The measure prohibits issuing permits or occupational licenses for data centers citywide. It defines data centers broadly, including colocation, cloud, hyperscale, and data-mining facilities, but excludes accessory server or telecommunications rooms under 2,000 square feet serving a primary non-data-center use. The text describes the prohibition as temporary but specifies no end date. Permits or occupational licenses are prohibited citywide.

An appeal requires an application to the City Planning Commission Executive Director, a $1,000 filing fee, and required application information. The Commission reviews the appeal and recommends action within 60 days; the Council then has 60 days to act, and failure to act results in denial. The appeal filing fee is $1,000.

Server rooms or telecommunications equipment rooms that are accessory to a primary non-data-center use and occupy less than 2,000 square feet are excluded from the Data Center definition, so the citywide prohibition does not cover them. The accessory-room exception

An applicant may appeal the interim zoning district to the City Council. The review criteria include whether the appellant has reasonable investment-backed expectations in the prohibited property use. An appeal requires a $1,000 filing fee; the Council may grant it, with or without modifications, or deny it, and failure to act within 60 days after receiving the recommendation counts as a denial. Appeal review criteria and process

Data centers are not included in the existing Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance use classifications and are therefore prohibited citywide.

The measure directs creation of a temporary, citywide Data Center Interim Zoning District that would prohibit issuing occupational licenses or otherwise permitting data center operations for one year from adoption, with a possible 180-day extension under Section 3-126 of the City Charter.

City agencies, including the Department of Safety and Permits, may not approve new occupational-license applications for businesses meeting the data center definition or issue permits or licenses conflicting with the proposed Interim Zoning District until the proposal is denied or becomes legally effective.

An applicant seeking an appeal must submit the required forms and data and pay a $1,000 filing fee.

Appeals are subject to City Planning Commission review and recommendations within 60 days, followed by a 60-day period for the City Council to approve, deny, or modify the appeal by ordinance; failure by the Council to act within that period results in denial.

Appeals must satisfy standards addressing compatibility with surrounding uses, efficient land use, environmental and quality-of-life impacts, health safeguards such as soundproofing, effects on utility systems including the electrical grid, and the applicant's investment-backed expectations.

Allows a data-center applicant or appellant to seek an appeal from the Interim Zoning District restrictions by filing with the City Planning Commission’s Executive Director, submitting the required information, and paying a $1,000 filing fee.

Requires the City Planning Commission to review an appeal and make a recommendation within 60 days, providing a defined review timeline.

Requires the City Council to approve, deny, or modify an appeal within 60 days after receiving the City Planning Commission’s recommendation; the appeal is deemed denied if the Council does not act within that period.

Directs appeal reviewers to consider whether the appellant has reasonable investment-backed expectations in the property’s prohibited use, which may help protect applicants with established development expectations.

Limits the proposed prohibition to one year, subject to a possible extension under Section 3-126 of the City Charter, rather than making the restriction permanent.

The proposed Data Center Interim Zoning District would prohibit the issuance of occupational licenses or otherwise prohibit operating data centers citywide for one year from adoption, subject to extension under City Charter Section 3-126.

The interim zoning district would remain in effect during the text-amendment process and prevent new data centers from being created during that period.

The City Planning Commission must conduct a public hearing before zoning rules for data centers can be considered and adopted.

The zoning review must consider whether data centers should be permitted only conditionally in some or all zoning districts or overlays, rather than allowed as a matter of right.

The zoning review must consider additional use and design standards, including density limits, soundproofing, safety measures, and other protections for nearby residents, businesses, and institutions.

The deadline for the City Planning Commission to consider the data-center text amendments was extended to six months from April 23, 2026, allowing the interim restrictions to remain in place while the review continues.

The Neighborhood Participation Program requirement and the $1,500 application fee are waived for the zoning-amendment request. This reduces the public-process and application costs associated with establishing data-center regulations, although it applies to the amendment process rather than to individual data-center projects.

A citywide interim zoning district places a one-year moratorium on new data centers by prohibiting new data centers and preventing the issuance of occupational licenses or other permits for their operation. The IZD prohibits all new data centers citywide.

Accessory data centers are limited to 2,000 square feet and no more than 25% of the primary use’s gross floor area. Accessory data centers ... may occupy up to 2,000 square feet.

Large or hyperscale data centers—those exceeding 100,000 square feet and consuming more than 20 megawatts—are prohibited citywide. A data center greater than 100,000 sf and consuming greater than 20 mw of power is prohibited citywide.

Small data centers, defined as no more than 20,000 square feet and no more than 5 megawatts, may be allowed only through conditional use approval in specified commercial, institutional, industrial, and CBD districts. Small data centers must be no greater than 20,000 sf.

Medium data centers, defined as no more than 100,000 square feet and no more than 20 megawatts, may be allowed only through conditional use approval in LI, HI, MI, BIP, and CBD-7 districts. Medium data centers must be no greater than 100,000 sf.

Every data-center application must undergo pre-review by the Council Utility Regulatory Office, Entergy, and the Sewerage and Water Board, and the applicant must submit a statement showing whether sufficient utility service is available. All data center applications must be pre-reviewed.

Applicants must submit a general impact assessment covering expected electricity demand, water use, property-line noise, backup generation, traffic, water-consumption impacts, and proposed mitigation. The applicant shall provide an assessment of anticipated impacts.

Data-center facilities must be enclosed; outdoor equipment must be screened by masonry walls and parapets at least as high as the equipment, and the facility must comply with underlying bulk, yard, landscaping, and screening rules. Facilities shall be within enclosed structures.

Data centers must be at least 500 feet from residentially zoned property; in LI, HI, MI, and BIP districts, they must also be at least 500 feet from one another; and in CBD districts, only one data center is allowed per building. All data center facilities must be located at least 500 feet.

Any data center approved through conditional use must obtain re-approval before expanding its square footage, energy or water consumption, or other aspects of the use. Any facility approved by way of Conditional Use must seek re-approval.

On-site power generation is prohibited except when used for backup supply. On-site power generation is prohibited except for backup supply purposes.

Accessory data centers may operate as ancillary uses to a primary non-data-center use, up to 2,000 square feet and no more than 25% of the primary use’s gross floor area.

Small data centers—up to 20,000 square feet and no more than 5 megawatts—would be allowed as conditional uses in specified commercial, institutional, industrial, and Central Business Districts.

Medium data centers—up to 100,000 square feet and no more than 20 megawatts—would be allowed as conditional uses in specified industrial districts and CBD-7.

Medical or educational campuses subject to an Institutional Master Plan could seek approval for a data center through the conditional Institutional Master Plan process.

Data center applications would receive pre-review from the Council Utility Regulatory Office, Entergy, and the Sewerage and Water Board to determine whether sufficient utility service is available, providing a defined utility-capacity review before an application proceeds.

The motion waives the Neighborhood Participation Program requirement for the zoning text amendment, reducing a procedural requirement for establishing data center regulations.

The motion waives the $1,500 application fee for the zoning text amendment.