Planning Board explores data center rules, hears pitch to rezone Copeland Drive for housing
Planning Board · Meeting of February 25, 2026
MANSFIELD — Planning Board weighed data center water demands and rejected a developer push for full residential zoning. Water Operations Manager Sean Precourt told the Board that closed-loop cooling systems use a few thousand gallons daily, while hybrid systems reach tens of thousands, and evaporative systems hundreds of thousands, with a reasonable threshold around 50,000 gallons per day. The Board voted unanimously to adjourn after discussions on a data center bylaw scheduled for public hearings March 11 and 25.
Bob Barry and Jeff Vigeant sought to convert 162 and 172 Copeland Drive from mixed-use B4 zoning to multifamily residential, citing excessive parking mandates, but Director Sarah Raposa and Board members pushed back, with the Board considering a special permit provision for multifamily use in B4 on a case-by-case basis rather than rezoning the district.
In the full story:
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Source: the Planning Board meeting of February 25, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.
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