Oldham County technical review raises questions on proposed 'Project Lincoln' hyperscale data center

Developers presented technical plans for a proposed hyperscale data center called Project Lincoln during the Oldham County Technical Review Committee meeting on May 21, 2025, prompting extensive agency and public questions about stormwater, on-site sewage, backup power fuel storage, noise mitigation and emergency access. No permit decisions were made at the meeting; the proposal remains subject to local permitting and an appeal scheduled with the Board of Adjustments.

The site under review is a 267-acre property along Kentucky 53, of which the applicant said 143 acres are before the committee for a conditional use permit. Presenters said roughly 65 acres of the 143-acre area would be impervious surface, leaving about 200 acres of retained green space. Applicant representatives said the site was chosen for access to high-voltage power lines that run through the parcel, nearby fiber, water service and Highway 53 access.

Why it matters: committee members and multiple agencies said the project’s scale and technical components create multiple permit pathways and potential public-safety and environmental impacts. Staff requested plan corrections and additional studies; several residents and property owners sought more detail on generator fuel storage, air emissions, traffic during construction and operations, and potential impacts to nearby creeks and wildlife habitat.

Key technical points and agency concerns

- Power and backup power: Applicant technical testimony said each emergency generator on site would be about 2 to 4 megawatts and that diesel fuel would be stored in double-wall "belly" tanks with leak detection. Applicant testimony said individual generator tanks might be about 10,000 gallons. The applicant described the site as adjacent to 345-kilovolt transmission lines owned by Louisville Gas & Electric (LG&E). LG&E submitted a letter saying it owns infrastructure that could serve the site and that the utility will study any new load; LG&E declined to send staff to the TRC meeting.

- Cooling and water: The applicant said the data center would use a…