JACKSON – Concerns and questions surrounding the establishment of data centers in the township were addressed by officials during a recent Township Council meeting.
Council President Mordechai Burnstein brought the issue up stating he had received some questions from residents including one from the chairman of the township’s environmental commission, Ray Tremer III. He said that he had a 15-minute conversation Tremer. “It is something members of the governing body have been looking into for the last couple of months.”
He read a memo from the township’s legal counsel which concerned whether data centers were a permitted use within the municipality. The memo stated “such facilities are not permitted uses in Jackson Township. Initially, Jackson Township Code 244-6 provides a definition of uses which are prohibited in the municipality. Under this provision any land, building, structure or portion thereof that is not a permitted use is a prohibited use.”
“This provision follows a clearly established case law that uses non-specifically permitted uses are deemed prohibited. Data centers are not listed in any zoning in the district and are therefore not permitted anywhere in the township,” the memo adds.
Burnstein went on to read the memo’s statement noting that anyone seeking to build a data center in Jackson would have to apply for a use variance as is the practice for any application concerning a non-permitted use. That application would require at least five affirmative votes from the members of the township Zoning Board which reviews variances.
“Just as with any non-permitted use being applied for, adopting an ordinance prohibiting data centers when they are already not permitted would not change the fact that an applicant would have the right to apply to the zoning board,” Burnstein added.
He noted that other towns responding to residents’ concerns have adopted ordinances prohibiting data centers.
“In each of these towns – once adopted – such ordinances can not prevent a use variance application from being applied for. Data centers are not permitted and anyone seeking to develop one would have to apply for a use variance to the Zoning Board,” Burnstein repeated.
“I want this to be a conversation among my colleagues over the next couple of weeks. I do have a draft ordinance from our engineer and I think its food for thought for our council and from our residents and we’d love to get some feedback from the Environmental Commission and the rest of the residents,” the council president added.
He gave the example of a 2015 action where the township didn’t have a definition of dormitories and the council banned dormitories “and that opened up – as we are aware – a whole can of worms.” Burnstein noted that no one on the dais was in support of data centers nor looking to make it “any easier to build a data center here in Jackson.”
Council Vice President Giuseppe Palmeri said that if the township’s legal team were to advise the council to do anything further “then I am all ears for it. I’m willing to listen to do what we could do but I think it is across the board that no one wants data centers and we’ll do what we can legally to make sure that doesn’t happen here.”
“I know it is a big concern with a lot of residents,” Councilman Nino Borrelli said. “It is something we definitely need to do our due diligence on and work with legal (staff) in addressing it for our town and for those who live here – particularly since electricity costs could skyrocket as a result of these data centers – and that is definitely something we don’t want to happen here.”
“It is not a permitted use,” Councilman Ken Bressi said. “Sometimes when you get fancy and start writing ordinances to stop specific things, things get very muddy and it messes things up. If it is not permitted, it is not permitted and I think we have to stick to that. I for one would not permit a data center.”
“It is great that we all agree that we don’t want them here,” Councilman Chris Pollak said. “As to what to do with them is truly the issue here and something I’ve been working on. Most places don’t have data centers defined and they are still building data centers. What do we do about it? I’m not sure. I’m working on something but I think we need to prohibit them. I don’t think doing what other towns have done, essentially nothing and then data centers being built and then the residents being extremely unhappy and upset it changing their lives. I don’t think Jackson is a great place for it.”
Pollak noted that the township didn’t have the land and had a delicate ecosystem to build on. “I feel we need to do something. I have some stuff. The council president and the attorneys can look at it and we’ll see what happens.”
Mayor Jennifer Kuhn said she stood behind everything that had been said by the council concerning data centers. “I think we are all on the same page.”
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