Aurora, West Chicago compare notes on success of data center moratoriums

After recently approving a moratorium on new data centers and battery storage facilities, West Chicago officials compared notes with Aurora Mayor John Laesch, whose own city council approved a 180-day moratorium on data centers a year ago.

West Chicago Mayor Daniel Bovey said the goal of his city’s July 20 moratorium is not to rule out future data centers in the community. One has been operating for 20 years in West Chicago’s DuPage Business Center while another is under construction on West Washington Street.

The moratorium was passed to gain public feedback, gather information, learn best practices, and modify city ordinances affecting data centers, according to officials.

During a special city council meeting on Monday, Aug. 10, Bovey said the city has received an “explosion” of inquiries about more data centers.

Aurora, which has five centers, didn’t have proper zoning restrictions before it passed its moratorium on Sept. 25, 2025. That expired in March, accompanied by a package of four new ordinances to guide the city’s development.

“We knew the system for processing (data centers and warehouses) was not working,” Laesch told about 50 residents gathered at the West Chicago City Hall.

The ordinance package, he said, “allows us to better define and control what comes in from a city’s perspective.”

During Aurora’s moratorium, survey respondents said their top concerns about such new construction projects were increased utility bills, water consumption and quality, high energy use, air pollution and quality, and noise.

One respondent said the electric bill for their townhouse went from $125 in August 2025 to $750 in September.

Laesch said during a conversation with a ComEd official, he asked why, when power consumption is expected to increase, the company wouldn’t examine sustainable energy practices. Laesch said the official told him it’s easier to maintain existing facilities and rely on rate increases.

The ordinances passed by the Aurora City Council addressed performance standards for new data centers, renewable and resilient grid requirements, and transparency — both in the public process and in the data centers’ operations. They also included biometric data privacy safeguards.

Looking at the 23 questions submitted by West Chicago residents at the meeting, Bovey said about half “clearly do not want data centers.”

Data centers do create construction and temporary jobs, Laesch said, and Aurora’s existing facilities paid more than $1.9 million in property taxes in 2024.

“It really comes down to revenue,” Laesch said.

A brief, basic survey about data centers is available on West Chicago’s city website through Aug. 26.

“This is not going to be the last conversation that we’re going to have, by any means,” Bovey said.