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Commissioner urges planning commission to weigh moratorium, zoning changes for data centers in Bedford County
Summary
Under new business a committee member asked the Rules Committee to request that the planning commission consider a moratorium on data centers and revise zoning rules to address water, energy and siting impacts; planning staff said a draft moratorium may already be under consideration.
A commissioner told the Bedford County Rules Committee that constituents have raised concerns about proposed data centers and asked the committee to request that the planning commission consider a moratorium and rewrite zoning bylaws to address siting and resource impacts.
"I don't think that we would have one coming up here in Bedford County, but I would like to see this committee discuss asking the planning commission to put a moratorium on data centers here in Bedford County and maybe rewrite the bylaws concerning that," the commissioner said during the meeting.
Committee members and staff described the suggested policy as a pause to give the county time to adopt zoning guardrails rather than a permanent ban. One participant said the goal was to ensure regulations exist for facilities that place heavy demands on water and electricity so any future proposals would require appropriate zoning changes.
A committee member said the planning commission already is working on a draft moratorium and that the matter may appear on the planning commission agenda; that speaker said the draft under consideration would ask the commission to examine a year-long moratorium on high‑impact facilities. "I hope it's not just data centers... I hope it's anything that has a heavy impact on our water and electricity," the member said.
Participants discussed possible duration. One staff member said, "I think you can go up to 18 months," while others urged that a one-year moratorium would provide time to put zoning regulations in place so future proposals could be routed through a zoning-change process.
The committee repeatedly framed the measure as regulatory guardrails rather than an attempt to ban business. "We're not trying to outlaw any business. We just want to make certain that we have responsible guardrails in place," a committee member said.
No formal motion to place a moratorium before the Rules Committee was recorded in the transcript; members noted the planning commission is already engaged and that any formal action would follow the planning commission's process. The committee did not vote on a moratorium during the meeting.
Next steps: the planning commission's draft and its agenda status were discussed as the likely avenue for formal consideration; the Rules Committee indicated it would review whatever recommendation the planning commission develops.
