approval process.
Meanwhile, opponents of the Atlas Project in Coweta have also started a recall petition targeting city council members. A public hearing on that proposal is expected to be held in April at the Indian Capital Technology Center.
City leaders in both communities said many of the claims made about the projects are inaccurate and argue the developments could benefit their cities long term.
However, not every community is pushing back.
In Pryor, data centers operated by Google have brought significant investment and funding for local schools.
More recently, leaders in Muskogee County approved two additional Google data centers near Council Hill and Summit.
County General Counsel John Tyler Hammons said the projects represent a major financial boost for the region.
“These data center projects represent an enormous capital investment in Muskogee County,” said Hammons. “They will attribute approximately $100,000,000 in additional tax revenue to local community services including schools, EMS and vocational education.”
Google said it will work with OG&E to expand the local power grid to support the new facilities.
As demand for artificial intelligence and cloud computing grows nationwide, communities across Oklahoma are continuing to debate how and where these massive facilities should be built.
