Rice Delays EGAI Project Until August 25 Meeting

By Mark Archibald

The Rice City Council moved to delay the proposed EGAI Data Center project proposed within the City of Rice at Thursday’s council meeting.

The city will hold a special meeting on Aug. 25 to consider the application of EGAI to locate an approximately 5,000 sq. ft. facility at 800 NW McKinney Street.

A tax abatement for EGAI is also expected to be discussed at that meeting.

The council did approve a motion to amend an ordinance concerning the city’s comprehensive plan to allow for Micro-Data Centers to be used in Commercially zoned districts, within the Interstate Highway 45 Overlay District.

The city’s comprehensive plan necessitated updating to include the mention of data centers.

During several recent city council meetings and a town hall gathering public feedback, residents of Rice and the surrounding area, voiced concerns about the project asking the city to slow down and learn more before approving the project.

The proposed project is expected to include computer floor space and requires less than $200 million investment.

The facility would house less than 40 server racks and require less than five mega- wats of utility power according to the agenda packet provided

The council did not act on a Special Use Permit Thursday, which is also required to allow for the approval of the data center project.

The council tabled consideration of a Special Use Permit required in conjunction with an application from EGAI to locate its proposed facility on McKinney Street.

In other business, the contract with Texas Towing was amended to reflect an increase of the administrative fee from $10 to $50.

The contract with RecDesk for recreation software totaling $3,635 was renewed.

The council authorized sending requests for proposals for administrative services and qualifications for engineering services and implementation services concerning the Texas Community Development Grant Program for the 2027 and 2028 budget year.

The Texas Department of Agriculture administers the program.

The council also authorized and designated access for City of Rice safety deposit box at Harmony Bank.

The proposed 2026-2027 budget was also discussed and resulted in the approval of a motion to set the proposed tax rate at $0.4224 per $100 of taxable valuation by rollcall vote for the 2026-2027 budget year.

The No New Revenue Rate for the city of Rice was set at $0.4080.

The next regular meeting of the Rice City Council will be on September 15.

The change was necessary to meet state statutes concerning the adoption of the tax rate and annual budget.

The council also approved a motion to update several codes to bring the city into compliance including maintenance, electrical and plumbing.

Updates to the mechanical code, energy conservation code, and international standards for existing building codes were also codified in the ordinance. Fire codes and Codes for swimming pools and spas fuel and gas were also adopted.

The consent agenda was approved before Thursday’s meeting was adjourned.

The City Council meets regularly at Rice City Hall, at 305 N. Dallas Street in Rice.

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