The city of Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, could be home to a new data center development, officials have said.

On April 21, the city was notified of interest in a development project on 51 acres located between the Creek Turnpike and State Highway 51.

The developer requested a pre-development meeting regarding the potential project, which city officials said are used to allow the developer to learn more about the city’s zoning, development standards, and building regulations. The developer was not identified.

In a press release, officials stressed that the pre-development meeting is not meant for the developer to obtain approval on the project, and “no approval of any part of a potential project is authorized” during such a meeting.

“It is very early in the process, so we don’t have a lot of details just yet,” said city manager Michael Spurgeon.

"However, we do recognize the significant interest in data centers and the concerns citizens have about the potential impacts related to noise pollution, utility usages including water and electricity, and the environment.”

“I assure Broken Arrow residents that as soon as we learn details, we will share them accordingly. Furthermore, and I want to be perfectly clear on this matter, no City Councilor, myself, or members of my staff have been asked to sign a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) about this potential project, and we will not sign an NDA.”

In an interview with local broadcaster KRMG on May 7, Spurgeon was asked for an update on the development, but stressed that there were currently no further details.

He said earlier communications to the public were an attempt by officials to get ahead of the news, considering the “controversy that citizens have and what we’ve seen happen in other communities.”

“I’ve assured the community as well as the governing body that whatever we know the public is going to know … We’re beginning to process, doing due diligence, developing areas that we need to investigate, questions we need to ask, as a part of a thorough comprehensive review of this,” Spurgeon said, “that way, when they come forward with the pre-development meeting, which they said could be in the next four to eight weeks, when we do meet we will have had some preliminary conversations.”

Spurgeon said officials would look to update the public every two to three weeks, even if there is no new information, to ensure maximum transparency.