Terrace council is considering new zoning rules to regulate where large industrial data centres can be built, as demand for the facilities continues to grow.
At Monday’s council meeting, a proposed zoning bylaw amendment was presented by staff that would create a new definition for industrial computing data centres and allow them only as a site-specific use within the Skeena Industrial Development Park. The proposal would also limit developments to a maximum electrical capacity of 50 megawatts per parcel.
The report follows a notice of motion introduced by Councillor James Cordeiro earlier this year asking staff to examine how the city could regulate data centres separately from other industrial uses. Staff said the facilities present unique planning considerations, including significant electrical demand, water use, noise, lighting and emergency service requirements.
Director of Development Services David Block said the proposed definition is designed to distinguish standalone commercial data centres from businesses that simply use computing equipment to support their own operations.
“So if Meta, Telus, whoever bought a parcel from the city for 50 acres and put a data centre on to process just data, that’s all it’s doing. It’s not supporting another principal use on the property. It would be an industrial data centre,” Block said. “That’s the distinction we’re trying to make sure the definition distinguishes.”
Council also discussed the proposed 50-megawatt limit for individual developments.
Block said staff based the recommendation on research into the industry while allowing flexibility if larger projects are proposed in the future.
“We looked and did talk with Terrace’s economic development manager a bit about this. These data centres tend to be small. They’re about 25 megawatts, then they jump to 50, then they jump to 100,” Block said.
“If someone came and wanted to do 100 megawatts, they would be required to come to council, apply for a zoning amendment … and there would be a public process and a public hearing.”
Economic Development Manager Michael Pucci also told council the city has already attracted significant interest from the industry.
“Seven have sniffed and gone nowhere. Three remain active,” Pucci said, adding that a total of 10 companies have expressed interest in building data centres in Terrace over the past two years.
Under the proposal, industrial computing data centres would only be permitted through a site-specific zoning process on three large heavy industrial parcels within the Skeena Industrial Development Park, allowing council to review each application individually. Staff also plan to include policies related to data centres in the city’s ongoing Official Community Plan update.
Council discussed the proposed framework Monday but did not make a final decision. The zoning amendment will return to council at a future meeting for further consideration.
