The new code, nearly 5,000 words long and revised over the course of multiple council meetings, was approved in a 3-2 vote. It will allow for one data center in the city with onsite power generation.

The proposal to update city code was put forth by Volition, which seeks to build a data center in an existing warehouse at the mouth of Spanish Fork Canyon.

Vesper CEO Jeff Chavez said last month the facility would generate approximately 250 megawatts using onsite power generation and be cooled by a closed-loop water system using 500,000 gallons for the initial fill and 250,000 gallons annually to create humidity in the system, while producing low emissions.

He claimed the facility would have an on-site value of more than $4 billion, a value that would generate at least $40 million in annual tax revenue distributed to various taxing entities.

The new city code establishes that a data center with onsite power generation have no more than 450 MW of power-generation capacity and operate isolated from the Spanish Fork power system. After the initial filling of the cooling system and humidification areas, water use may not exceed 300,000 gallons per year.

The document also has regulations on air emissions, noise and wastewater. The policy states the city may issue operational restrictions and suspensions if the terms are violated.

“I don’t know that there has ever been anything that we’ve put this much review into,” Councilman Kevin Oyler said in the meeting. “I don’t know that there’s any ordinance currently existing that will have as many details in it as this will.”

Oyler, Councilman Shane Marshall and Councilwoman Stacy Beck each voted to approve the code change. Marshall and Beck both stated that they would be comfortable living next to the data center.

“The text is better,” Marshall said. “It’s come a long ways and we’re in a good position.”

Councilmen Jesse Cardon and Landon Tooke voted no to the change. Tooke said the city needed to do more educating to the public before making a decision.

“It’s amazing all the changes we’ve made,” he said. “But I feel like the public needs to know this, and they’re not going to if we vote on this tonight. And that’s hard for me.”

Data centers have become a hot-button topic in local politics this year, and Spanish Fork’s decision was no different. It came after great public scrutiny online and in council meetings. Beck said she has heard comments from all sides, and said it was the council’s responsibility to make the decision.

“I know Facebook can be very loud, but one-on-one conversations with people and personal texts that I’m receiving are supportive as well as, ‘Hey, I elected you guys to make a good decision,'” she said. 

Chavez said the developer had time constraints that were “strained to the maximum,” but said they bought more time to allow the city to make a decision.

“I think your concerns about another applicant coming soon are unfounded because I think every other data center in the world is going to choose a different city for a while than Spanish Fork after the amount of due diligence that you’ve done,” he said.