Town of Smithfield, Rhode Island

Smithfield: zoning amendment listing data centers as not permitted

Permanent restriction or prohibition · Smithfield only (local rule)

In effect This instrument is recorded as currently in effect as of the dataset date.

Scope

An amendment to the Town of Smithfield Zoning Ordinance (Article 2, Definitions, and Article 4, Section 4.3, Table of Uses) that defines data centers as a land use and lists data centers as not permitted in all of the town's zoning districts. The Town Council minutes of 5 May 2026 record the Town Planner's statement that the ordinance before the Council did not include the two-year review provision of the earlier draft, and a 4 to 1 roll-call vote to adopt the ordinance as submitted by the Town Planner. The drafts in the Council packet state that the ordinance takes effect 30 days after passage. The rule applies only within the Town of Smithfield.

Geographic scope
Town of Smithfield, Rhode Island
Jurisdiction
Local
Authority type
Local government
Issuing authority
Smithfield Town Council

Dates

Adopted
5 May 2026
Effective
Effective date not stated in the source
Scheduled expiration
None scheduled
Ended
Not recorded as ended
Completion condition
None stated
Source document
5 May 2026
Last checked
23 September 2026 (earlier than tracker date 5 October 2026; not an automatic status change)

Summary

On 5 May 2026 the Smithfield (Rhode Island) Town Council voted 4 to 1 to adopt a zoning amendment that defines data centers and lists them as not permitted in every zoning district in the town. The town planning staff described the amendment as stating expressly a status the use already had, because unlisted uses are not permitted under the existing ordinance. The adopted version omits the earlier draft's two-year review provision. This is a local zoning rule, not a statewide measure.

What this does not establish

  • The adoption evidence is the Town Council's minutes of the 5 May 2026 meeting; the minutes of the 19 May 2026 meeting (posted with the 2 June 2026 agenda) record that the 5 May minutes were approved as recorded by a 4/0 vote.
  • The adopted ordinance text itself was not opened; the definition and table-of-uses entry are described from the minutes and the drafts in the 7 April 2026 Council packet.
  • No effective day is recorded: the drafts say the ordinance takes effect 30 days after passage, and the town's own ordinance page (smithfieldri.gov) returned HTTP 403 to automated requests when checked.
  • The rule is local to the Town of Smithfield and does not apply elsewhere in Rhode Island.

Unresolved questions

  • Whether any application filed before adoption is treated under prior rules was not established from official text.

Relationships

Supersession means a later instrument replaces the earlier legal effect. Repeal links identify the repeal instrument and the measure it ends. A later implementation or related letter is not treated as a replacement unless the record says so.

  • No related action is recorded.

Sources

Primary source

https://clerkshq.com/Content/Attachments/Smithfield-ri/260519_6c.pdf?clientSite=Smithfield-ri

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