Part 1 — Definitions

Large-Load Digital Infrastructure Facility — A facility, campus, or group of facilities primarily engaged in the storage, processing, hosting, transmission, management, mining, or computation of digital data or digital assets, including cloud computing, artificial intelligence computation, high-performance computing, large-scale data processing, digital hosting operations, or related industrial-scale computational activities, which individually or collectively exceed three (3) megawatts of designed, installed, connected, intended, or reserved electrical capacity.

Digital Asset Mining Facility — A facility primarily engaged in blockchain validation, cryptocurrency mining, digital asset mining, or related computational mining activities utilizing industrial-scale computational infrastructure.

Electrical Capacity — The designed, installed, connected, intended, reserved, or available electrical load or service capacity associated with a facility or proposed development.

Commonly Controlled — Facilities, campuses, parcels, operations, or infrastructure under common ownership, common management, shared infrastructure, coordinated operation, or related operational control.

Associated Infrastructure — Substations, backup generation systems, cooling systems, battery-storage systems, transmission infrastructure, utility-support infrastructure, and related systems constructed primarily to support a qualifying facility.

Expansion or Modification — A material increase in electrical capacity, generator capacity, cooling infrastructure, physical footprint, phased development area, or operational intensity associated with a qualifying facility.

Part 2 — Applicability & Threshold Framework

• Use a megawatt-based applicability threshold.

• Follow Caldwell County’s general 3 MW threshold philosophy unless future review suggests otherwise.

• Use designed, installed, connected, intended, or reserved electrical capacity rather than current usage alone.

• Aggregate phased, contiguous, colocated, or commonly controlled facilities.

Part 3 — M-1 / M-2 Amendments

• Eliminate by-right approval for qualifying facilities.

• Require Special Use Permit review for qualifying facilities.

• Limit consideration to selected industrial districts.

Part 4 — SUP Applicability & Review Framework

• Use Clinton County’s existing SUP framework as the primary regulatory mechanism.

• Preserve hearings, findings, conditions, enforcement authority, and revocation authority.

Part 5 — Infrastructure & Disclosure Requirements

• Require disclosures regarding electrical demand.

• Require disclosures regarding substations and transmission infrastructure.

• Require disclosures regarding backup generators and cooling systems.

• Require disclosures regarding water usage, construction traffic, emergency-service coordination, and phased development.

Part 6 — Findings Criteria

• Expand findings authority relating to compatibility with surrounding land uses.

• Expand findings authority relating to infrastructure impacts and cumulative impacts.

• Expand findings authority relating to transportation impacts and public welfare considerations.

Part 7 — Performance Standards

• Establish standards addressing sound impacts.

• Establish standards addressing lighting impacts and off-site glare.

• Establish setbacks, buffering, and screening requirements appropriate for hyperscale infrastructure.

• Allow regulation of routine backup-generator testing.

Part 8 — Expansion / Phasing / Continuing Oversight

• Require review of major expansion or increased electrical capacity.

• Aggregate phased development and related infrastructure.

• Preserve continuing compliance authority and modification-review authority.

Part 9 — Decommissioning / Restoration

• Require decommissioning and restoration planning addressing abandoned infrastructure, removal expectations, and site restoration responsibilities.

Part 10 — Continuing Compliance & Enforcement

• Maintain permit-condition enforcement authority.

• Maintain suspension and revocation authority.

• Maintain ongoing compliance-review authority.

Central Ordinance Philosophy:

The ordinance framework is intended to preserve local land-use authority and provide enhanced discretionary review for industrial-scale and hyperscale digital infrastructure facilities due to their extraordinary infrastructure intensity and compatibility impacts.

Ordinance Amendment Updates for Data Center Zoning