Anchorage Assembly preemptively adopts data center regulations

New zoning rules will require landscaping buffers and proof that local electric and water utilities can support likely increasing energy demands.

While no large-scale data centers have been built in the city, the Municipality of Anchorage has created guardrails for their development as the demand for these facilities rises around the country.in the municipality’s zoning code for the first time.

The new rules call for a public review process before a project is pursued, as well as input from local utilities on whether they have capacity to support an increase in energy demand. Members Scott Myers and Keith McCormick voted against the measure. Lessons learned from other communities show that while data centers can bring benefits, they also come with potential utility cost increases, said Vice Chair Anna Brawley, who sponsored the measure with member Daniel Volland. “By learning from other places and emerging best practices around data centers, Anchorage is being proactive and ensuring the right questions are asked during the application process,” Brawley said in an email Thursday. landscaping buffers and enclosed power equipment to reduce the noise and industrial appearance of data centers. Their construction is only allowed in a commercial and industrial zones, not residential areas. If a data center developer plans to draw power from the local electrical grid, they must obtain a written statement from the local electrical utility that shows the grid has “sufficient system capacity,” according to the ordinance. The same documentation is required for anticipated water and wastewater consumption.shows a large artificial intelligence-focused data center can consume as much electricity annually as 100,000 households, roughly the same number found in Anchorage, Brawley said at a work session on Feb. 27.“The scale of these things and the energy requirement is massive,” she said. Small-scale data centers are already appearing in more rural areas of Alaska. California-based company Greensparc built a small data center in Cordova in 2024, and is pursuing a second project in Wrangell. The state hasData center development may offer opportunities to strengthen grid infrastructure and address setbacks that have created “excess energy capacity and fewer consumers to share system costs,” according to a JanuaryBut data center neighbors also face the risk of added pollution, noise and increased energy bills, said Jenny Hyde, federal infrastructure coordinator at The Alaska Center.In 2024, data centers accounted for 4% of the United States’ electricity consumption, a figure expected to “double, if not triple, by 2030,” the study said.drafted by the Mat-Su Borough Assembly establishes a two-year partnership directing staff to work with Terra Energy Center Corp. to find companies interested in building near areas such as Port MacKenzie and Big Lake.Mayor Edna DeVries’ decision to veto the proposal earlier this month. Members said the development of data centers and large power consumers could potentially generate additional property tax revenue and create “high quality” jobs for borough residents, according to the resolution.The Mat-Su Borough has not yet received any data center proposals, Borough Manager Mike Brown wrote Thursday in an email. “From a planning perspective, we are looking at public policy related to data centers from other municipalities,” Brown said. “We will be sure to look at Anchorage’s ordinance.”Bella Biondini is a reporter for the Anchorage Daily News covering city government and general assignments. She was previously the editor of the Gunnison Country Times and has also reported for High Country News, in addition to working as a photojournalist. Contact her at bbiondini@adn.com. Open & Shut: Anchorage gets new eateries — Polynesian, Mexican and American with global twists — as well as a game board cafe and a cannabis shopWelcome more vegetables on to picky plates with addictive Buffalo cauliflower

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