The California company working to erect a data center in Salem applied for its first city review on Friday, beating by three days the consideration of a moratorium on such projects by the Salem City Council. The filing by Verrus detailed what a company official said is the first phase of its Sale m project – two buildings with about 600,000 square feet on about 100 acres of land in southeast Salem. The project, valued at $394 million for the first phase, would be in the Mill Creek Corporate Center and adjacent to Corban University. A large-scale data center typically houses computer systems, storage drives and networking services used by companies and governments working with digital information and to support artificial intelligence computing. The city council is scheduled to meet in a special session at 6 p.m. Monday, Aug. 3, in the Loucks Auditorium at the Salem Public Library. City officials reacted to a storm of citizen protest over the data center in part by raising the possibility of a moratorium. City Attorney Dan Atchison outlined a weeks-long process to put a stop in place.  SIGN UP: “I love and respect what Salem Reporter does for our community.” Salem Reporter covers the people, issues, and stories shaping our city. Stay connected to Salem. Subscribe today. “The timing of any proposed moratorium or land use regulation amendments is an important consideration because applications submitted before the effective date of those actions may continue to be reviewed under existing regulations,” Atchison wrote. He described the circumstances in a staff report issued at day’s end on Thursday, July 20. The California company’s action comes just a day after Gov. Tina Kotek appeared to put a significant kink in its plans. She pulled back 32 acres of state land slated to be sold to Verrus as part of its Salem campus. The application, submitted in the name of Verrus CEO Nelson Abramson, identified three lots for the data center, none owned by the state. Two parcels totaling 56 acres are on the west side of Southeast Mill Creek Drive, north of Southeast Deer Park Road. The property is owned by an Indiana company, which acquired one parcel from the state in 2023, according to Marion County records. The other parcel is 54 acres on the east side of Mill Creek Drive, north of Southeast Deer Park Road. Capstone Mill Creek, a real estate investment company in Lake Oswego, bought the property from the state in 2023, according to county records. JP Newmann, Verrus spokesman, said Saturday that the company filed its site plan in response to community reaction to its plans. “We wanted to come out early to at least give something to the community to react to,” he said. He said company officials remain committed to the Salem project and want to be attentive to community concerns. “We hear those concerns. They are incredibly valid,” he said. “They deserve substantive answers.” Salem’s city attorney described what could be ahead for Salem. “These facilities require significant computing capacity and may require substantial electrical infrastructure, water resources, backup power systems, and other public facilities to support operations,” Atchison wrote. He said large data centers can produce environmental, economic, and public health effects. He noted Salem has limited industrial land and faces challenges with its water supply. “The utilization of large amounts of limited industrial land will irrevocably limit the availability of land for other industrial uses and economic development opportunities that may provide different community benefits,” his report said. He noted innovations of the kind that Verrus has been saying it would bring to Salem. “Newer designs and operational methods for AI data centers, such as closed-loop cooling and battery powered backup systems hold promise to mitigate some of the negative impacts,” he wrote. “However, there is limited information and data available regarding the extent that these technologies will reduce impacts under actual operating conditions.” He said a moratorium would have to be justified by establishing a lack of public services or  possible harm to the community. “In this case, a moratorium may be appropriate for either a lack of public facilities or based on a compelling need, or both,” he said. He said it could be based on water supply issues and the city’s assessment of infrastructure needs. PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Verrus surprised, disappointed by Kotek’s move to block sale of 32-acres of land at Mill Creek Corporate Center  Planning commission recommends council change code to make data centers conditional City manager calls special council meeting Monday to consider moratorium on data centers Proposed data center draws tremendous blowback at Monday night’s council meeting UPDATE AT 12:33 a.m.: Salem council votes to explore banning NDAs with data center companies Salem councilor pitches ban on NDAs, new task force around data center developments The post Data company advances Salem plan, replacing state land and beating moratorium appeared first on Salem Reporter. ...read more read less