PRESENTER: Presenter
Christopher J. Looney, AICP, Director of the Neighborhood & Community Planning Department
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SUBJECT: Title
Briefing to City Council on a potential amendment to the City’s Code of Ordinances establishing a new section regarding data centers.
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DEPARTMENT: Neighborhood and Community Planning
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COUNCIL DISTRICTS IMPACTED: All
STAFF CONTACTS: Matthew Simmont, AICP, Planning Manager
msimmont@newbraunfels.gov
Mary Lovell, Senior Planner
mlovell@newbraunfels.gov
BACKGROUND INFORMATION:
At their meeting on August 24, 2026, City Council directed City Staff to draft a code amendment regulating data centers. Recent inquiries and nation-wide conversations regarding data centers have prompted New Braunfels to evaluate whether the City’s existing Code of Ordinances adequately addresses data centers, to include surrounding property compatibility as well as operational characteristics and impacts. This is a common exercise when new uses and inventions, that were not contemplated when the codes were written, come about and need to be addressed.
New Braunfels’ zoning ordinance, Chapter 144 of the City’s Code of Ordinances, does not define “data centers”, nor does it identify a zoning district where the “data center” land use is explicitly allowed. Therefore, in accordance with Sections 144-3.3 and 144-3.4 subsections regarding uses not included or excluded, a data center is allowed:
• in the M-2 and M-2A zoning districts (the most intense industrial districts); and
• with an SUP (Special Use Permit zoning overlay) in the M-1 and M-1A Districts.
ISSUE:
Research shows that certain impacts of data centers can be greater than other uses currently allowed in New Braunfels’ industrial zoning districts. Examples of impacts include:
• Water Usage - Data centers rely on cooling systems to remove the substantial heat generated by servers and other electrical equipment. Water consumption can be significant and would vary depending on facility size and the cooling technology employed. This is particularly important for New Braunfels where water resources are 1) a fundamental component of the local economy and environment, and 2) are a celebrated resource integral to the quality of life. Additionally, there are multiple water providers within the City’s jurisdiction which influences consistency.
• Electric Power and Infrastructure - With electricity as a key need for these large energy load uses, data centers may require new substations, expansion of existing substations, new distribution lines, new utility easements, back-up generators, large transformers and electrical equipment, and other off-site infrastructure. Similar to water providers, there are a variety of electricity providers within the City’s jurisdiction as well.
• Neighborhood Compatibility - It is anticipated that data centers would create continuous noise from the mechanical systems to include cooling equipment, fans, transformers, generators, and fuel systems. Additionally, unlike a warehouse, where most activities occur primarily during daytime business hours, a data center would likely operate continuously. While they generally generate fewer vehicle trips than many other large land area industrial uses, they should require less automobile parking space than other industrial or even warehouse uses.
• Land consumption - New Braunfels is nearing full build-out with limited greenfield available for new development. The community’s landscape, on the edge of the Texas Hill Country, is as celebrated as is the aforementioned water resources. Data centers are traditionally single-story to be less expensive to build, however due to the amount of land such facilities can consume, at least two stories ought to be considered as a potential development standard or a condition to be placed on specific locations.
• Other Community Impacts - Data center developments could also affect agricultural land, wildlife habitats, watersheds, floodplains, riparian corridors, scenic views, enjoyment of residential areas, property values, and future development opportunities of nearby properties.
COMPREHENSIVE PLAN REFERENCE:
The following Actions from Envision New Braunfels relate to this potential code amendment:
• Action 1.3: Encourage balanced and fiscally responsible land use patterns.
• Action 1.11: Update policies and codes to achieve development patterns that implement the goals of this plan.
• Action 2.1: Sustain community livability for all ages and economic backgrounds.
• Action 3.6: Pro-actively provide a regulatory environment that remains business and resident friendly.
• Action 5.2: Discourage development in Edwards Aquifer Recharge and contributing zones, stream zones, flood-prone areas, steep slopes, or other ecologically constrained areas.
• Action 5.4: Incentivize water use reduction and conservation.
• Action 5.6: Implement measures to achieve and maintain a high National Flood Insurance Program CRS rating to ensure the safety of all residents and to reduce property owner flood insurance rates.
STRATEGIC PLAN REFERENCE:
Community Identity
• Objective 2: Implement goals of our residents identified in the Comprehensive Plan including preserving and increasing green space and tree canopy, protecting natural resources, and safeguarding the character, integrity, and stability of neighborhoods.
FISCAL IMPACT:
The fiscal impact of this agenda item encompasses City employee time to research, develop a code amendment draft, shepherd it through the public hearing process, and implement it.
RECOMMENDATION:
Zoning approaches by other Texas cities reinforce the effort by New Braunfels to establish standards and requirements before the state allows data centers to proceed and significant corresponding development pressure could occur; and to ensure that new development does not place disproportionate demands on the community’s resources or infrastructure.
Based on staff research and a review of approaches being considered or already adopted by other Texas cities, City staff recommends a code amendment (see attached) that will:
1. Define data center in New Braunfels’ Zoning Ordinance.
• Due to their unique characteristics and potential impacts, data centers should be specifically defined in the city's zoning ordinance rather than being treated as a warehouse, office, or general industrial use.
2. Require the property have both a base Industrial Zoning District as well as a Type 2 Special Use Permit (SUP).
• This would require an applicant for a data center to apply to rezone the property.
• If a proposed site is not currently zoned industrial, the applicant would need to request a base zoning change to an industrial district in addition to the SUP.
• The rezoning process includes public hearings:
i. One before the Planning Commission for a recommendation, and
ii. One before the City Council at the first reading, with a second reading required to approve it.
• This will allow the City Council to evaluate a data center’s site-specific and community-wide impacts, review the site in relation to the surrounding land uses and infrastructure, hear public input, receive input from owners of property within 200 feet, and either:
i. impose conditions to ameliorate any impacts to ensure a proposed data center is consistent with the character of the surrounding area, and ensure it is in accordance with the Comprehensive Plan, well before building permits are applied for, or
ii. deny the request.
3. If approved by City Council, require specific development standards that all data centers must meet at a minimum. Here is a brief summary of recommended development standards included in the DRAFT code amendment language which is attached to this packet.
• The rezoning application must be accompanied by:
i. Letters of approval from the utility providers
ii. A noise study
iii. An approved traffic impact analysis
iv. Detailed site plan and building elevations
• 500-foot setback from residential and sensitive non-residential uses
• Must comply with commercial building design standards and cannot claim the industrial exemption
• Residential buffer wall and cannot seek the exemption from abutting neighbors
• Both ground and roof mounted equipment must be screened
• Enhanced landscaping with buffer trees and shrubs required, and with the fee in-lieu of mitigation planting not allowed
• Maximum decibel level of 55
• No development in the floodway, 100-year floodplain, or over the Edwards Aquifer Recharge or Contributing Zones
• Closed loop cooling systems
• Compliance with their utility provider’s requirements
• Parking requirements
• Size may be limited or accommodated with multiple stories per City Council discretion
• Cross-reference to other municipal building, lighting, and safety requirements
• Requirements for decommissioning an abandoned data center
Staff consulted with the following utility service providers and agencies with a role in New Braunfels development to gather input on resource impacts and appropriate development standards: Guadalupe Valley Electric Cooperative (GVEC), Crystal Clear Water Supply, New Braunfels Utilities (NBU), Guadalupe-Blanco River Authority (GBRA), One Water New Braunfels, and the Edwards Aquifer Authority.
In accordance with Texas law, all proposed amendments to the Zoning Ordinance are required to receive a recommendation from the Planning Commission and final action by the City Council, following notice, posting, and public hearing requirements outlined in state statute to ensure transparency. Below is a proposed timeline in accordance with those transparency requirements:
ü October 13 - Agenda posted for the October 19th City Council meeting
ü October 14 - Deadline to submit to the local newspaper the notice for the November 4th Planning Commission meeting (runs in the newspaper 15 days before the hearing)
ü October 19 - Briefing to City Council
• October 21 - Deadline to submit to the local newspaper the notice for the November 9th City Council meeting (runs in the newspaper 15 days before the hearing)
• October 29 - Deadline to post the November 4th Planning Commission meeting agenda
• November 3 - Deadline to post the November 9th City Council meeting agenda
• November 4 - Planning Commission meeting and recommendation
• November 9 - City Council first reading
• November 10 - Deadline to post the November 16th City Council meeting agenda
• November 16 - City Council second reading
RESOURCE LINKS:
Utility Provider CCN Maps - <https://open-data-newbraunfels.hub.arcgis.com/pages/pdf-maps>
Special Use Permit section of the City’s Zoning Ordinance, Chapter 144 Section 3.6:
<https://library.municode.com/tx/new_braunfels/codes/code_of_ordinances?nodeId=PTIICOOR_CH144ZO_ARTIIIZODI_S144-3.6SPUSPE>