St. Bernard Considers Data Center Moratorium Amid Proposed Development

The village of St. Bernard in Ohio is considering a temporary ban on data center developments to study their impact and create regulations. The proposal comes after CAI Investments LLC submitted plans for a 150,000 square foot data center at the former Ivorydale facility, which was previously home to Procter & Gamble's St. Bernard Soap Company.

Mark Wendling, Director of Public Safety and Service, says the village doesn't currently have regulations for data centers and wants to 'study them in greater detail' to understand their pros and cons. The moratorium would halt acceptance and processing of applications, issuance of permits, and approvals for data centers within St. Bernard for a year.

The proposed data center would be 150,000 square feet with 24-megawatt capacity, according to CAI Investments' attorney Tom Breidenstein. He says the facility 'is essentially a warehouse for computer systems,' which are permitted in the manufacturing district where the property is located.