Eagan City Council is poised to hit pause on new data centers and commercial cryptocurrency-mining operations, with a proposed one-year moratorium up for a vote at its meeting on Tuesday. If approved, the temporary halt would block city approval of any new facilities or expansions while staff study zoning, water use, and power needs. The moratorium would run through Feb. 17, 2027, and council members plan to take public comment before voting.
As reported by FOX 9, the ordinance on the table would stop the city from approving applications for any new data center or crypto-mining operation, or expansions to existing centers, for one year. During that time, the city would conduct a study to figure out how best to regulate, locate, and permit these high-consumption facilities. The station notes that the council is scheduled to vote on the moratorium at Tuesday’s meeting.
The City Council meets on the first and third Tuesdays of the month, and the meeting packet lists the moratorium as an item for discussion, with a listening session set before the regular session, per the City of Eagan. Residents who want to speak can attend in person at the municipal center or follow the meeting online, according to the city’s meetings page.
Why Eagan Is Pausing Proposals
Minnesota has become a magnet for data-center projects in recent years, and communities are wrestling with the strain those facilities put on local power, water and permitting systems. The Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis has documented a surge of proposed hyperscale sites around the Twin Cities, and utilities and developers are already lining up transmission upgrades to serve major projects such as Meta’s Rosemount campus. Opponents argue these facilities consume large amounts of electricity and water while delivering relatively few long-term local jobs compared with the infrastructure and environmental tradeoffs…