Aurora City Council Study Session—October 26, 2026

The Aurora City Council convened a study session on Monday, October 26, 2026, with Mayor Kaufman presiding. A quorum was present. The council moved consent calendar items forward, received a presentation on the South Metro Aurora Auto Aid Agreement, established an ad hoc committee on criminal sentencing reform, and debated a proposal to change data center siting distances.

Consent Calendar

• Items 2A through 2D were moved forward without objection.

Discussion Items

3A: South Metro Aurora Auto Aid Agreement (First Amendment)

• Assistant Fire Chief Hunter Hackbirth Barth presented the first amendment to the South Metro Aurora Auto Aid Agreement, last updated in 2019 when Cunningham Fire Protection District and South Metro Fire consolidated into a fire authority.
• The amendment adds a small area between Chambers and Tower and Quincy and Bellview to the auto aid agreement so an additional South Metro engine can respond to structure fires, because South Metro operates a firehouse in a strip mall at Buckley and Smoky Hill.
• The agreement is two-way: Aurora assists with unincorporated Arapahoe County areas from Hampden south to Parker and east of Parker Road.
• Barth stated there are no significant changes and no added cost. Item 3A moved forward without questions.

3B: Ad Hoc Committee on Criminal Sentencing Reforms

• Mayor Pro Tem Coombs explained that the goal is to gather data from internal departments, Judicial District 18, Arapahoe and Adams County sheriffs, JD 17 and 18 courts, and to a more limited extent Douglas County and District 23, before revising the city's criminal code and penalties in response to the Camp and Simons decision.
• Councilmember Bergen questioned why a subcommittee was needed and whether the data already existed; staff member Pete said the intent is a deeper dive and to keep stakeholders informed, including if council considers eliminating criminal cases from municipal court.
• Councilmember Lawson asked for examples of community stakeholders. Examples provided included Bridge House (re-entry programs), the Colorado Freedom Fund, the ACLU, and the NAACP. Lawson suggested also contacting victim-advocacy and crime-impacted groups.
• Councilmember Gardner proposed creating an ad hoc committee rather than a public safety subcommittee and agreed to a five-member cap; the committee will receive input and testimony from non-members, but decisions remain with elected officials.
• Councilmember Hancock raised concerns about timelines and scope, favoring membership limited to court professionals with other groups only submitting information for consideration.
• Final structure approved without objection: a five-member ad hoc committee composed of the three public safety committee members plus Mayor Kaufman and Mayor Pro Tem Coombs; Coombs will chair. Work is expected to conclude by the end of January 2027, accounting for the holidays.

5A: Data Center Siting Standards

• Councilmember Wiles proposed new standards: a prohibition on data centers within 750 feet of residential areas, conditional use between 750 feet and one-half mile, and by-right use beyond one-half mile. She cited a Magellan study finding that 90 percent of Coloradans oppose data centers in their city and estimated property value impacts of 6 to 7 percent. She argued thousands of acres remain available at greater distances.
• Councilmember Andrews expressed support, stating current regulations are ill-equipped and citing the Trident site being across the street from a new home development. He noted Aurora has about 65 square miles of vacant land.
• The city attorney stated new regulations would not apply to applications already in process (including Trident, Vantage, QTS, JP Morgan Chase, and data centers in the Fulenwider and ATEC master plan areas). If Vantage relocates, the city would treat it as an amended application, not a new application.
• Councilmember Lawson asked whether enacting regulations now could jeopardize Vantage's move; the city attorney and city manager responded that completed applications would be unaffected.
• Councilmember Bergen opposed arbitrary distances, urging engineering controls at the source (silencers, fan modulation, acoustic baffling) and scientifically based noise standards before setting distances. Councilmember Gardner agreed, arguing power infrastructure matters more than vacant land, some data center talking points are based on junk science, and other uses such as a Costco distribution center could be more harmful. Both formally objected.
• Councilmember Wiles cited National Institutes of Health findings on low-frequency noise, noted the many generators at data centers, and said she verified noise from QTS in her backyard by driving there. She said her proposal is based on months of research and conversations with other cities.
• The city attorney noted the proposed ordinance requires a third-party noise modeling study at the time of application. Councilmember Gardner stated generator testing occurs for 50 minutes at a time, less than 24 hours per year, disputing the numbers presented.
• Six members voiced support, including Mayor Kaufman; Councilmembers Bergen and Gardner opposed. Item 5A moved forward.

Key Outcomes

• Consent calendar items 2A–2D moved forward.
• Item 3A (South Metro Aurora Auto Aid first amendment) moved forward.
• Item 3B approved: a five-member ad hoc committee on Chapter 94 criminal sentencing revisions was established, with completion targeted by the end of January 2027.
• Item 5A approved to move forward: it will go to the planning commission in November and return for council action, likely at the first regular council meeting in December.
• The council recessed until 5:05 PM, with an executive session scheduled to end by 5:20 PM.