Linn County sets application fees for data center projects

CEDAR RAPIDS — Data center developers looking to site projects in rural Linn County will pay an application fee based on the project size, per a fee structure implemented this week by county leaders.

The Linn County Board of Supervisors approved the fee structure Wednesday based on recommendations from county staff. Developers would pay the fee upon applying to rezone a site for large-scale data center projects in unincorporated Linn County.

The base application fee sits at $60,000 with an additional $20,000 to be paid for every 100 project acres, rounded to the nearest hundred. Those funds will be used to cover staff time and other costs associated with reviewing the application.

“All data center projects will require a base amount of evaluation by staff and possibly the hiring of consultants,” Linn County Planning and Development Director Charlie Nichols said. “Linking the fee to the size of the project allows us to increase our funding based on the increased complexity of the project.”

The fee is only one step of the application process, which is outlined in the county’s new data center ordinance. Applicants also must provide a major site plan, alongside a development timeline, site layout and estimated number of jobs created by the project.

Applicants will further be required to solicit and submit a third-party water study “demonstrating there is sufficient reliable water supply to meet all projected water demands without undue adverse impacts on existing users, aquifers or watersheds.”

The application would go to the Linn County Planning & Zoning Commission for review, and later the Linn County Board of Supervisors for potential approval.

Developers also will be beholden to an economic development agreement requiring the applicant to create a community betterment fund to support various community improvements.

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