Just before Hillsboro’s 120-day moratorium on data centers”>data centers went into effect, the Texas-based real estate investment trust Digital Realty submitted a land use application to build a data center just under 200 feet away from Liberty High School. (KATU)
HILLSBORO, Ore. (KATU) —Just before Hillsboro’s 120-day moratorium on data centers went into effect, the Texas-based real estate investment trust Digital Realty submitted a land use application to build a data center just under 200 feet away from Liberty High School.
The proposed site is located at 6240 NE Wagon Drive, 5340 & 5450 NE Croeni Avenue, and 5225 NE Five Oaks Drive. Preliminary plans KATU obtained through a public records request show the data center would take up roughly 15.7 acres and 496,540 square feet. The estimated valuation for the so-called Wagon Data Center would be over $5 million.
This comes as community concern has grown over the energy demands and health impacts of data centers.
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Along with Hillsboro, Salem and Woodburn have adopted moratoriums as well. Clackamas County hasn’t finalized its moratorium, but the Board of Commissioners voted unanimously to start the formal process of enacting one. Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek has previously supported moratoriums, even going as far as ordering the state to cancel a land sale for a controversial $5.1 billion project in southeast Salem.
On Monday, Washington County Commissioner Nafisa Fai announced her intention to bring forward a proposal that would temporarily pause new data center and AI computing facility development and permitting countywide. She will bring that proposal forward in a meeting on Tuesday, Aug. 25.
The proposed site is located at 6240 NE Wagon Drive, 5340 & 5450 NE Croeni Avenue, and 5225 NE Five Oaks Drive. Preliminary plans KATU obtained through a public records request show the data center would take up roughly 15.7 acres and 496,540 square feet. (KATU)
Fai told KATU that she’s open to hearing her fellow board members’ concerns and working with them to come to an agreement. Her proposal requires the support of two other commissioners to advance.
As far as what comes next for the proposed data center near Liberty High School, the City of Hillsboro’s Planning Commission will meet this Wednesday, Aug. 26, to discuss amendments related to where data centers are allowed to be built. This would include putting restrictions on their distance from natural re
The amendments would also prohibit data centers as a primary use in some select zones of the city. They also propose new limitations on two zones, including Industrial Park and Industrial Sanctuary. This is significant because the Wagon Data Center is located in Industrial Park.
KATU has reached out to both Digital Realty and the City of Hillsboro to learn how these amendments would impact this particular project if they went into effect. We have not heard back at this time.
A representative from the Hillsboro School District said Digital Realty has reached out to their Operations Officer, who has agreed to a virtual meeting that will take place this Friday, Aug. 28. The school district representative went on to say that there has been no other communication with Digital Realty, and that the City has not reached out to them about the plans for the data center.
