The Des Moines County Board of Supervisors approved a one-year moratorium on permits for the construction or operation of data centers during its regular meeting Tuesday.
The Hawk Eye reports Board Chairman Shane McCampbell said the pause will allow county officials time to study whether regulations should be created governing future data center projects. Assistant County Land Use Administrator Jarred Lassiter said he has reviewed a comprehensive ordinance used in Linn County and plans to continue examining other counties’ approaches before presenting draft proposals during a future work session.
Representatives from local skilled trade unions attended the meeting, including Ryan Drew, who cautioned against the county potentially missing economic opportunities.
Supervisor Tom Broeker said he believes the county’s location makes it less likely to attract a large-scale facility. County Information Technology Director Brandon Mehmert agreed, explaining that major data centers typically seek direct access to long-range fiber-optic networks along the Interstate 80 corridor and that local broadband infrastructure is not currently sufficient for large multi-customer operations.
