The issues, one at a time
Organized around the questions with the most direct local relevance. The facts shown are the documented ones. Where the answer depends on a specific project, we say so.
Water isn’t the problem
Closed-loop data centers use almost no water once filled. El Dorado has 10 million gallons a day set aside for industry.
Power is reviewed up front
Applicants must show peak load and their utility plan. Kansas law bars discounted electric rates for data centers.
Taxes could go down
A $1 billion project could save about $1,010 a year on a $250,000 home. Barber County’s Google deal has no property tax abatement.
Neighbors are protected
G-1463 requires 500-foot setbacks, noise limits and public hearings for every project.
Water isn’t the problem
El Dorado has water to spare.
The lake holds over 50 billion gallons, and the City has 10 million gallons a day set aside for industry. We still owe $39.8 million to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for that storage, and industrial customers help pay it.
Closed-loop cooling uses very little water once filled.
The headlines about data centers using millions of gallons a day describe evaporative cooling, where water is used up as it cools the building. Many new data centers use closed-loop systems instead. The loop is filled once during construction and the same water circulates for years. Microsoft says its new closed-loop sites use about as much water in a year as a single restaurant. After the initial fill, the main ongoing use is restrooms and kitchens.
There is no single “data centers use X gallons” number.
Berkeley Lab found very large variation by server efficiency, cooling technology, grid characteristics, and climate.
The ordinance draws its line at 100,000 gallons a day.
That is 1% of the City’s industrial water. A facility above that daily draw is “high impact” and banned, whatever its cooling design.
G-1463 requires water numbers up front.
Average-day and peak-day demand, process water, fire flow, cooling type, and wastewater discharge must be described before approval.
What a Special Use Permit hearing can examine
- How much of El Dorado Lake’s capacity is committed today?
- How does cooling technology change a facility’s water use?
- What limits can the City set in a Special Use Permit?
Power is reviewed up front
10 MW is the ordinance’s power trigger.
Any computing facility with a peak electrical load above ten megawatts is “high impact.”
Kansas ties its incentive to a 10-year power contract.
To qualify for the state incentive, a data center must enter a 10-year electricity purchase agreement with its local utility.
Applicants must show their utility path.
G-1463 requires peak load in megawatts, planned interconnections, backup generation inventory, and Evergy Path to Power status.
What a Special Use Permit hearing can examine
- Who pays for new generation or transmission?
- How could a large customer affect other ratepayers?
- What does 10 MW represent in practice?
Taxes could go down
Kansas created a data center incentive in July 2025.
Qualifying projects must invest at least $250 million within five years and create 20 new jobs within two years. The state can claw back benefits.
The Kansas exemption is a sales tax exemption.
NCSL reports it covers land, buildings, site improvements, and equipment, but specifically excludes electricity. It lists no state property tax abatement.
A large project could lower homeowners’ property taxes.
In an illustrative $1 billion example with $300 million of taxable real property, revenue-neutral mill levies would save about $404 a year per $100,000 of home value, or about $1,010 on a $250,000 home.
Barber County’s Google data center gets no property tax abatement.
Google agreed to pay 100% of its property taxes plus $5.5 million in community benefit payments.
Construction jobs are large. Permanent jobs are fewer.
NCSL notes construction can support many workers, while operating facilities create far fewer permanent positions.
What a Special Use Permit hearing can examine
- Which impacts are known, and which depend on the project?
- What local property tax would a project pay?
- What is the cost of saying no to every project for ten years?
Neighbors are protected
Setbacks are already required.
G-1463 requires a 500-foot setback between generator and cooling yards, substations, or fuel storage and residential districts or sensitive uses.
Noise can be conditioned.
The City may require acoustic enclosures, post-construction sound testing, and limits on generator testing.
Litigation is rising where process is weak.
WilmerHale describes a growing wave of nuisance, environmental, and land-use suits against data center projects.
What a Special Use Permit hearing can examine
- Where are appropriate locations in El Dorado?
- How are neighbors notified and heard?
- Who pays to decommission a site?