On Monday evening, November 27, the city of Baldwin faced a crucial decision as officials gathered to address the second reading of a special use ordinance crucial to the construction plans of Precision Digital’s high-performance data center.
A motion was called to approve the second reading of the special use ordinance by Mayor Stephanie Almagno. The approval is a key step for Precision Digital to proceed with its data center project. Council member Alice Venter proposed the motion, seconded by Council member Erik Keith. However, the vote faced a setback when Council member Theron Ayers dissented, resulting in a 2-1 vote. Council member Maarten Venter was absent from the meeting.
The vote failed
The vote failed because it did not meet the city charter’s requirement of three affirmative votes for the approval of a special use ordinance, clarified by Chief Administrative Officer Emily Woodmaster.
Council Members were uncertain as to the next steps in the aftermath of the vote. Mayor Almagno engaged in a discussion with Council member Ayers, seeking a resolution. Woodmaster suggested that the special use ordinance could be moved to another meeting.
Almagno, in an effort to address concerns and allow for further deliberation, proposed tabling the item.
Almagno sought a motion to table the adoption of the special use ordinance, and Council member Venter made the motion, with Keith seconding it. The motion to table the matter was approved unanimously with a 3-0 vote.
Ayers previously approved
This development followed the first reading of the special use ordinance at the October 23 meeting, where Council member Ayers had previously moved to approve the ordinance, receiving unanimous support from the council.
According to Woodmaster, the initial plan was to hold the second reading and adoption of the ordinance on November 13. However, procedural requirements were not met, specifically the posting of the property with a sign for the required time indicating the zoning change. As a result, the consideration of the special use ordinance was rescheduled for the November 27 meeting.
Ordinance tabled
As of now, a new meeting date for the second reading and adoption of the special use ordinance has not been announced, leaving the fate of Precision Digital’s data center project in temporary limbo.
