Right now, the city of Ames, Iowa is weighing a proposal to build a major data center on public airport land — and there is no law on the books to govern it.

LightEdge, a Des Moines-based company, is asking the city to lease 10.86 acres of airport property for a co-location data center that could eventually demand 25 megawatts of electricity — potentially requiring a dedicated substation costing up to $12 million. The Ames City Council is expected to make a decision as soon as July.

But here's the problem: Ames has no zoning definition for data centers. No regulatory framework. No community standards that spell out what these facilities must do, what they can demand from the city's power grid, or what happens if the promises made today don't hold up tomorrow. As one community member put it, "There's no actual regulation that's been imposed through the democratic process of our elected officials."

We're asking the Ames City Council to do one thing before casting any vote on the LightEdge proposal: establish a clear, publicly debated regulatory framework for data centers in Ames. That means zoning definitions, utility impact standards, and binding agreements — written and approved through the democratic process — before any lease is signed or project approved.

The city has a listening session scheduled for June 30. That's the moment to make the ask clear: rules first, decisions second.

Sign this petition to urge the Ames City Council to pause the LightEdge approval process until a proper regulatory framework is in place.