Salem's proposed $5 billion data center is still alive, but the city is now building guardrails it didn't have two weeks ago.

The Salem City Council voted 8-0 on Monday night, July 27, continuing into the early hours of Tuesday, July 28, to direct staff to explore restricting future nondisclosure agreements with data center developers and to create a task force charged with recommending data center policies by the end of the year. Councilor Irvin Brown was absent.

The votes did not approve, deny, or pause Verrus's proposed Oakline at Mill Creek campus. The agenda item was an informational report, not a land-use hearing.

No moratorium was imposed.

That means the company could still submit a formal development application at any time.

Verrus walked out

Verrus representatives had been scheduled to answer council questions but left the meeting before the presentation. City staff said the company's representatives departed because they did not feel safe after repeated audience outbursts, according to Salem Business Journal.

The crowd was large enough that the city had to accommodate overflow attendees in the library's basement.

Developer Aaron Stickney, co-founder of SilverSphere Capital and the developer behind The Cannery riverfront project, spoke in favor of allowing a data center if strict conditions are met.

Audience members booed him, and someone threw a piece of paper toward him. The presiding officer warned the crowd against disruptive behavior.

What the council actually did

Councilor Micki Varney introduced the NDA motion, directing staff to explore options for prohibiting the city from entering nondisclosure agreements with data center developers.

"Our community learned about a potential data center at Mill Creek Corporate Center only after a non-disclosure agreement signed 16 months earlier was lifted," Varney said at the July 27 meeting. "That was a violation of public trust."

Varney emphasized the vote does not immediately change policy. Staff must study legal options and return to the council.

The second motion created a task force of up to nine members, including councilors, three residents, union representatives, and at least one workforce-development representative.

The group must hold at least three public town halls and deliver recommendations by December 31.

During discussion, Councilor Paul Tigan floated the idea of a public register for active NDAs the city holds.

Why it matters for residents

Data centers have been an allowed use in Salem's Employment Center zone since 2014. Verrus does not need a zone change. City Attorney Dan Atchison told councilors that Oregon's "goalpost rule" generally requires a development application to be reviewed under the regulations in effect when it is submitted.

New task force policies would not automatically apply to an application Verrus files before those policies are adopted.

The city signed its NDA with Verrus in March 2025. Salem was released from the agreement on Wednesday, July 8, 2026. City Manager Krishna Namburi publicly disclosed the proposal at the Monday, July 13, council meeting.

Verrus is exploring a three-building campus and electrical substation on roughly 75 acres near Turner Road SE and Deer Park Drive SE. The company projects an investment exceeding $5 billion and approximately 75 permanent jobs.

It has already received a standard three-year enterprise-zone property-tax exemption from Marion County, submitted May 27, without a council vote.

As of July 28, the city has not received a complete site plan, final water projections, wastewater estimates, electricity requirements, transportation analysis, noise study, or generator operating plan from Verrus.

What comes next

Once Verrus submits a formal development application, nearby property owners and neighborhood associations would receive notice. The public would have 14 days to submit written comments and 15 days to appeal the city's decision. A public hearing before Salem's hearings officer is expected.

No date has been announced for when the task force will be formally seated or when staff will return with NDA study results.

Residents can monitor upcoming council agendas on the City of Salem's website.