Data centers without onsite primary energy-generating facilities that provide continuous normal-operation power may be located in M-1, while data centers with such onsite generation are limited to M-2; M-2 energy-generation equipment and fuel storage must also comply with the district’s special provisions. [M-1 and M-2 use restrictions](https://mcclibraryfunctions.azurewebsites.us/api/ordinanceDownload/11599/1433382/pdf?forceDownload=true#:~:text=Data%20Centers%20(without%20onsite%20primary%20energy,Special%20Provisions%20outlined)

Primary data-center buildings and equipment must be at least 300 feet from residential zoning districts, school and daycare sites, assisted-living or nursing-home facilities, and parks. Lesser-intensity accessory offices and parking may be located within the setback. 300-foot setback

A landscape buffer is required where a data center is adjacent to residential districts, schools or daycares, assisted-living or nursing-home facilities, or parks. The buffer must generally be at least 25 feet deep, contain no structures or parking, and meet specified year-round screening, plant-size, species-diversity, and evergreen-coverage requirements. landscape-buffer requirements

A fully planted buffer may be replaced only with a qualifying earthen berm or solid wall at least six feet above adjacent average ground level, with proper slopes, ground cover, and supplemental evergreen trees. berm or wall alternative

Landscape plans must be stamped by a licensed landscape architect or horticulturalist for permitting, and a signed completion certification must be submitted after installation. landscape-plan and completion-certification requirement

Required visual buffers must be continuously maintained, and failure to maintain them constitutes a zoning-ordinance violation. buffer-maintenance violation

Cooling, ventilation, backup-generator, and other ground- or roof-mounted operating equipment must be screened from public roads, residential districts, schools or daycares, assisted-living or nursing-home facilities, and parks using approved enclosures, buildings, solid screens, or qualifying landscape buffers. equipment-screening requirement

Noise produced by a data center may not exceed 55 dBA at any property line adjacent to residential or noise-sensitive areas; this standard supersedes less restrictive conflicting laws or ordinances. 55 dBA noise limit

Backup generators and similar equipment may be tested only on weekdays between 7:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. generator-testing time limit

For applying the setback, buffer, screening, and noise rules, a site is treated as adjacent not only when lots share a property line, but also when they would share one except for an undivided road, street, rail line, or drainage conveyance, provided no other parcel lies between them. expanded adjacency definition

Data centers are expressly permitted in M-1 light manufacturing districts when they do not use onsite primary energy-generating facilities supplying continuous power during normal operations.

Data centers with onsite primary energy-generating facilities supplying continuous power during normal operations are expressly permitted in M-2 heavy manufacturing districts, subject to the district’s special provisions for energy-generating facilities and fuel storage.

Emergency, backup, or redundant generators may independently power an M-1 data center during a primary-power loss or disruption, provided they comply with the ordinance’s requirements.

The definition excludes data-processing, storage, retrieval, or communications equipment customarily incidental to an otherwise permitted use, such as servers in an office building, so those ordinary business installations are not regulated as standalone data centers.

Accessory uses of lesser intensity, including offices and parking facilities, may be located within the 300-foot setback otherwise required between primary data-center buildings or equipment and specified sensitive uses.

Existing vegetation may be used for all or part of the required landscape buffer when it adequately fulfills the buffer’s purpose.

A data center may use an earthen berm or solid wall instead of a fully planted buffer if it meets the specified six-foot height, slope, ground-cover, and evergreen-tree requirements.

The ordinance provides multiple permissible methods for screening cooling, ventilation, and backup-power equipment, including full enclosures, buildings, solid fences or walls, and qualifying landscape buffers.

The required 25-foot landscape buffer may be counted as part of the required minimum setback, allowing the same area to satisfy both requirements.