Birmingham passes data center ordinance after hours-long public hearing

Birmingham City Council members approved a new zoning ordinance regulating data centers Tuesday after an hours-long public hearing that drew hundreds of residents to City Hall.The crowd was so large that not everyone could get inside at once. Some residents were left waiting outside before officials moved them into overflow rooms.Many of those who spoke said they wanted regulation but were unhappy with the ordinance council members approved, arguing it was not strong enough to protect the environment, animals and nearby residents.Speakers lined up from before the meeting began at 9 a.m. until just before 2 p.m. Most said the ordinance was a watered-down version of what residents had requested.City officials, however, described the measure as one of the “strongest in the southeast.†The ordinance establishes 20 conditions companies must meet before building a hyperscale data center in Birmingham, addressing issues including water use, power generation, noise, site design and location. “It's a model ordinance for not just other states around us, but the entire country,†said the Office of Resiliency and Sustainability’s Hunter Garrison. “And I would put it on the level of any of the strongest data center ordinances in the United States.â€The ordinance requires hyperscale data centers to be at least 500 feet from residential and urban neighborhood districts and to be built on sites of at least five acres. It also requires cooling systems designed to use less water, bans certain types of on-site power generation and requires noise studies before and after construction.The city said the ordinance was developed after months of research, public input and revisions. Officials said Birmingham's electrical grid, industrial infrastructure and lower land costs have made the city attractive to data center developers, creating a need for local rules. But opponents said the ordinance still falls short because it does not include a special exception requirement. Residents had pushed for that provision because it would have required public hearings before a company could receive permission to build a data center.“They removed the special exception,†said Allison Black Cornelius of the Greater Birmingham Humane Society. “When you remove the special exception, you remove the ability to have any meaningful input that matters. They didn’t put in noise limits. They didn’t put in monitoring. They didn’t put in the best practices of the cities they said they studied. They just didn’t.â€Black Cornelius has been a vocal opponent since Nebius announced plans for a hyperscale AI Factory across from the new animal control and humane society in the Oxmoor Valley community. “It was not based on the best practices it claimed it was. It was not. And I think everybody who came today knows it. I don’t have to tell them they know it.â€She added that with this vote, the Greater Birmingham Humane Society really has no choice but to file a lawsuit. “What I just saw was a circus,” she said. “And I think every single person that you saw in that room will not be there when there’s a re-election, at least not based on the history I've seen in other cities, the communities. I just don’t think it’ll happen.â€Because Nebius is already in the permitting process, the ordinance will not affect the company unless it changes plans for its AI factory in the Oxmoor Valley community.The ordinance is expected to become official within the next few weeks. You can read the entire ordinance here.This is a developing story and will be updated as information becomes available. Stay updated on the latest stories with the WVTM 13 app. You can download it here.