Public Input Meeting On Data Centers Scheduled For May

BALTIMORE COUNTY, MD — Officials will hold a public input meeting in less than a month to discuss the future of data centers in the county.

The meeting will be held on May 21 in Towson, at 105 West Chesapeake Ave., in hearing room 104.

While the Baltimore County Planning Board will call the meeting into session at 4:45 p.m., the public input portion will take place from 5 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.

Residents will be allowed to give feedback on data center regulations in person, through written testimony and virtually.

Those interested in participating must register by sending an email to the board's Taylor Bensley at tbensley@baltimorecountymd.gov with the following information:

• Name
• Phone Number
• The organization you are representing, if applicable
• If you plan to attend the meeting in person or virtually via Webex

Each speaker will be given two minutes for feedback.

The meeting is part of a larger effort by the board to draft a data center report for the Baltimore County Council. Planning Board officials are required to file their report by Oct. 1.

In January, the county became part of a growing list of local jurisdictions freezing data center permits over concerns of how their construction could negatively impact residents.

Related: Data Center Proposal Meets Pushback In Baltimore County

Concerns have largely focused on the impact of not just rising utility costs but also the strain they would inflict on energy and water resources.

Prior to the temporary freeze, the County Council had backed talks for a 42-acre, 150-megawatt data center in western Baltimore County's Woodlawn area. At the time, a projected timeline had construction getting underway as early as June.

County law requires that data centers be located east of Pulaski Highway and south of Liberty Road.