The data center fight in Minnehaha County, South Dakota
As of September 27, 2026, Minnehaha County, South Dakota has a tracked data center action (action taken Aug 24, 2026).
Status is derived, not stored — a pause with a documented end date flips to Expired on its own — and the source is right next to the claim.
Status today
Planning Commission reviewed draft data center ordinance that would outright prohibit hyperscale facilities (500,000+ sq ft); smaller data centers allowed only in commercial/industrial zones with half-mile dwelling setback. Draft sent back for revision; final approval likely months away
SourceNews
read 2026-09-07
An expiry date is the earliest a pause could have ended — extensions are common, so confirm with the clerk before citing it.
The project on the table
Gemini Sioux Falls Technology Park — Approved
Operator: Gemini Data Center SD LLC · Size: 500 MW · Acres: 164
500MW hyperscale campus on 164 acres next to Xcel's Split Rock Substation; received unanimous rezoning approval from Sioux Falls City Council on January 6, 2026.
Next: Approved — pivot from stopping it to a binding CBA: enforceable caps on noise, water and cost, plus a community benefit.
Latest in the record
- 2026-03-30 — Governor signed SB 135, the Data Center Bill of Rights, into law — statewide cost-protection rules for large data center power demands (10 MW+) applicable to the Gemini project eventual Xcel service agreement. · source
- 2026-03-05 — SD House passed SB 135 60-7 with amendment applying the law to data centers with 10 MW or greater peak electrical use, requiring those projects to cover power-demand costs. · source
- 2026-03-02 — Gemini launched a public website for the Sioux Falls Technology Park describing Gemini Family Office role in land ownership, planning, permitting, and coordination. · source
- 2026-02-20 — SD Senate passed SB 135 34-0 after striking language that would have banned state/local tax exemptions for data centers. · source
- 2026-02-19 — A1 Development Solutions (Gemini local consulting firm) sued its own project representative Kyle Peters (Gov. Noem son-in-law) alleging he covertly diverted the data-center client and others while still under contract. · source
- 2026-02-18 — SD Senate committee advanced SB 135, the Data Center Bill of Rights for Citizens, requiring large data centers to cover costs tied to meeting their power demands including exit costs if a project falls through. · source
Full dated timeline on the project tracker.
What to do next
- Questions to ask at the hearing — force specific answers onto the record.
- Estimate the impact — electricity, water, and rate pressure for any facility size in South Dakota.
- Model CBA clauses — copy-paste language communities have actually won.
- South Dakota briefing — rates, grid carbon, PUC contacts, and every fight in the state.
Nearby in South Dakota
- Lincoln County (17 mi) — Defeatedterm not documented
- Yankton County (62 mi) — Enactedexpires 2027-01-21
All 3 tracked actions in South Dakota are on the state page.
As of August 2026 · changes weekly — re-check before citing
Illustrative rather than exhaustive — dozens of localities churn weekly, and this tracks the ones we have read a source for. **Each row carries its own provenance.** Rows showing a verification date link to the ordinance, the enacting body's own page, or a datable report of the vote, and were read on that date. Rows marked *unverified* came from bulk compilation and have not been checked against a primary source — the locality, the year, and the status may all be off. Verify one of those with the town clerk before citing it as precedent. **Expiry is derived, not asserted.** A row with a documented end date flips to *Expired* on its own once that date passes. A time-limited moratorium whose start date was never documented keeps showing as enacted — that is a known gap, not a claim that it is still in force. Moratoriums are also routinely extended, so an expiry date is the earliest it could have ended, not proof that it did.
Part of the U.S. data center moratorium tracker — open data, CC BY 4.0.