East Brunswick Moves To Prohibit Data Centers In All Zoning Districts

EAST BRUNSWICK, NJ — The East Brunswick Township Council introduced an ordinance banning data centers townshipwide by a 4-1 vote on Monday, with Councilman James Wendell casting the lone "no" vote after raising concerns that the measure's definitions were too broad and its justifications insufficiently documented.

Council President Dana Zimbicki framed the ordinance as a temporary pause rather than a permanent prohibition, tying it to Gov. Mikie Sherrill's statewide data center plan.

"What we're looking to do with this ordinance is to sort of put a pause on this until state regulations and legislation catches up," Zimbicki said. "In the meantime, in New Brunswick, take a pause on this, and we always can reexamine and repeal an ordinance should we choose to."

Wendell said he was not opposed to data centers outright, but questioned whether the ordinance's stated justifications — including concerns about electricity consumption, noise, air quality, water use and community character — were backed by evidence specific to East Brunswick.

"What kind of reference and data do we have to back up that statement within the ordinance?" Wendell asked. "If there isn't anything concrete to reference, it shouldn't be listed as a reason to ban these as part of the ordinance."

Township attorney Joseph Palombit said the ordinance was intended to give the state's broader regulatory framework time to develop before the township allows data centers in.

"The idea is there's a lot of uncertainty surrounding data centers and the eventual impact," Palombit said. "One of the major goals of this comprehensive plan is to give municipalities some bargaining power and the ability to negotiate from a position of power. We're trying to let the state plan catch up to the current realities before we allow data centers to come in."

Wendell pressed further on the ordinance's definition of a data center, arguing it was written so broadly that it could inadvertently capture office buildings, alarm monitoring companies or even the municipal complex itself.

"There is nothing in this ordinance or definition that defines the size, so this building could be defined as a data center having 20 computer servers storing data," Wendell said. "I think that we're rushing into this, and we should take time to make this ironclad so that somebody can't shoot holes in it."

Palombit responded that the ordinance's definition was limited to facilities whose primary purpose is housing digital infrastructure, which he said would exclude buildings like the municipal complex.

"The primary purpose of the municipal complex is to run the municipal government," Palombit said.

Wendell also raised the possibility of adding a sunset clause to the ordinance, which would force the council to revisit it after a set period. Zimbicki said the council's legal team had already looked into that option and determined it wasn't legally available for this type of ordinance.

"That would be a violation," Zimbicki said. "So this was looked at extensively."

Council member Kevin McEvoy cited a recent Gallup poll finding that 74 percent of Americans oppose data center construction in their local communities, pointing to concerns over electricity demand, water consumption, noise from cooling equipment, diesel backup generators, rising utility costs and declining property values.

"I'm surely not in favor of the territorial moratorium, nor the New Jersey governor at this particular time," McEvoy said. "I am opposed now and forever here in East Brunswick, and will be casting my vote in the positive for Ordinance 26-21."

The ordinance passed on a 4-1 vote, with Wendell opposed. A public hearing is scheduled for Aug. 10.

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