Data center debate continues in Cass County as commissioners consider regulation

PLATTSMOUTH, Neb. — As Cass County commissioners continue crafting rules for potential data center development, they have once again voted to limit the size of any future facilities that could be built in the county. There are none currently.

The vote comes as a countywide moratorium on new data centers remains in place through the middle of next year, preventing any projects from moving forward while officials finalize regulations.

Among the proposed rules is a limit on electricity usage, restricting any future data center to 15 megawatts of power.

For longtime Cass County neighbor Jeanette Freel and her brother, Phil Lepert, the issue is deeply personal. Their family has lived on the same land for more than a century.

“We've been here since the late 1800s, and we've always tried to be good stewards of the land,” Freel said.

Freel said she is concerned about the potential effects data centers could have on environmental resources.

“It's scary what they want to do with the land and the resources, whether they're environmental, the water, the electricity,” she said.

Jayden Speed, with Cass County Data Center Watch, said the 15-megawatt cap represents a compromise.

“County commissioners have really tried to be thoughtful and set requirements that are fair to everyone involved,” Speed said. “I think 15 is a compromise for folks on the commission.”

Ron Kaminski, president of the Nebraska and Southwest Iowa Building and Construction Trades Council, said data center construction would create jobs.

“I know it will create more jobs, and I believe that it's smart to put regulations to protect the landowners,” Kaminski said.

Under the proposed regulations, data centers would only be allowed in industrial-zoned areas. Current zoning maps identify those locations near Greenwood and Murray.

Despite the ongoing discussion, some residents remain opposed to seeing large-scale development near their homes.

“Basically what we're fighting for is not so much us, it's the next generations,” Freel said. “We were entrusted with this from our parents and trying to entrust this to our kids to take care of and to love.”

The Cass County Board of Commissioners is expected to discuss the proposed data center regulations again at its Nov. 3 meeting.

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