Midwest City leaders are moving to put data center zoning rules on the books before a single developer has come knocking. The proposed ordinance would require special use permits, limit the facilities to the city's industrial districts, and force any future project to stay between 500 and 1,000 feet away from homes depending on size.
According to KOCO, no developers have actually approached Midwest City about building a data center there. City Manager Tim Lyon and other leaders are instead getting ahead of the trend, drafting rules retroactively so the framework is ready before any application lands. Under the proposal, data centers of 100,000 square feet or larger would need to sit at least 1,000 feet from residential property, while smaller facilities under that threshold would need at least a 500-foot buffer.
The ordinance would also add an extra layer of public review beyond standard permitting, giving residents a formal chance to weigh in before a project moves forward. Under the proposal, data centers would require a special use permit, rather than being built without one under the current rule.
Disclosures Cover Power, Water and Noise
The proposed rules would force developers to lay their cards on the table early. Per KOCO's reporting, applicants would have to disclose electricity demand, whether a new substation would be required, daily and annual water consumption, wastewater output, chemicals used in water treatment, and the presence of backup generators.
Noise is baked into the ordinance too. Developers would need to conduct sound studies both before and after construction, and the rules would cap how much noise can reach the property line. Mechanical equipment and substations would have to be screened from neighboring properties and roads. The proposed rules would also include limits on noise.
Why Cities Are Getting Ahead of the Boom
Midwest City's proactive approach follows a wave of state and regional action aimed at reining in the costs of Oklahoma's data center boom before they land on residents. Governor Kevin Stitt signed House Bill 2992 in May, the Data Center Consumer Ratepayer Protection Act, which took effect July 1 and requires large-scale energy users to pay separate tariffs and cover the full cost of grid upgrades so residential electricity rates don't rise to subsidize them, according to KGOU. That same reporting says Public Service Company of Oklahoma filed a large-load tariff, while OG&E planned to submit one in the coming weeks. The reporting also discusses separate terms and conditions for major data facilities.
Water has drawn similar scrutiny. Stitt also signed Senate Bill 259, which mandates that data centers use closed-loop cooling systems to qualify for commercial groundwater permits from the Oklahoma Water Resources Board, per the Oklahoma Farm Bureau. Those statewide restrictions help explain why Midwest City's draft ordinance zeroes in on daily and annual water consumption figures rather than leaving those numbers undisclosed.
Neighboring Cities Chose Outright Pauses
Midwest City's structured permitting approach stands apart from how several of its neighbors have handled the same pressure. Oklahoma City's council unanimously approved an emergency moratorium in April, halting new data center applications and rezoning requests through the end of 2026 to study water, power, and land-use impacts. That city later amended the pause in a 7-2 vote to exempt facilities with electrical loads of 75 megawatts or less after tech industry workers pushed back against a blanket ban.
The pattern has repeated across central Oklahoma. Edmond approved its own six-month moratorium in June, and Shawnee commissioners voted 7-0 in August to freeze new data center applications through 2027, as Hoodline previously reported. Midwest City is instead trying to write zoning guardrails, betting that clear rules on setbacks, noise, and disclosures will do the job a moratorium would otherwise handle.
What Comes Next
The proposed ordinance still needs approval from the Midwest City Council before it can take effect. The council is expected to consider the regulations on September 22. Midwest City, located in Oklahoma County directly east of Oklahoma City, spans 24.4 square miles and had a 2020 census population of 58,409, making it the state's eighth-largest city, according to the U.S. Census Bureau — a footprint that makes the 500-to-1,000-foot residential buffers a meaningful constraint on where any future project could even go.
Even with no developer currently in the picture, the disclosure requirements dovetail with the state's tax landscape for the industry. Oklahoma lawmakers repealed the state's five-year property tax exemption for data centers back in 2021 through Senate Bill 609, according to the Oklahoma State Senate.
