No single permit approves a data center. A campus moves through several approval tracks, run by different bodies on different clocks. Local land-use approval decides whether the building can go on the parcel. State environmental permits cover air emissions, water and wastewater. A utility service agreement, often reviewed by a state commission, decides whether the site gets power and who pays to connect it. Regional and state reviews add another layer in some places. Each track produces public records. Each also has a point where residents, officials or intervenors can participate, and that point is not always where people expect.

This guide walks through those tracks in roughly the order they arise, with examples from public records filed in 2025 and 2026. Procedures vary by state and by local code. Treat the examples as patterns to look for in your own jurisdiction's ordinance, not as rules that apply everywhere.

Step 1: Find out whether the use is by-right or discretionary

The first question decides most of what follows. Does the local zoning code permit a data center on the parcel "by right," or does the project need a discretionary approval such as a rezoning, special use permit, conditional use permit or special exception?

When the use is permitted by right, the local board's job is mostly technical. Van Buren Township, Michigan, is a clear example. Its Planning Commission voted 5-1 in October 2026 to approve the final site plan for Google's "Project Cannoli" campus. Michigan Public reported that the site was already zoned industrial and that the board is required to approve projects that fit industrial-use guidelines. "Our job as planning commissioners is to verify that the construction is in line with the law," Trustee and commissioner Jeff Jahr said before the vote, calling the data center "a permitted use in the zone." (See DataCenterFeed's report on the vote.)

Discretionary approvals give a board real latitude to approve, deny or attach conditions. Several jurisdictions have moved data centers into that category:

  • San Francisco already requires Conditional Use authorization citywide for "Internet Service Exchange" uses, the planning code category that covers data centers, according to the Board of Supervisors' legislative digest.
  • Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin amended its zoning ordinance on April 14, 2026. Data centers, other than accessory data centers, are now confined to the M-2 Heavy Industrial district and need a conditional use permit. The ordinance sets standards including a 400-foot separation from residential property and closed-loop or recycled water systems for cooling, according to the city.
  • Bethlehem, Pennsylvania drafted rules permitting data centers only as a special exception in its Industrial district, with case-by-case review by the Zoning Hearing Board. The draft set a 1,000-foot setback from residential districts and from lots with sensitive receptors such as homes and schools, according to the planning director's July 2026 memo to council. The council gave the rules final 6-1 approval on October 20, 2026, Lehigh Daily reported.
  • Prince William County, Virginia adopted a zoning text amendment on September 22, 2026 that shrinks its Data Center Opportunity Zone Overlay District. New data center proposals outside the remaining overlay, in the business, office and industrial districts listed in the county's summary, must now go through the Special Use Permit process. Inside the overlay, qualifying parcels can still use existing by-right permissions.

The practical point: when a code changes, the date an application is filed or accepted can decide which rules apply. Prince William's amendment gave pending data center rezonings, special use permits and proffer amendments, substation public facility reviews and site plans 90 days after adoption to qualify for the overlay (the Planning Commission had recommended 120 days), a window the county says closes December 21, 2026.

Step 2: Site plan and land development review

Even a by-right project goes through plan review: engineering, stormwater, access, landscaping, lighting and fire code. In Pennsylvania this happens under a municipal or county subdivision and land development ordinance (SALDO). Its formal clock is a useful reference point.

Indiana County, Pennsylvania, shows how this works at scale. The Indiana County Planning Commission received a Preliminary Land Development Plan from Amazon Data Services for its "PIT100 Masterplan" at the Homer City Energy Campus on August 28, 2026. The company's narrative describes 39 data centers across six sites on about 2,200 acres in Center and Blacklick townships, built in phases over about ten years. On October 14, 2026, the Planning Commission accepted the application for review, and the county lists that date as the official filing date. The county says the SALDO review period runs from October 15, 2026 to January 12, 2027, and that engineering consultants hired by the county commissioners will review the plans. The narrative also proposes a fee in lieu of the SALDO open-space requirement, calculated as the fair market value of 34 acres. (Background: DataCenterFeed's earlier report.)

Step 3: The public hearing

Discretionary approvals usually require a noticed public hearing. Wisconsin Rapids publishes a plain-language version of its process. The Planning Commission holds the hearing and makes a recommendation. The Common Council then acts on the conditional use permit. Notices must be placed at least 30 days before a hearing. The city also notes that any conditions it attaches must be reasonable and, as much as possible, supported by solid evidence, citing Wisconsin Statute 62.23(7)(de).

That city's record also shows how a hearing can end. The Planning Commission denied the DC Rapids LLC application after a September 16, 2026 hearing. On October 20 the Common Council voted 7-0 to reject the permit, WSAU reported (our report).

Three things are worth checking before any hearing:

  • Which body decides. A planning commission may recommend while the council or board of supervisors decides. A zoning hearing board may decide special exceptions on its own.
  • What the standard of review is. A by-right site plan is judged against code. A conditional use is judged against listed criteria, and conditions must tie back to them.
  • Where the application file lives. Wisconsin Rapids and Van Buren Township both posted applicant submissions, staff or consultant reviews and sound studies on dedicated project pages.

Step 4: Regional and state reviews

Some states add a review layer above the local one.

Georgia's Developments of Regional Impact (DRI). Large projects trigger a regional review run through the Georgia Department of Community Affairs. The local government files an initial form, the developer's information follows, and the regional commission issues a finding. The Nixon Technology Center filing in Augusta-Richmond County (DRI #4853) shows what the form collects. It describes a proposed 3.34 million-square-foot data center campus on about 388 acres and lists the local actions requested, starting with rezoning. It also gives an estimated build-out value of $3 billion, the water and wastewater provider, and expected traffic. The filing states the cooling system is closed loop and lists 0 MGD of sewage flow beyond normal restroom use. (Our report.)

State environmental permits. Air permits for backup generators, water withdrawal and discharge permits, and stormwater permits are issued by state agencies. More states now tie these permits to the local outcome. Under Pennsylvania Executive Order 2026-05, signed August 18, 2026, the Department of Environmental Protection will not issue any data center permit until the project has received all required local approvals. Developers who decline to sign a Consent Order and Agreement committing to the governor's GRID Requirements will not have their applications reviewed until local approvals are secured, according to the governor's office. In Oregon, Gov. Tina Kotek's October 9, 2026 letter asked the Department of Environmental Quality to pause processing of air and water discharge permits for new or expanded data centers until July 1, 2027.

Other state registrations. Some records surface a project before any hearing. In Texas, privately funded buildings register with the Department of Licensing and Regulation for accessibility review. TDLR project TABS2027002494, "Project Hyper - Spur Building 1" in Jayton, Kent County, lists a 759,262-square-foot data center building with an estimated cost of $2.4 billion (our report).

Step 5: Power, the approval the town does not vote on

Electric service runs on a separate track, and a local board usually has no say over it. Utility procedures differ, but the published ones share a sequence: a load study, a commitment to pay for buildout, a service agreement and, increasingly, state commission review.

  • Load study. Ohio Power Co. (formerly doing business as AEP Ohio) charges a one-time fee of $10,000 to $100,000 for each load study under its data center tariff. The customer must control the property and specify location, load ramp and final load.
  • Buildout commitment. Ohio Power's Letter of Agreement requires the customer to reimburse 100% of buildout costs if it cancels, or delays by more than 12 months, before the target energization date.
  • Commission review of the contract. On October 1, 2026, the Michigan Public Service Commission approved DTE Electric's special contracts to serve the Van Buren Township campus (Case No. U-22058). The commission stated that its authority covered only the contract terms and protections for other customers, and that it "has no authority over matters such as whether and where a data center may locate."
  • Grid operator registration. In PJM, FERC accepted on October 9, 2026 a definition of "Large Load," built on a 50 MW cumulative peak threshold, and a Large Load Registry (Docket ER26-3515-000).

Because power approvals happen in commission dockets, not council chambers, they are easy to miss. The cost terms in those dockets, such as minimum bills, contract length and collateral, decide who carries the risk if the load never shows up.

A records checklist

  • The zoning ordinance's use table and data center definition, plus any pending text amendment.
  • The application file: concept plan, site plan, traffic, noise and water studies, and consultant review letters.
  • Hearing notices and agendas, along with the minutes and video afterward.
  • State regional-review filings, such as Georgia's DRI forms, and state permit trackers, such as Pennsylvania DEP's data center map.
  • The utility's large-load tariff and the state commission docket for any special contract.
  • Any tax-incentive agreement, which can be voted on separately. Michigan Public reported that Van Buren Township and Wayne County agreed to a $125 million tax break for Project Cannoli.

What Happens Next

Several approvals described here have dated next steps. Indiana County lists the AWS preliminary land development plan on its November 18, 2026 Planning Commission agenda, and the SALDO review period ends January 12, 2027. Prince William County's final eligibility window for the amended overlay closes December 21, 2026, after which the county says it will publish an updated overlay boundary map. Oregon's requested pause on state air and water permits for new data centers runs until July 1, 2027.

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