Editor’s note: An earlier version of this story indicated Raeden is a contracted Colorado Springs Utilities customer. The company has not yet signed an agreement with Utilities and is still a prospective customer.

Multiple appeals challenging the administrative approval of Project Taurus, an AI data center planned in the commercial corridor along Garden of the Gods Road, were filed ahead of the 5 p.m. Monday deadline, according to city officials.

The development plan for the project was administratively approved by the city’s planning staff June 11, likely the first step in a monthslong process to determine if it will receive final approval from city leaders.

Raeden, a California-based company, is planning to build the data center at the former site of an Intel chip-manufacturing facility at 1615 Garden of the Gods Road, west of Centennial Boulevard. Over the last two months residents have raised concerns about the proposed facility’s noise and how much demand a larger data center will have on Colorado Springs Utilities’ power and water supply.

The most detailed challenge Monday was a 200-page appeal, filed by Ron Graham-Becker, Kate Kent and Kat Gayle from the nonprofit government transparency group Integrity Matters. They allege the city violated its own unified development code by allowing a major modification of a development plan be administratively approved.

They also argue that the design for the data center would allow it to use up to 100 megawatts of electricity, twice as much power as city staff used in their evaluation of the data center. In total, the appeal identifies seven reasons for the decision to be reversed.

“The decision is contrary to the express language of the (unified development code)… The decision is erroneous… The decision is clearly contrary to law,” the appeal stated. “In summary, the approval was rendered by the wrong decision-making body using the wrong procedure.”

City spokesman Max D’Onofrio said the city received four additional appeals as of 5 p.m. Monday. D’Onofrio said planning staff would confirm the standing of all appeals. 

News in March of the proposed data center drove considerable consternation among residents in the nearby Chelsea Glen neighborhood, including Graham-Becker and Kent, some of whom live within 1,000 feet of the proposed data center. They’re worried about noise, power and water uses. 

Two town hall-style meetings were also contentious.

The appeal connected to Integrity Matters lists 25 other residents of the Chelsea Glen neighborhood as members of the appeal along with 33 “supporting community members” who do not have standing. 

Neighbors in the area previously complained with the noise generated by 3G Ventures II, which ran a cryptocurrency mining operation out of the building. 

3G Ventures II erected a wall of shipping containers in an effort to reduce the noise, but it had a minimal impact, Graham-Becker said. 

The Historic Neighborhood Partnership submitted a letter of support on behalf of the appeal. In the letter, Partnership chair Dianne Bridges said the city should not allow Project Taurus to move ahead without third-party vetting of Raeden’s claims and limiting conditions for the use of the site.

“The City should not approve first and study later. For a project of this magnitude, independent verification and adopted standards must come first,” Bridges wrote in the letter.

Some of the specific standards suggested by Bridges in the letter included standards for noise and vibration from the data center, the extent to which diesel generators will be used and how the project will impact Colorado Springs Utilities.

Raeden is still a prospective customer with Utilities and has not signed any contracts. If it does become a Utilities customer, Raeden would enter into a contract and be served under the large-load rate, which Utilities requires for users consuming more than 10 MW.

The large-load rate agreement requires customers that use a large amount of power to pay for the related infrastructure and transmission costs.

The proposal will appear before the planning commission sometime in July, The Gazette previously reported. If multiple appeals prove to have standing, D’Onofrio said the planning commission would have to vote on each one individually unless the appellants choose to combine them.

The commission will approve or deny the appeal, which could then trigger another appeal, sending the project to the City Council for a final decision in August at the absolute earliest.

As the City Council may be required to act in a quasi-judicial manner, members have not commented on Project Taurus. 

Supporters of the data center say it is a critical piece of infrastructure the city will need in order to maintain its attractiveness as a business and military hub. Former Mayor John Suthers said in early May the data center may prime the city for rapid job growth in other sectors, keying in on the city’s strong connection to the aerospace and defense industries. 

The sentiment was also echoed by retired Gen. John Hyten, the chairman of the board of the Space Foundation and former vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. As the military increasingly embraces artificial intelligence and launches ever more satellites into space, it will need places to process and store heaps of data. 

“I want Colorado to continue to be the centerpiece for space operations for our United States military. I believe that we ought to do it responsibly and right, but we need that capability in Colorado,” he told The Gazette in May. 

Still, residents aren’t convinced. Jon Tulien previously said he doesn’t think the former Intel facility is the right place even though he recognizes the need for AI and data centers alike. 

He takes issue with what he sees as the city failing its residents, sentiments shared by Graham-Becker as well. 

Tulien said he’d grade city staff with an “‘F’ in their attitude and effort to address the concerns of citizens when they see a possible economic benefit.” 

“In my opinion, they need to step up and uphold their most fundamental role of being a public servant which is to protect the public health, safety and welfare of the people of Colorado Springs,” he said.