Aurora CO resolution directing data center regulations, moratorium rejected (2026)
Aurora, Colorado — Council Rejects a Six-Month Data Center Moratorium 6-5 on the Mayor’s Tie-Breaking Vote and Instead Adopts 7-4 a Resolution DIRECTING Data-Center Regulations (Evaporative-Cooling Ban and Residential Setbacks) Within 35 Days (August 11, 2026)
Aurora, CO · City of Aurora, Colo. — resolution directing data center regulations (adopted 7-4, August 11, 2026); six-month moratorium rejected 6-5 the same night
- Status
- Enacted (not yet in effect)
- Applies to
- Data center developers in Aurora, once the directed regulations are adopted — prospectively barred from evaporative cooling and subject to residential setbacks and buffers
- Enforced by
- City of Aurora City Manager's office / Aurora Planning and Development Services
Aurora took the opposite path from most of its Front Range neighbors. On August 11, 2026 the City Council voted 6-5 — with the mayor breaking the tie — to reject a six-month moratorium on new data center construction, leaving Aurora the only major Front Range city still accepting data center approvals while Denver, Boulder County, Broomfield and Jefferson County had already paused. But the council did not do nothing. By 7-4 it adopted a resolution directing the creation of data-center-specific regulations, and that resolution names two substantive requirements: a prohibition on evaporative cooling, the water-intensive cooling method data centers commonly use, and mandatory setbacks and buffers for data centers sited near residences. A separate measure gave the city manager 35 days to write the regulations. Councilmembers Alison Coombs, Alli Jackson, Ruben Medina and Amy Wiles opposed the resolution; Wiles had proposed the broader moratorium instead. What this entry records is therefore a direction with named content, not yet an enforceable code provision — the regulations implementing it were due in mid-September 2026 and should be checked for.
Who is protected: Aurora residents, especially those living near sites zoned for data centers, and Colorado Front Range water supplies
Legal detail
City of Aurora, Colo. — August 11, 2026 City Council session, two related votes. VOTE 1 (FAILED): a six-month moratorium on new data center construction was rejected 6-5, the mayor casting the tie-breaking vote. Aurora thereby became the only major Front Range municipality keeping data center approvals open, against pauses already in place in Denver, Boulder County, Broomfield and Jefferson County. VOTE 2 (ADOPTED 7-4): a resolution directing the creation of data-center-specific regulations, identifying two requirements by name — (a) a PROHIBITION ON EVAPORATIVE COOLING, a water-intensive cooling technology, and (b) SETBACKS AND BUFFERS for data centers in areas near residences. A separate measure directed the city manager to develop the regulations within 35 days, i.e. by roughly September 15, 2026. DISSENT: Councilmembers Alison Coombs, Alli Jackson, Ruben Medina and Amy Wiles voted against the resolution; Wiles had advanced the broader moratorium as the alternative. STATUS AND STRENGTH, stated precisely: this is a RESOLUTION DIRECTING REGULATION, not the regulation itself. effective_date is null and strength is `limited` because no enforceable code text is confirmed adopted. The entry is included because the resolution specifies operative content — an outright ban on a named cooling technology is a stronger substantive commitment than most 'direct staff to study' motions — but it must not be read as an in-force restriction until the implementing regulations are confirmed.
Key facts
| Jurisdiction | Aurora, CO |
|---|---|
| Level | City / local |
| Strength | Limited |
| Enacted | August 11, 2026 |
| Citation | City of Aurora, Colo. — resolution directing data center regulations (adopted 7-4, August 11, 2026); six-month moratorium rejected 6-5 the same night |
| Private right of action | No, agency enforcement only |
| Penalties | None yet enforceable; the resolution directs regulations rather than imposing requirements directly |
| Topics | data-center siting and energy · consumer protection · government use of AI |
| News report | Aurora City Council rejects data center moratorium, approves new rules, water regs — Colorado Public Radio |
More AI rules in Aurora, CO
- Aurora CO evaporative cooling ban ordinance, first reading (2026) · Proposed / pending
Related data-center siting and energy rules elsewhere
- Superior WI Data Center Moratorium (1-year) · In effect
- Dane County WI Hyperscale Data Center Moratorium · In effect
- Madison WI Data Center Moratorium (1-year) · In effect
- Manitowoc County WI Data Center Moratorium · In effect
- WA SB 5982 (Data Center / Clean Energy) · In effect
- Dayton OH data center moratorium (180-day, Apr 2026) · In effect
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