Hernando County adopts 365‑day moratorium on hyperscale data centers

Hernando County’s Board of County Commissioners voted unanimously on June 23 to adopt a 365‑day moratorium on processing applications for hyperscale data centers, directing staff to study whether the county’s comprehensive plan and land‑development regulations need changes to protect local resources.

Planning director Omar DePablo told the board the moratorium gives staff and outside consultants time to evaluate where the county’s comp plan and LDRs might need amendments and to draft specific mitigation measures covering water use, electricity demand, noise and buffering. “There are questions about where a facility of this size could fit, whether the infrastructure exists and what limits or standards we should adopt,” DePablo said, urging a methodical approach rather than a rushed ban.

Commissioners voiced mixed concerns but supported the pause. Commissioner Champion said the county needs protections in place before large projects arrive; Commissioner Alaco emphasized sound and water as particular local worries; and Commissioner Loco said staff should study health and low‑frequency noise effects alongside water and electrical impacts. County counsel explained a one‑year moratorium is common and typically defensible; a blanket ban can expose a jurisdiction to legal challenge if it is found to be an improper prohibition of a use.

More than two dozen residents and organized groups addressed the board during the public hearing. Carol Yekim Alvella urged the board to “vote for a moratorium” and cited concerns about constant humming, water scarcity and heat‑island effects. A Sierra Club representative and other speakers pointed to drought conditions, impacts to springs and the potential for new fossil‑fuel generation or diesel backup power tied to hyperscale sites. One presenter offered a draft land‑use agreement that would require closed‑loop cooling, reclaimed water use and job‑training commitments; another urged regional coordination with neighboring counties.

The ordinance (adopted as Ordinance 2026‑15) passed on a roll‑call vote. The board instructed staff to prepare an outreach plan, consult with neighboring counties and state partners, and return with proposed comp‑plan language and possible LDR amendments. Staff said it may seek technical consultants with expertise in data‑center water use, electrical interconnection and low‑frequency noise for the work.

Next steps: staff will assemble technical analyses, outline legal risks, draft possible comp‑plan and LDR amendments and schedule public engagement before presenting proposed changes to the board and Planning & Zoning.