Minneapolis enacts short moratorium on new data centers, carving out downtown reuse

Minneapolis on June 25 approved a temporary moratorium on certain new data‑center developments outside downtown, a pause supporters said is needed to study energy, water and land‑use impacts and to prevent clustering in historically disadvantaged neighborhoods.

Leading the measure, Council Member Chowdhury described the moratorium as "not a ban on data centers" but a five‑month pause to gather information, engage the public and close gaps in zoning, power capacity and environmental review. "This temporary pause gives us the opportunity to do what good government should do: gather information, engage the public, and establish clear rules before major decisions are made," Chowdhury said.

Opponents warned that a moratorium could chill investment and cost union construction jobs, with Council Member Shaffer and others urging reliance on existing conditional‑use permitting and state rules that require large customers to pay infrastructure costs. Shaffer said some downtown reuse opportunities are small‑scale and not the hyperscale projects critics cited.

Council members debated carve‑outs, equity concerns and whether the city should require battery backups, renewable offsets or other mitigations as conditions for projects. Supporters said data centers have historically been sited in communities of color and that the city must avoid creating new "sacrifice zones."

By recorded vote, the council approved the moratorium seven to five. Supporters called the pause a chance to develop a regulatory framework that addresses land‑use, water and power demands and ensures community benefits; opponents argued targeted regulation could achieve similar goals without a moratorium.

The moratorium includes an exemption for downtown projects up to 350,000 square feet and directs staff and committees to study power capacity, water use, zoning definitions and economic claims made by industry.