Hutto residents air concerns over proposed data center

The proposal comes as data centers continue to surge into Central Texas. Hutto’s neighbor, Round Rock, recently saw plans for a new Skybox data center move forward after a rezoning request was approved. The industry has also been under the microscope of Texas officials, as lawmakers look to manage the growth of data centers across the state.

According to city of Hutto documents, the request seeks to amend the current PUD to allow for light industrial use. To facilitate the change, Zydeco also submitted an amendment to the city’s future land use map that would change the designation of the land from multifamily to light industrial.

The discussion

“This is an opportunity for the city of Hutto to unlock hundreds of millions of dollars in taxable value by taking the existing infrastructure on an otherwise very constrained and restricted site,” Gilmer said. “The second point is that not all data centers are created equal. What we’re proposing tonight is designed to be a low-impact, thoughtful neighbor with minimal burden on city utilities.”

After a review of the proposed project, Howard Koontz, Hutto’s director of development services, said city staff believe the project would be better suited if it were elsewhere in the city.

City staff also sent out notifications to area residents within a 600-foot radius of the site, and received roughly 55 letters in return. Of those, only two were in support of the project, Koontz said.

Several members of the community spoke in opposition to the project during the Planning and Zoning Commission’s public hearing.

Brett Sutton, a Hutto resident, said he’s concerned about four aspects of the proposed project.

“It’s the electricity, it’s the heat, it’s the noise and then the attractiveness to the city,” he said.

He suggested the city should find third-party engineers to conduct a study on the project’s impact on noise pollution and temperatures.

Gilmer said the proposed data center has no customers yet, adding that Zydeco has asked power supplier Oncor for 70 megawatts to power the center. For reference, the Skybox PowerCampus under construction in Hutto is a 600-megawatt campus.

“While I appreciate the focus on the power reliability and availability, the high power consumptions from the data center can pressure and increase the ongoing electric bill for the surrounding area,” said resident Nick Choi.

What’s next?

The public hearing for the proposed changes remains open until April 20, at which time the commission will make its decision. Subsequently, the measure would be brought to Hutto City Council on May 7.