Iron County officials are preparing to discuss a proposed ordinance that would grant county commissioners increased control over the approval of large industrial projects, including data centers and power generation facilities, by moving them from a conditional-use permit process to a legislative zoning process.
Proposed Strategic Development Zone
The Iron County Planning Commission is scheduled to review a draft of the proposed ordinance during its Sept. 3 meeting. This meeting is intended for discussion only, and officials do not plan to hold a public hearing or a vote during that session. According to St. George News, the meeting is open to the public.
Under the current system, the planning commission generally must approve a project through a conditional-use permit if the application complies with existing county ordinances and if its potential impacts can be mitigated through reasonable conditions. The new ordinance would create a Strategic Development Zone specifically for projects deemed large, complex, or regionally significant.
Increased Commission Discretion
The proposed Strategic Development Zone would target several types of developments that require extensive infrastructure or create impacts that extend beyond their immediate location. This includes data centers, power generation facilities, battery storage systems, and industrial campuses.
Iron County Planner and Services Coordinator Brett Hamilton stated that the new framework would provide commissioners with greater discretion. He noted that the legislative nature of the decision would allow the county to make choices based on whether a project provides a greater benefit to the community versus projects that may not be beneficial.
Impact of Project Antelope
The push for new regulations follows significant public debate regarding Project Antelope, a proposed data center campus located west of Cedar City. The Iron County Planning Commission approved a conditional-use permit for the project on June 4, 2026, after determining it met the requirements of the ordinance in effect at that time.
Project Antelope is a massive development that, at full build out, could include five data center buildings totaling as much as 6.75 million square feet. The project also includes an on-site natural gas power plant with the capacity to generate up to 1.5 gigawatts of power.
Public Debate and Moratorium
The review of Project Antelope involved months of public debate concerning several environmental and community concerns, including water usage, power generation, air emissions, noise, traffic, wildlife, and the long-term effects of large-scale industrial development in rural areas. During the June 4, 2026, meeting, numerous attendees gathered to protest the project, with some holding up paper plates that read "appeal."
In response to the growing number of industrial applications, the Iron County Commission had previously adopted a 180-day moratorium on new data center applications to allow officials to review county regulations. However, Project Antelope was not subject to that moratorium because its application had already been deemed complete before the moratorium was enacted.
Next Steps in Regulation
The planning process for the new ordinance will involve multiple stages of public engagement. Following the Sept. 3 discussion, county staff intends to seek further public input throughout September.
A formal public hearing is scheduled for the Planning Commission's Oct. 8 meeting. Any recommendations resulting from that process would then be moved to the Iron County Commission for final consideration.
Regulatory Thresholds
The draft ordinance establishes specific thresholds that would trigger a Strategic Development Zone review. These thresholds include factors such as a project's total acreage and its total square footage.
