No Desert No Data NV Seeks to Have Permit on Keystone Data Center Pulled Due to Deviations
In January 2025, we posted this photo of what 265 Keystone looked like then (without the overlaid photos and document) in an article about how City of Reno Planning Manager Mike Railey had written to Kimley-Horn and Associates granting a conditional use permit to develop the Ward 1 Keystone Data Center, with future overnight business operations.
More than 20 people at the time posted in opposition “with concerns ranging from increased energy and water consumption, a strain on Reno’s power grid, reduced quality of life for nearby residents and needing more clarity on local regulations concerning data centers, to counter a growing number of projects presenting as warehouses to become data centers," we wrote.
This was 18 months before the Reno City Council decided to vote for a moratorium on data centers within city limits.
Yesterday, a group called No Desert No Data NV, which includes Bree Kasper and Krista George forwarded us an email asking that the permit be pulled, alleging in the subject line that the project’s deviations from its original planning now exceed 10%, the threshold for an official review.
This is “grounds to have their permits revoked and construction immediately halted. Currently there are hundreds of community members emailing Planning Manager for the City of Reno, Mike Railey and cc'ing over 14 other City officials to hold them accountable for these deviations,” Kasper wrote to Our Town Reno.
Kasper says nearby residents “have been doing public records requests as well as deep diving into all the permits and research for weeks.”
One document titled Mechanical Design Change Permit Resubmission from February 13th by Burdette, Koehler, Murphy and Associates Kasper referred to in public comment earlier this month indicates “it was determined by THE OWNER to make a mechanical system design change that differs from the previously submitted permit documents,” then stating “we are switching to a closed-loop, chilled water cooling system for the data center whereas the previous design was refrigerant based and air cooled.”
“In the close loop system it’s not just water, it has glycol. Where does the glycol go when there is a need for maintenance discharges? Glycol is highly erosive and needs to be cleaned. The antifreeze in open or evaporative sections of the loop can evaporate over time in dry warm climates. Operators must regularly sample loop water typically from every 100 – 150 days to check concentration levels, PH, and depleted inhibitors. Which department is responsible for the regulation of this?” a document looking into “major deviation” territory asks.
Other bullet points that document raises include the power demand initially stated as 3MW now advertised as 12 MW, construction work starting earlier than the previously written out 7 a.m., with one morning in late May with work beginning as early as 4 a.m. according to neighbors, and other instances of early work noted in a letter to city staff.
The document also asks to see an updated soil test, and wonders why David Giacomin listed as a civil engineer for Kimley-Horn and Associates approving projects was appointed to the Reno City Planning Commission and then the Truckee Meadows Regional Planning Commission in May 2025.
“We want the planning department to pull the permit due to the deviations, which would be cleaner than any of the other options,” Kasper wrote in a follow up email to Our Town Reno.
“We are cc'ing the other 14 officials in hopes that either Mayor (Hillary) Schieve or the legal team will be able to assist moving this forward toward that end.”
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