The Rockwood City Council approved new ordinances during its meeting to regulate data centers in the city, including one defining what qualifies as a data center and another (on first reading) restricting them to M-1 light industrial zoning districts. City officials, including Jason Jolly, noted that no companies have yet approached the city about building a data center, but the regulations were put in place proactively in case of future interest.

The council also gave first-reading approval to the upcoming city budget, which maintains the current property tax rate of 62.75 cents per $100 of assessed value with no increase. The spending plan includes a three percent pay raise for city employees and a $1,000 Christmas bonus for full-time workers, while remaining largely unchanged from the prior year with no major new capital projects. Officials indicated the city may pursue additional street paving using about $500,000 in available state street aid funds.

Other approvals included a new mower for the golf course, two new Dodge Durango vehicles for the police department (already accounted for in last year’s budget), and the master plan plus updated emergency plan for the ongoing Rockwood Municipal Airport renovations. The meeting was held a week early due to the Memorial Day holiday, with a replay scheduled for next Monday evening.