Fort Worth council faces Aug. 11 vote on data-center moratorium process
Fort Worth City Council is scheduled to consider Tuesday, Aug. 11, whether to begin the legal process for a possible temporary moratorium on new data-center development applications.
The vote would not immediately halt new applications or impose a moratorium. If approved, it would begin the notice and public-hearing process required under Texas law while the city continues developing data-center regulations. The city says final council action on whether to enact a temporary pause would not be considered until December 2026.
City staff provided an update during the council’s Aug. 4 work session on community input, proposed revisions and the requirements and timeline for a moratorium.
Why the Aug. 11 vote matters
Fort Worth is reviewing how data centers fit into local zoning, infrastructure and economic-development policy as facilities are operating, under construction or proposed within and around the city.
City materials list four existing developments spanning 10 buildings and more than 3 million square feet. One additional facility is under construction within city limits, four more have been proposed within the city, and two additional projects have been proposed in Fort Worth’s extraterritorial jurisdiction.
The review has drawn attention to neighborhood compatibility, generator and cooling-equipment noise, water demand, wastewater controls and the possible use of economic-development incentives. Developers and property owners are watching how new standards and pending-project protections could affect applications. Utility customers have an interest in how large industrial users affect water and wastewater planning, although electric-grid decisions are controlled primarily by state agencies and utilities rather than the city.
Zoning proposal remains under review
The Fort Worth Zoning Commission voted July 8 not to recommend the current data-center zoning proposal to the City Council. That was not a final rejection of all future data-center regulation; the city’s broader review is continuing.
Proposed zoning standards include a 250-foot building setback from residential districts and uses, a 300-foot separation between standby generators and residential areas, additional screening and landscaping, and acoustic barriers for rooftop cooling equipment. The proposal also would prohibit cryptocurrency mining and establish data-center-specific development standards in certain industrial settings.
The city’s public notice for zoning case ZC-26-087 identifies an Aug. 11 City Council hearing on proposed amendments involving industrial districts and data-center development standards. That zoning hearing is separate from the council’s proposed vote to initiate the moratorium process.
Noise, water and wastewater rules are also being considered
Proposed noise changes would require a 72-hour pre-development ambient-noise study for projects within 250 feet of residential areas. Proposed limits would allow sound no more than 5 dBA above the pre-development level, with mitigation required if the limits are exceeded.
The proposal also would restrict routine standby-generator testing to weekdays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Emergency operations regulated by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality would remain exempt.
For water and wastewater, city staff are considering a requirement that new data centers use closed-loop cooling systems. The city also proposes wastewater pretreatment permits that could require chemical disclosures, spill-prevention plans, monitoring access, discharge limits, annual certifications and emergency-notification procedures.
City estimates normalized to a 100-acre Fort Worth site say a data center using closed-loop cooling could use about 300,000 to 1 million gallons of water per month on average. An evaporative-cooling facility could use about 4 million to 6 million gallons per month.
Pending projects and incentives
Fort Worth is also reviewing its approach to economic-development incentives. Proposed policy changes would require evidence of multiple viable sites, substantial progress through the ERCOT interconnection process and an investment significantly above the city’s current minimum. The proposed terms include a $500 million minimum initial investment, an identified end user and limits on grants or abatements.
The city is separately considering how projects that are vested, approved or already submitted would be treated. Under the city’s explanation of state-law limits, a moratorium would not apply to vested projects, approved projects or zoning applications already submitted. That means the process should not be described as automatically stopping every project already in progress.
Some broader proposed zoning, noise and economic-development items were removed from the immediate Aug. 11 action agenda, according to local reporting. Water-related rules remain among the items the council is expected to consider, while the city continues its broader regulatory review.
What happens next
If the council approves the Aug. 11 ordinance, Fort Worth would begin the required public-hearing process. That procedural action would create a path toward a possible temporary pause, but the outcome would remain undecided.
The city says a final council decision on enacting a moratorium would not be considered until December. Until any rules are adopted, the zoning, noise, water, wastewater and economic-development measures under review remain proposals rather than binding regulations.
Sources
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