CROMWELL, Conn. — The Cromwell Board of Education voted Tuesday to have its chair draft a public statement urging town officials to put student safety first as they weigh rules for data centers. The vote came after parents raised concerns about a possible data center near Cromwell Middle School.

The board's chair said the item was on the agenda because several residents had asked for the board's opinion, given how close the proposed site is to the middle school and the town's other schools. The chair stressed that the board has no vote on the project. Decisions belong to the Planning and Zoning Commission, which is scheduled to take up the issue at a public hearing Dec. 3.

Parents' concerns

Parent Elizabeth Galetta asked the board to support a moratorium on data centers and a resident's proposed zoning amendment. She said the amendment would set a required distance between data centers and schools.

Julie Berland, a parent and assistant research professor at UConn, said the potential site on Geer Street is about 500 feet from the Cromwell Middle School property line. She said data centers run around the clock and produce constant equipment noise, including low-frequency humming. She cited studies linking aircraft and environmental noise to lower reading and math performance in children.

Berland said the Acoustical Society of America recommends background noise of about 35 decibels in classrooms. She said noise levels measured outside data centers tend to run between 55 and 65 decibels, depending on distance and design. "Cromwell currently lacks sufficient stringent zoning regulations to address the potential impacts of these types of data centers," she said.

Nicole Ferrara, a mother of two, said she was worried about noise and possible health effects for students. "If we aren't 100% sure that this will not harm our children, I feel the answer should be no," she said.

Board weighs its role

Board members agreed that student safety was their priority but disagreed over how far the board should go. One member said they had not heard enough about how a developer might reduce the risks and was wary of misinformation on social media. That member suggested any statement simply ask decision-makers to keep student, family and staff safety as their top concern.

Another member said the board should not speak at the Planning and Zoning hearing. That member cited a development project that ended in litigation and a $1.4 million settlement for the town, and said the board's name should not be drawn into any future legal fight. The member said they were comfortable with a general written statement.

The board approved a motion authorizing the chair to draft a statement based on the discussion, with review by the board's lawyer. The statement would go to the public and to the relevant town boards.

Background

The developer, Global Common, hopes to build a data center on open land on Geer Street, WFSB reported. The mayor has said no formal proposal has been submitted. Current zoning allows a data center there by right, without a public hearing, according to the station.

The Planning and Zoning Commission voted 5-2 in September against a one-year moratorium on data centers and has since taken up a proposed six-month pause, NBC Connecticut reported. The developer has said the project could generate millions of dollars a year for the town and create up to 125 jobs, according to the station.