Maine towns are passing moratoriums on data centers. Why hasn’t South Portland?

 A worker from Twin Metal Roofing works with a crew to replace the roof on a lineside building at Rigby Yard in South Portland in 2022. (Derek Davis/Staff Photographer) South Portland hasn’t passed a temporary data center moratorium, unlike many of its neighbors. City staff determined that an explicit policy isn’t necessary at this time, and none of the city councilors have proposed a workshop discussion on [data centers](https://www.ibm.com/think/topics/data-centers), according to City Manager Scott Morelli.  The city hasn’t received any formal applications for a facility that houses computers to store data or run online applications and services, including artificial intelligence.  When Gov. Janet Mills vetoed a bill to temporarily ban data center development statewide in April, a few municipalities, including [Westbrook](https://www.pressherald.com/2026/06/01/westbrook-city-council-approves-180-day-data-center-moratorium/), [Scarborough](https://www.pressherald.com/2026/06/03/scarborough-town-council-imposes-data-center-moratorium/), [Sanford](https://www.pressherald.com/2026/05/19/sanford-imposes-emergency-data-center-moratorium-halting-mousam-river-project/), [Brunswick](https://www.pressherald.com/2026/06/01/brunswick-passes-data-center-moratorium/) and [Gorham](https://www.pressherald.com/2026/06/04/gorham-approves-data-center-moratorium/), passed their own temporary moratoriums in the weeks and months since. The towns plan to use the time to review local ordinances and develop regulations. Related [Mills vetoed a data center pause. Now Maine towns are passing their own.](https://www.pressherald.com/2026/05/18/mills-vetoed-a-data-center-pause-towns-are-looking-to-pass-their-own/) In some of these towns, like Scarborough and Sanford, data center proposals were already in the works when city leadership considered a moratorium. In others, like Westbrook and Brunswick, elected officials hope to get ahead of the curve.  Many of these towns have been inspired by each other, and some have even used similar language in their moratoriums. Brunswick officials saw Westbrook’s draft as they considered their own, according to Deb Young, Brunswick’s administration and communications director.  Advertisement South Portland staff have been paying attention to what its neighbors are doing.  But the city hasn’t taken specific action pm data centers, for a number of reasons, according to Planning Director Milan Nevajda.  **There**‘s no space.   The fourth largest city in the state has been mostly built out, Nevajda said.  “Just looking at a map of this city, where would it go?” he said.  He’s received a few calls this year from permitting agencies on behalf of data center hopefuls, and they’ve typically been looking for parcels of land between 60 to 200 acres for these facilities.  “We just don’t really have that readily available,” Nevajda said. The larger parcels of land in the city are not necessarily zoned for industrial use and located far from infrastructure connections. “We’re not an obvious choice,” he said.  Advertisement Only two properties came to mind as large enough to fit a data center— the old [Sable Oaks Golf Course](https://www.pressherald.com/2025/09/19/former-sable-oaks-golf-course-is-on-the-market/) and the land by the Rigby Yard— but they each have their own constraints, according to Nevajda. The nearly 150-acre golf course is currently zoned for more residential development, and in the recently adopted [comprehensive plan](http://google.com/search?q=south+portland+comprehensive+plan+press+herald&sca_esv=8ca67e5d7398939f&rlz=1C1RXQR_enUS1202US1202&sxsrf=APpeQntUDFgSWqBGOlQH07WHN6Bwgfo-Rw%3A1782752772723&ei=BKZCatqPK-PsptQPhvGG-Ag&biw=1382&bih=672&ved=0ahUKEwjaofXN96yVAxVjtokEHYa4AY8Q4dUDCBI&uact=5&oq=south+portland+comprehensive+plan+press+herald&gs_lp=Egxnd3Mtd2l6LXNlcnAiLnNvdXRoIHBvcnRsYW5kIGNvbXByZWhlbnNpdmUgcGxhbiBwcmVzcyBoZXJhbGQyBRAhGKABMgUQIRigATIFECEYqwJIhQ9Q2wJYuA5wAXgBkAEAmAGKAaABvguqAQQwLjEyuAEDyAEA-AEBmAINoAL5C8ICChAAGEcY1gQYsAPCAgUQABiABMICBhAAGBYYHsICCBAAGIAEGKIEmAMAiAYBkAYIkgcEMS4xMqAH8TuyBwQwLjEyuAfzC8IHBTEuOS4zyAcfgAgB&sclient=gws-wiz-serp), it’s listed as a location where the city could increase its housing stock.   The land by the Rigby Yard contains wetlands and other natural resources that could present additional development costs and challenges, he said.  **The city already has protections in place.** Opponents to data centers note that they are notorious for using massive quantities of [water](https://www.eesi.org/articles/view/data-centers-and-water-consumption) and requiring significant power to operate. They could consume more than one-ninth of the nation’s total electricity usage by 2028, according to the [U.S. Department of Energy](https://www.energy.gov/articles/doe-releases-new-report-evaluating-increase-electricity-demand-data-centers). Nevajda said that the city has protective water and utility standards that every applicant must comply with before a project is sent to the planning board for review.  “It’s not going to be easy for a data center to just plop in here,” Nevajda said.   Advertisement There are a few standards associated with water usage, including that a development must have sufficient water available for its needs and not cause a burden on the existing supply. An applicant would need to demonstrate that its water usage won’t diminish Sebago Lake, the city’s water source, and these claims would be reviewed by the Portland Water District. “With a new, undefined, unknown and unpredictable amount of water demand, we can’t just make any assumption,” Nevajda said. “It’s pretty tight and tough for a project that comes in,” he said.  The applicant would also need to prove that an already constrained electrical grid could handle the increased load without compromising the rest of the system.  “For very large energy hogs like data centers to be placed in there, I think there’s probably some very significant infrastructure needs that Central Maine Power would impose,” he said.  Advertisement If the existing infrastructure couldn’t cover the utility needs, the applicant would possibly have to construct an electrical substation, at its own expense. The city has zoning restrictions on where those can be built — primarily in industrial areas.  **The planning board would be a stopgap.** Any applications for a data center would have to go through the site review process with the planning board, which would require a public hearing.  “In the general public sense, there’s this feeling that these big tech companies have infinite dollars to spend, and they’ll just sort of lawyer their way through the process and get these approvals,” Nevajda said. “In Maine, there is really strong deference to the Planning Board as the ultimate interpreter.”  Where the burden of proof rests on the applicant to demonstrate they’re compliant, Nevajda said, the planning board can ultimately decide if a proposed project adheres to the city’s regulations. Copy the Story Link Tagged: [data center](https://www.pressherald.com/tag/data-center/), [infrastructure](https://www.pressherald.com/tag/infrastructure/) [](https://www.pressherald.com/author/dana-richie) [Dana RichieStaff Writer](https://www.pressherald.com/author/dana-richie) Dana Richie is a community reporter covering South Portland and Cape Elizabeth. Originally from Atlanta, she fell in love with the landscape and quirks of coastal New England while completing her undergraduate. [More by Dana Richie](https://www.pressherald.com/author/dana-richie)