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Commissioner proposes six‑month moratorium on data‑center and similar developments to allow zoning updates
Summary
Commissioners flagged growing interest from large data‑center projects and proposed a six‑month moratorium (with a possible six‑month extension) on approvals related to data centers, bitcoin mining or other high‑compute facilities so planning staff can draft updated zoning rules addressing water, power, heat and noise.
Commissioner Shaver told the commission he wants the county to act quickly to regulate modern large‑compute facilities after conversations about data‑center proposals and regional developments.
"What if we pass a 6 month moratorium with a deadline of 6 months with a 6 months extension on anything related to data center, Bitcoin, chain mining, or anything?" he asked, saying a moratorium would give staff time to craft zoning standards addressing water use, power demands, heat emissions and noise.
Other commissioners and staff discussed regional activity — including industry summits and TVA and mini‑nuclear conversation — and flagged the need to nail down parcel‑size rules, setbacks, vegetation buffers and cooling systems (closed‑loop liquid cooling versus noisy fans). One commissioner asked planning staff to prepare a moratorium draft and to bring recommendations to the June 1 voting meeting.
No moratorium was approved at this session; the item was proposed for inclusion on the June 1 agenda so planning staff can develop draft regulations and an implementation timeline.
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