The Hum Next Door: Data Center Noise in Reno Neighborhoods

Oct 10, 2026 

A new sound in northwest Reno

If you live near Keystone Avenue, you may soon have a new neighbor that never sleeps. A data center is under construction at 265 Keystone Ave, and some residents' biggest worry is what it will sound like once it runs around the clock.

At a packed City Council meeting in April 2026, more than 150 public comments came in about data centers. Water and power topped most lists, but noise kept coming up. "I think there's a lot of concerns with sound," one neighbor told 2News.

This is the first post in our series on data centers in the Truckee Meadows. We're starting with noise because it's what you'd notice from your back porch, and what a buyer might notice on a showing.

Where it's happening

The project at the center of the debate is the Centra data center (also called the Keystone Data Center) at 265 Keystone Ave in northwest Reno. It's a two-story, roughly 91,000-square-foot building on land zoned industrial and commercial, near the railroad tracks and the Truckee River.

The neighbors named in public comment and news coverage:

• Homes in the neighborhood off Keystone Avenue
• Reno High School, which a resident cited at the April 2026 council meeting
• The Reno-Sparks Indian Colony, which reviews the city's land-use approvals

The North Valleys come up as another area where data centers are proposed, but recent council debate has focused on Keystone. It's the one already under construction, and the city's June 2026 moratorium doesn't apply to it.

What residents told City Hall

In every public meeting since early 2025, neighbors have raised the same three complaints: nobody told them, nobody independently checked the noise, and the plans kept changing.

Residents asking the city questions have repeatedly said the developer's acoustical studies were paid for by the developer. The city says it will not commission its own study. Code Enforcement will measure noise once the facility is running.

Why data centers hum

Data centers hum because thousands of computers make heat, and the machines that remove that heat run 24 hours a day.

The usual sources:

• Cooling equipment. Rooftop chillers, fans, cooling towers, and air handlers.
• Power equipment. Transformers and switchgear give off a steady electrical buzz.
• Backup generators. Large diesel units are tested regularly. Generator tests can be heard up to a mile away.

It isn't that the noise is loud. It's that it never stops. Low-frequency sound travels farther than higher-pitched noise and passes through walls and windows more easily, so a hum can carry well past the property line. An acoustics consultant quoted by the Acoustical Society of America said on-site power plants can be "at least as noisy" as the data center itself.

What the rules say today

The Keystone site has to keep its equipment noise to about 43 dBA at the property line. That limit is a condition of its permit, not something Reno's general noise code requires.

What the city's FAQ says:

• The baseline. The developer's study measured the quietest nighttime background noise at about 53 dBA. The 43 dBA cap is meant to keep the facility from adding to that.
• Sound walls. A 15-foot sound-absorbing barrier has to surround the rooftop chillers. Adding equipment later still has to meet the limit.
• Generators. Backup generators can run only during outages, or for testing during daytime hours.
• The residential rule doesn't apply. Reno's residential noise standard (RMC 18.04.1407) covers sites next to residential zoning. Keystone isn't next to residential zoning, so that standard isn't triggered.
• Notice. Only property owners within 750 feet got postcards. Building permits and design changes need no public notice.

Coverage so far hasn't reported a separate limit for low-frequency sound. A dBA reading discounts low frequencies, which is why a site can pass a noise test and still hum.

What's next. New citywide data center rules are being drafted, informed by the regional planning agency's (TMRPA) public input process. Noise is on the list of topics. No hearing date has been set yet.

What this means if you're buying or selling

No one can say yet how Keystone will sound once it's running. The real test comes when Code Enforcement takes its first readings. Until then, here's how I'd handle it:

• Buyers: Visit the street at night, when background noise drops and a hum is easiest to hear. Ask about any industrial sites within a mile, not just next door.
• Sellers near Keystone: Expect buyers to ask about it. Know the facts above so you can answer calmly and accurately.
• Everyone: If you hear a steady hum after the facility opens, report it to Reno Direct at 775-334-INFO (4636). Complaints on file are what get noise measured.
• Get involved: The new rules are still being written. Sign up for updates on TMRPA's data center page, or contact Reno's planning staff to comment.

Coming up in this series

Noise is just one of the concerns residents keep raising. Next up:

• Water. The Keystone site is on the Truckee River, and the city expects it to use about 2 acre-feet a year, roughly what 5 to 8 homes use.
• Power and utility bills. Whether more data centers mean higher NV Energy rates for homeowners.
• Transparency and notice. How a project can change after approval with no new public hearing.
• Tribal and environmental concerns. Including the Water Over Data Alliance and the Reno-Sparks Indian Colony.
• Jobs vs. impacts. Trade unions opposed the moratorium, citing construction jobs.

Sources

• City of Reno: Keystone Data Center FAQ
• City of Reno: Development Services initiatives and updates
• KUNR: Reno City Council takes first step toward changing data center rules (Apr 23, 2026)
• 2News: Neighbors share concerns with Keystone project
• KOLO: Reno City Council discusses controversial data centers (Apr 23, 2026)
• News 4: Council adopts moratorium (Jun 2026)
• This Is Reno: Editorial on the Aug 2026 community meeting
• This Is Reno: Council votes against data center standards (Mar 2025)
• This Is Reno: Council approves standards for data centers (Apr 2026)
• Citizen Portal: Commission approves Keystone data center (Jan 2025)
• TMRPA: Data Center Engagement
• BGR: How far away can you hear AI data centers?
• Acoustical Society of America: Helping noisy data centers fit into residential neighborhoods