REPORT TO PLANNING COMMISSION
SUBJECT
Title
Action on Conditional Use Permit to Install Four Additional Emergency Generators at the McLaren Data Center Located at 737 Mathew
Report
REPORT IN BRIEF
File No.: PLN23-00308
Project: Use Permit to install four additional emergency generators at an existing data center site.
Applicant: Vantage Data Centers
Owner: Vantage Data Centers
General Plan: Heavy Industrial
Zoning: Heavy Industrial (MH)
Site Area: 8.97 acres
Existing Site Conditions: The project site is built with three data center buildings (Buildings CA21, CA22, and CA23), a paved surface parking lot, and a Silicon Valley Power (SVP) substation.
Surrounding Land Uses
North: Industrial uses
East: Industrial uses
South: Industrial uses
West: Industrial uses
Issues: Consistency with the City’s General Plan and Zoning Ordinance
Staff Recommendation: Adopt a resolution approving the Use Permit to install four additional emergency generators and the addendum to the 2018 Initial Study/Mitigated Negative Declaration, subject to findings and conditions of approval.
BACKGROUND
On June 16, 2023, Jennifer Renk, attorney for Applicant Vantage Data Centers, filed an application requesting a Use Permit (File No. PLN23-00308) to install four additional emergency generators at the McLaren Data Center site.
The subject site is zoned Heavy Industrial (MH) and the General Plan land use designation is Heavy Industrial. The McLaren Data Center, also known as the Vantage Data Center facility, was approved at the February 6, 2019 Architectural Committee meeting. The previously approved project included demolition of the existing industrial warehouse, manufacturing, and office facilities, as well as associated surface parking to construct three data center buildings (Buildings CA21, CA22, and CA23), a paved surface parking lot, a total of 50 emergency generators and a Silicon Valley Power (SVP) substation.
As part of the discretionary approval, consistent with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), the McLaren Data Center Project Initial Study and Mitigated Negative Declaration (IS/MND) was approved by the California Energy Commission (CEC) on November 12, 2018.
Building CA21 was fully operational by November 1, 2019. Building CA22 was fully operational by February 1, 2022. The second thru fourth floors of Building CA23 have been constructed. The applicant proposes to install four additional emergency generators for the purpose of meeting the power back-up and redundancy requirements of Vantage Data Center’s current customer. The proposed changes to the facility include the installation of four additional emergency 2.75 megawatt generators at Building CA23, the installation of diesel-particulate-filter (DPF) and selective-catalytic-reduction (SCR) abatement devices on all of the emergency backup generators at Building CA23, and minor changes to the final stack locations for the emergency generators at Building CA22. The proposed changes do not require additional electrical demand from the existing substation and will not exceed the 100-megawatt California Energy Commission (CEC) threshold. These changes require a Use Permit consistent with Santa Clara City Code (SCCC) Section 18.60.050. This Use Permit application also includes an addendum to the IS/MND which evaluates the proposed changes to the project analyzed in the previously adopted IS/MND as required by CEQA.
DISCUSSION
Consistency with the General Plan
The General Plan designation for the project site is Heavy Industrial. This classification allows primary manufacturing, refining and similar activities. It also accommodates warehousing and distribution, as well as data centers. The proposed project would install four additional emergency generators to an existing data center facility and is consistent with the following General Plan Policies:
5.3.5‐P12: Promote development, such as manufacturing, auto services and data centers, in Light and Heavy Industrial classifications to compliment employment areas and retail uses.
5.3.5‐P13: Prohibit development on Heavy Industrial designated properties from exceeding the intensity or including uses beyond those defined in the land use classification.
The proposal is consistent with these policies in that the project is a minor addition of four emergency generators to support the existing primary use of the site as a data center.
Zoning Conformance
The zoning designation for the project site is Heavy Industrial (MH). This district is intended to encourage sound heavy industrial development in the City by providing and protecting an environment exclusively for such development, subject to regulations necessary to ensure the purity of the air and the waters in the bay area, and the protection of nearby uses of the land from hazards, noise, or other radiated disturbances. Subject to Section 18.60.050 of the SCCC, a Use Permit is required to allow installation of back-up generators (power source) for the production of electricity with a generating capacity of 500 kilowatts or more. The back-up generators are necessary to supply electricity for continued data center operations in the event of an electrical power outage.
Based on the existing customer needs, the project proposes to install four additional emergency generators that would be identical to the 17 emergency generators previously approved and installed for Building CA23. The four additional emergency generators would result in a total of 54 generators at the project site.
Per SCCC Chapter 18.110, the Planning Commission cannot grant a Use Permit without first making specific findings related to the effect of the project on the health, safety, peace, comfort, and general welfare, based upon substantial evidence in the record. These findings are included in the attached resolution.
Conclusion:
The minor changes proposed in this project would be compatible with adjacent land uses and maintains the industrial character of the area. The proposed changes to the project would not result in any substantial changes to other project features (e.g., site design, substation, site access, parking, security, landscaping, utilities, employee and
tenant/client population, sustainability features) or construction details. The project is therefore determined to be on balance consistent with the General Plan and zoning designation of the properties comprising the project.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
An IS/MND was adopted by the California Energy Commission (CEC) in 2018 to demolish the previous industrial buildings onsite to construct the data center complex. An Addendum to the approved IS/MND for the McLaren Data Center was prepared in accordance with the CEQA. The Air Quality Analysis prepared included an estimation of emissions and associated health risks from the addition of the four emergency generators and the reduction of operational hours from 50 hours down to 37 hours per generator. The proposed project described in the Addendum is consistent with the approved project and would not result in a new impact on the environment or significantly increase the severity of any previously identified impact.
FISCAL IMPACT
There is no impact to the City for processing the requested application other than administrative staff time and expense typically covered by processing fees paid by the applicant.
COORDINATION
This report has been coordinated with the City Attorney’s Office.
PUBLIC CONTACT
On November 22, 2023, a notice of public hearing on this item was posted in three conspicuous locations within 300 feet of the project site and mailed to property owners within 300 feet of the project site. At the time of this staff report, Planning staff has not received public comments in support or opposition to the proposed project.
RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation
1. Adopt a Resolution to adopt the Addendum to the 2018 Initial Study/Mitigated Negative Declaration for the McLaren Data Center; and
2. Adopt a Resolution to approve a Use Permit to install four additional emergency generators at the McLaren Data Center at 737 Mathew Street, subject to findings and conditions of approval
Staff
Prepared by: Tiffany Vien, Associate Planner
Reviewed by: Alexander Abbe, Assistant City Attorney
Approved by: Lesley Xavier, Planning Manager
ATTACHMENTS
1. Letter of Justification
2. Addendum to the Initial Study/Mitigated Negative Declaration
3. Resolution to Adopt the Addendum to the IS/MND
4. Resolution to Approve the Use Permit
5. Conditions of Use Permit Approval
6. Development Plans