The City of Ozark is preparing to add data center guidelines to its municipal codes.
Monday night, Ozark’s Planning and Zoning Commission heard a presentation on the updates. Community Development Director Randall Whitman outlined the city’s goals, after clarifying that Ozark has no current proposals for any data center projects.
“Our recommendation,” Whitman explained, “is to basically establish definition of data centers. And we're doing that in three tiers or three different sizes, establishing districts where they're allowed and then establishing that it's allowed by conditional use permit rather than just as a permitted use, and then establishing a process for review and approval of those that helps with design and mitigation of concerns for the environment and the community.”
The conditional use permit requirement would by default call for more public hearings and oversight, and it would be nontransferable, so if a data center were sold, the new owner would have to reapply for the permit. The code also includes noise regulations.
Commissioner questions included concerns about long-term impacts, such as future potential abandoned sites with hazardous materials and environmental concerns which city staff said are generally outside of the limits of zoning regulation.
Ozark P&Z approved the new codes unanimously.
And more information on a new police headquarters for Ozark was also shared with the Planning and Zoning Commission this week. The commission heard an update on their Finley River Neighborhood District Plan, which now includes plans to make space for the new police HQ in the northwest corner of the city.
Staff are hoping to put it in an area just south of Ozark City Cemetery and the Finley River between West Hall and West Church.
Ozark City Administrator Cameron Smith explained the plan would be to improve the entire area.
“With the development of the police department building,” Smith said “the city would plan to invest in infrastructure. And those upgrades as well would help future economic development of that land and make it more attractive for, for future private development."
Ozark P&Z Monday approved recommending the plan to the Board of Alderman.
Planning for the new building for Ozarks PD is just beginning. The project currently has an expected budget of about $19 million. The city hopes to start construction in late 2027.