Plano, TX Data Centers & Crypto Mining: Data Center Zoning & Siting (2026)

Article 8 of the Plano Zoning Ordinance defines a Data Center at Sec. 8.200 as a facility whose primary service is data processing and that houses computer systems and associated components such as telecommunications and storage systems, folding server farms, telecom hotels, carrier hotels, telco hotels and telehouse co-location centers into the same definition when data processing is the site's primary use (ZC2010-05; Ord. No. 2010-10-15).

Sec. 14.200's Nonresidential Districts Use Table lists Data Center under the "Service" use category, with the row carrying a mix of "P" (permitted by right) and "S" (specific use permit required) designations across the city's nonresidential zoning districts, meaning where a data center can locate, and whether it needs a City Council-approved SUP first, depends on the specific district rather than being uniform citywide. The companion Sec. 14.100 Residential Districts Use Table carries no permission symbol for Data Center in any residential district, from Agricultural and Estate Development through the Multifamily and Mobile Home categories, so the use is not allowed on residentially zoned land in Plano at all.

Once sited in an eligible nonresidential district, Sec. 16.700's Off-Street Parking Schedule sets the minimum parking ratio for a Data Center at one space for each 1,000 square feet of floor area, a notably lighter ratio than typical office or retail parking, reflecting the low on-site staffing of server-hall space. The zoning ordinance carries no separate energy, water-use or noise standard written specifically for data centers; those facilities are otherwise subject to the general performance standards in Article 24 that apply to every nonresidential use citywide, and no crypto-mining or data-center moratorium appears anywhere in the ordinance.