Mansfield becomes first town in Mass. to pass near-total ban on data centers

"Local News Voters approved a sweeping zoning amendment to limit where and how data centers can operate in Mansfield. As Massachusetts communities confront the rapid rise of data centers tied to artificial intelligence and cloud computing, Mansfield has positioned itself at the front of the state's response. At the town's Annual Town Meeting on May 5, voters approved Article 23, a sweeping zoning amendment that creates strict limits on where and how data centers can operate in Mansfield. The measure effectively bars the kinds of large-scale facilities increasingly appearing across the country, while leaving a narrow pathway for smaller operations under close municipal oversight."

"The move makes Mansfield the first town in Massachusetts to adopt a dedicated data center zoning bylaw, according to officials - an effort local leaders say was driven less by immediate development pressure than by a desire to avoid being caught unprepared. Sarah Raposa, Mansfield's director of planning and development, said the Planning Board recognized that even though there were no current proposals, the town needed to establish rules "in case something were to come up," she said. "We should be prepared," Raposa said."

"From there, town officials began studying how communities around the country were regulating the rapidly growing industry and what impacts large facilities were having on local infrastructure. Raposa said Mansfield quickly focused on two recurring concerns - electricity and water - by working closely with the town's municipal electric and water departments to understand local capacity limits before drafting the regulations."

"Mansfield's new bylaw does not completely ban data centers, but it sharply limits where and how large they can be. Under the rules, only Tier I data centers - facilities using up to two megawatts of electricity - would be allowed, and only in certain industrial and planned business districts with special per"

Mansfield voters approved a zoning amendment that restricts where and how data centers can operate. The bylaw creates strict limits on large-scale facilities while allowing only smaller operations under close municipal oversight. Mansfield became the first Massachusetts town to adopt a dedicated data center zoning bylaw. Town leaders said the goal was preparation rather than responding to immediate proposals. Planning officials studied how other communities regulate the industry and focused on recurring concerns about electricity and water capacity. The bylaw allows only Tier I data centers using up to two megawatts of electricity, and only in specified industrial and planned business districts with additional conditions.

Read at Boston.com