Data centers are listed as interim uses rather than permitted uses, so they may operate only where the land-use table allows them and only after approval of an interim use permit.

An interim use permit requires a public hearing, a certificate of survey, grading and stormwater plans, and review of neighborhood impacts, ordinance and Comprehensive Plan compliance, property values, public services, roads, utilities, and environmental effects.

The County may impose additional interim-use conditions, including vegetation limits or restoration, structure and parking controls, buffers, completion deadlines, stormwater and environmental protections, and performance security of up to 150% of estimated compliance costs.

An interim use must terminate on a definite date or identifiable event, may require financial security for removal of the use and structures, requires a new permit after a change in ownership unless ownership overlaps with the prior owner, and terminates if discontinued for at least one year.

Interim-use permits may be revoked after a public hearing if imposed conditions are violated.

All development activities require the necessary County permits before work begins; applications require property, use, construction, site, topographic, wetland, water, access, utility, and sanitation information, and may require a licensed survey, septic documentation, additional studies, and County fees.

County land-use permits are valid for two years unless the Administrator grants an extension, creating a time limit for commencing or completing authorized development.

In Commercial or Commercial/Industrial districts, no site development, building construction, or vehicular-use-area modification may occur until development, site, screening, lighting, parking/loading, signage, stormwater, waste-disposal, and accessibility plans are submitted and approved.

Commercial and Commercial/Industrial development must comply with minimum lot and setback standards, including 40,000 square feet of lot area and 15,000 square feet of buildable area for Commercial and Commercial/Industrial lots, 100-foot lot width, 35-foot public-road setbacks, 10-foot private-road and side-yard setbacks, and 15-foot wetland setbacks.

Commercial and Commercial/Industrial development must comply with maximum impervious-surface limits: 60% of the total lot area outside the Shoreland District, 30% in the Shoreland Protection Zone, and 35% in the Shoreland Buffer Zone.

Stormwater plans must permanently treat runoff equivalent to one inch over all impervious surfaces, safely pass a 100-year, 24-hour storm, follow the Minnesota Stormwater Manual, and may require performance security. Disturbance of one or more acres also requires an MPCA stormwater permit.

Projects creating more than 10,000 square feet of new impervious surface in the Shoreland District, and all plats, require an engineered stormwater treatment plan prepared by a Minnesota-licensed professional engineer.

If wastewater service is not available, a data center must use an approved subsurface sewage treatment system; new or modified systems require County permits, site evaluation and design reports, management plans, inspections, and compliance documentation.

Environmental review may be required for projects that could cause significant environmental impacts, and the developer must pay the County's costs for any required or discretionary Environmental Assessment Worksheet or Environmental Impact Statement.

Violations can result in misdemeanor prosecution, civil remedies, daily separate offenses, citations, cease-and-desist orders, restoration requirements, administrative enforcement fees, and after-the-fact permit fees.

Data centers are expressly listed as an interim use in the County’s land-use table, allowing them to be established through an interim use permit rather than being categorically prohibited. The permit must be approved by the Planning Commission/Board of Adjustment and is subject to applicable district standards and permit conditions.

The interim-use process allows a use that is neither a permitted, allowed, nor conditional use to be authorized for a limited period, provided the use will terminate on an identifiable date or event and complies with imposed conditions. The applicant may also be required to provide financial security for removal of the use and related structures.

Once approved, an interim use permit remains effective as long as its conditions are observed, allowing continued operation during the permit’s term. The permit may terminate upon its stated date or event, revocation for violations, or discontinuation of the use for at least one year.