St. Joseph Considers Moratoriums on Data Centers, Apartment Development

(KNSI) — The city of St. Joseph is considering moratoriums on the development of data centers and additional apartment complexes.

Data centers have become a hot topic recently, driven by the explosion of artificial intelligence and the need to house servers, storage systems, and networking equipment to store, process, and distribute massive amounts of digital data and applications. At the City Council Work Session on Monday, members expressed differing views on data center development. Mayor Adam Scepaniak and Council Member Kelly Beniek both said they would prefer a moratorium to study how other cities have approached data center development before making a final decision.

“I need to look through the lens of how this is going to affect the city, our water, and our environment,” Scepaniak said. “A moratorium would be good for us to cut through the clutter so we can illustrate whether or not to be in favor of one. I believe with more information and more time, we could all be more resolute in our positions.”

Beniek said she intends to use a moratorium to help the council better understand how data centers operate before moving forward. “I’m not for it or against it yet; that moratorium would be for educating ourselves. I do agree with the mayor in that we need to be able to see what other cities are taking on or if they’re going to take it on to see if it can work out.”

Councilman Andrew Mooney remains opposed, citing uncertainty about whether the city has the infrastructure and water supply needed to support such facilities. Other concerns included financial implications, such as whether power demands could affect residents’ electricity bills in surrounding areas.

Earlier this month, Waite Park unanimously passed a one-year moratorium on data centers, halting development while the city studies potential impacts on city resources.

Also discussed was a potential moratorium on apartment buildings. Beniek brought the proposal forward to buy time for the city to examine infrastructure needs and assess the potential affordability of housing for prospective residents.

“When things are moving so fast, we tend to forget or not see those things,” Beniek said. “I hope that developers will understand, because I want to sit down and communicate with them about how we can work together to see those different areas of housing happen. I don’t just want to see one thing happen; I want to see a multitude of things happen slowly and methodically.”

Scepaniak said that while he personally does not have concerns about the city’s housing stock or infrastructure, he would support a moratorium to allow the city to manage development more slowly. He added that any moratorium would exempt senior housing, calling a ban on such development “bad taste.”

If a moratorium on apartment development moves forward, a draft resolution would need to be completed 10 days before the next city council meeting to notify developers and allow for public review. Scepaniak said the council views the moratoriums on both data centers and apartments as a protective measure, and not one taken lightly.

“The thought of having a moratorium on data centers is to ensure that we don’t pass something hastily that could hurt the city. The fact that we’re potentially doing one for apartments is so we can review our comprehensive plan and plan things out better for the city. We don’t do it as a defense mechanism; we do it to ensure we’re doing right by our citizens.”

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