HAGERSTOWN, Md. — Washington County officials have set forth a timeline for approving new guidelines for data centers within the county, contending that no data centers have yet been approved in the county and that there have been no discussions of such.
That is despite the contention of Hagerstown Rapid Response that such discussions have taken place concerning a property before it was slated for annexation by Hagerstown, which then shifts the responsibility to the city. Hagerstown has set an Oct. 27 hearing on the proposed annexation of 171.88-acre Martin Farm property at 12440 Burkholder Lane.
The county moratorium was approved to provide time to study this emerging technology and land use potential, county officials said. The moratorium will also provide the county with time to determine how future data center proposals, if any, can be evaluated for consistency with Washington County community goals and long-term planning objectives.
However, officials noted, the moratorium is not intended to permanently prohibit data center development. The moratorium became effective immediately upon adoption and will remain in effect for 12 months unless modified or extended by a majority vote of the Washington County Board of County Commissioners.
Citizens throughout the country and now in Washington County have protested the location of such development, contending the excessive use of water and power will strain the power grid and water resources, as well as hike individual water and power rates. They also frequently contend such developments employ few local people after construction is complete. And noise is also a factor some protestors mention.
Data centers are facilities that consist of one or more buildings used primarily for the storage, management, processing and transmission of large amounts of digital data and which houses computing infrastructure, such as, computers, network equipment, systems, servers, appliances and other associated components related to digital data operations.
Maryland code specifically states that “if an area is annexed to a municipality that has planning and zoning authority at the time of annexation, the municipality shall have exclusive jurisdiction over planning, subdivision control, and zoning in the area annexed.”
This means that the Washington County moratorium is applicable only to the unincorporated areas of Washington County. The incorporated areas of Washington County include the City of Hagerstown, and the Towns of Clear Spring, Hancock, Boonsboro, Keedysville, Smithsburg, Williamsport, Funkstown and Sharpsburg; and, zoning regulations in those incorporated areas are not governed by the Board of County Commissioners.
As a result, each of the municipalities may still consider data center development without any input or approvals by the commissioners unless the land uses in the annexed land are substantially different than the authorized use previously classified by the county at the time of annexation.
County staff members said they have researched best practices, and below is a summary of topics that will be provided to the Planning Commission for review and potential incorporation into County Zoning and Land Use Ordinances:
- Energy plan that uses alternate, self generating power and returns power to the grid to prevent shifting costs onto everyday ratepayers. This should include a potential prohibition of natural gas turbines. Back-up energy sources should consider the prohibition of lithium-ion batteries.
- Water plan that uses water recycling, incorporates drought planning and uses geothermal or alternative cooling technologies.
- Noise study that evaluates pre and post construction noise. Limit noise to a maximum of 50 dBA at the property line and reduction of dBC tonal / narrow band noise to background noise levels.
- Require installation of noise barriers such as trees and berms.
- When reviewing setbacks from residential homes that are present now or that may be constructed in the future, a minimum setback of 1,000 feet should be considered.
- Study of air quality and environmental impacts.
- Limit development to areas zoned Planned Industrial and by special exception only. The special exception designation means that the developer will be required to submit a request to the Board of Zoning Appeals before a permit may be issued; and, that boardwill review the application, conduct a public hearing and obtain public input before making a decision.
- Development of an appropriate excise tax or impact fee.
The current timeline for regulation is as follows:
- July through September — Staff review
- October through November — Planning Commission workshops
- December through January 2027 — Planning Commission discussion on proposed local regulations
- January 2027 through February 2027 — Review and adjust based on any proposed state legislation
- March 2027 — Draft of Local Zoning Amendment available for review
- April 2027 through June 2027 — Submit to Board of County Commissioners for a public hearing, review and potential adoption
