BRIGHTON, Colo. — Developers behind plans for a 2.5 million-square-foot data center campus in northeast Brighton withdrew their rezoning application Monday afternoon, according to city officials.
The proposed project included eight two-story data centers, each roughly 315,000 square feet, near County Road 4 and 50th Avenue. Residents first learned about the plans through open records requests, which uncovered documents detailing two meetings between the planning firm Dewberry and city officials in 2025.
WATCH: Plans for data center campus in Brighton halted after rezoning bid withdrawn
"I didn't purchase a home and, you know, really want to build a life to then have these things really come in and disrupt them," said Brighton resident Lisa Burin.
"It's a living building. It hums. It breathes energy. It breathes water," said Brighton resident Justin Bregenzer.
News of the proposal quickly spread among nearby residents, sparking backlash that drew the attention of Brighton City Council. On Tuesday night, council members gave initial approval to a one-year moratorium on new data centers, giving the city time to develop regulations governing data center zoning and land use.
"I want to make sure that if anybody applies to put a data center in the community, that there are strict rules for them to follow that protect the community, that protect our environment and protect our residents as we look at industrial developments in the community," said Mayor Pro Tem Peter Padilla.
Hundreds of residents packed the meeting, filling council chambers, overflowing into City Hall's lobby, and gathering outside the building. Many spoke during public comment in opposition to the proposed data center.
City council members did not tell attendees the data center application had been withdrawn until more than an hour into public comment, despite council members saying they learned of the developer's decision Tuesday afternoon. After the meeting resumed from a break, Brighton Mayor Pro Tem Peter Padilla announced the application had been pulled.
Kristen Chernosky, the city's director of communications, said the city has no indication that the developers plan to resubmit a new rezoning application for the project.
Denver7 reached out to two of the companies behind the proposal, Alberta Development Partners and Dewberry, to learn more about the decision to withdraw the rezoning application and whether they plan to resubmit another application. We are still waiting to hear back.
