Development of data center in Faribault slowed by Minnesota Court of Appeals ruling

The Minnesota Court of Appeals issued a ruling Monday that slowed the development of a proposed 500,000-square-foot data center in Faribault.

"People have all these big questions. They haven't been getting answers and today's decision gives a strong message across the state," Luke Norquist, a legal fellow with the Minnesota Center for Environmental Advocacy, said.

The court ruled in favor of the Minnesota Center for Environmental Advocacy, which argued residents didn't have clear answers to questions about air quality impacts, noise pollution and greenhouse gas emissions.

Norquist added that the nonprofit has been hearing from Faribault residents who have concerns about the 84-acre development. 

Andrew Wolf, an attorney representing the city, said in a statement that they are disappointed with the ruling.

"The City takes its environmental review obligations seriously and believes it acted appropriately and in good faith based on the information available at the time," Wolf said. "The Court has remanded the matter, and we are reviewing the opinion and evaluating the options for obtaining any additional information a decision requires."

Archer Datacenters, the development company, said the initial environmental assessment was part of its "ongoing effort to be as transparent as possible."

"While we do not believe an [environmental impact statement] EIS will be warranted, we respect the Minnesota Court of Appeals' decision that more definitive information is necessary for the city to ultimately make a decision on the matter," the company said. "As such, we will continue to move our project forward towards a final design with clarity on operational elements specific to relevant calculations in the EAW [environmental assessment worksheet]."

According to Norquist, the nonprofit is engaged in at least three other lawsuits related to data center development in Minnesota.