Southern Minnesota News reports…

The Mankato City Council voted Monday night to approve a one-year moratorium on new data centers and other high-impact utility users while city staff studies their potential impact on the community.

The issue drew significant public interest, with residents voicing concerns about water use, agriculture, energy demands, climate impacts, and transparency. Several speakers urged the council not to sign non-disclosure agreements with prospective data center developers, while others argued the projects could bring construction jobs and increased tax revenue.

MinnPost posts a letter to the editor from Dan McConnell, president of the Minnesota State Building and Construction Trades Council. He starts by talking about 2025 MN Legislation related to data centers…

While other states scramble to protect families from the cost of the data center boom, Minnesota saw it coming and set the standard first.

In 2025, the Legislature passed one of the strongest data center laws in the country, and Gov. Tim Walz signed it. The law puts the largest electricity users in a class of their own and makes them pay the full cost of the power and infrastructure built to serve them. If one of these companies shrinks or walks away, the bill for that stranded equipment stays off your monthly statement.

Every kilowatt these facilities draw has to meet the state’s carbon-free standard, and each large campus pays millions a year into weatherization for families who need the help. Minnesota built a fence around the ratepayer before a single server arrived.

And then turns his attention to the proposed data center in Pine Island…

That is why the Pine Island proposal deserves a fair hearing rather than a slow death by delay. Google would anchor a data center campus in Goodhue County, tied to an Xcel Energy plan to add 1,900 megawatts of new generation. Under the rules Minnesota wrote, Google pays for the power and the infrastructure its campus needs, and the families nearby pay nothing for the privilege of hosting it. This is the law working as designed, on the first real test of its kind.

Minnesota Daily reports…

A halt on the construction of data centers in Minneapolis took effect in July after the Minneapolis City Council discussed the need for more time to understand the facilities’ potential environmental impacts.

The Council approved the halt through November by an 8-5 vote in May. Members said the halt allows time to study the environmental impacts of data centers and plan their development more conscientiously.

However, Council members not in favor of the halt said it will result in reduced tax revenue and may drive away businesses willing to invest in downtown Minneapolis.

Data centers are not new to the Minneapolis area, but community concerns have grown in recent months, President of Minnesota Building and Construction Trades Council Dan McConnell said.

The article gives room for various views of the data center issue, including the unions…

The American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations’ website claims that data centers are a staple for the modern job market and help to create more jobs, but labor protections for workers and regulations to protect surrounding communities are needed.

Resolution 7, a plan created by the AFL and CIO, outlines labor protections for data center employees and regulations aimed to protect surrounding communities. The plan calls for legislation that would require data centers to conserve water and energy. It seeks transparency from data center operators, union labor agreements and policies requiring data center operators to pay their share of energy and water costs.

Hometown Source reports on view of data centers in Lonsdale…

Data centers have become one of the most contentious issues across the nation, with lawmakers on both sides of the aisle raising concerns about water use, energy consumption and transparency as more projects are proposed across southern Minnesota.

Sen. Bill Lieske (R-Lonsdale) said data centers are “definitely right up there next to the fraud discussion and the affordability discussion” among the issues he hears about from constituents.

Another local elected official chimes in too…

Rep. Kristi Pursell (DFL-Northfield) said she has focused on water usage because of her expertise in that area, as the former executive director of Clean River Partners. She noted that data centers have been “deeply unpopular” in Farmington, where residents have organized against a proposed project.

“I love to see grassroots organizing, especially if it’s against multi-billion dollar corporations,” Pursell said. “They should have a say.”

Non-disclosure agreements

One of the key issues Pursell highlighted is the use of non-disclosure agreements, which prevent public officials from discussing details of data center negotiations. She called them “literally antithetical to our democracy.”

The topic is coming up on both sides of the aisle…

Both lawmakers agreed that data centers are part of the future and cannot simply be banned outright. But they also agreed that thoughtful regulation is needed.

“We need data centers. The reality is we’re all moving in the direction of these higher-level technologies,” Lieske said. “We have to be able to be prepared at all costs. But I’m not saying to sacrifice our health and our neighborhoods.”

Pursell was more skeptical of the industry’s long-term value.

Mankato Free Press publishes an editorial about communities and data centers

Upcoming discussions on data center moratoriums by Mankato and North Mankato stand as wise first steps in understanding the economic and community impact of these technologically advanced, new-age developments.

There is no comparison to other local developments that might offer clues on data center impact. New energy, water and power requirements will affect neighbors and the community at large. Sound and lighting can be issues in massive projects that cover sometimes as much as 4 million square feet. In fact, the energy used by data centers can impact large energy needs by business and consumers during extreme hot weather.

Data center developers were asked to be prepared to use their backup power during the recent East Coast heat wave. Much of that backup power is diesel driven and creates emissions that can be harmful.

Proposed data centers around the state have drawn public and legal attention with citizens opposing them in many places while groups such as the Minnesota Center for Environment Advocacy have filed suits in a number of cases. Judges have ruled in cases in Faribault and Pine Island that local officials didn’t conduct proper environmental reviews, and the projects have been halted.

Eagan, Inver Grove Heights, Rosemount and Minneapolis also have imposed data center moratoriums. The Mankato City Council voted unanimously for a moratorium and will conduct a public hearing July 13. North Mankato City Council discussed a moratorium at its Monday council work session and is considering a study on implications of a moratorium.

But data center developers also have struck back, suing Eagan as developers say the city overstepped its authority when it set a moratorium on data centers that used more than 9 megawatts of power. Developers Eagan Capital claims only the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission can regulate power.

These examples offer even more reasons for cities to move forward cautiously and with care for the legal consequences of their actions. We hope both Mankato and North Mankato can get legal advice from experts in this field beyond what their own legal advisers can provide.

As a follow up to a post on the court decision, Faribault Daily News reports on the Faribault Council’s response…

Following the Minnesota Court of Appeals ruling citing deficiencies in the environmental study for a proposed data center in Faribault, the City Council requested more information with a deadline of March 31, 2027.

In 2024, Archer Datacenters purchased land in Faribault to develop up to 50,000 square feet of data center buildings on 87 acres of land south of 150th Street W and east of Acorn Trail near Met Con. Based on criteria set by the Minnesota Environmental Review, the site would require an environmental assessment worksheet to study the potential environmental impacts based on square footage but not an environmental impact statement, which would be a further, more in-depth study.

The city of Faribault hired an independent firm to conduct the EAW, and the findings concluded that further study of an EIS would not be needed. However, the Minnesota Center for Environmental Advocacy filed a legal challenge claiming that the EAW failed to adequately assess the potential air and noise pollution along with greenhouse emissions. The Minnesota Court of Appeals ruled that the EAW did not contain ample information for the city to determine whether an EIS would be needed.

At Tuesday’s City Council work session, council discussed their options moving forward to address the lawsuit. Community and Economic Development Director Dave Wanberg laid out the two choices. Either the city could “coordinate with Archer Datacenters to obtain more exhaustive and specific environmental information regarding Archer’s proposed data center” or they could require a discretionary EIS.