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Residents press Prichard council for moratorium and legal review of proposed data center
Summary
Residents presented petitions and video and urged a temporary moratorium while the council investigates zoning, possible rezoning, and technical impacts; council members warned a moratorium may be legally limited because the land is already zoned for industrial use.
Residents and council members spent substantial time debating a proposed data center and whether the city should adopt a temporary moratorium on permitting while standards and restrictions are developed.
The council president said citizens had delivered a petition and that she had asked the city attorney to draft moratorium language for the council’s consideration, noting that “the citizens have spoken” and she wanted the council to consider a temporary pause while the city organizes regulations. Several residents said they had collected signatures opposing the project and wanted the council to act.
A council member cautioned that the property is already zoned for industrial use: “Since it is already zoned, we can do the moratorium, but we really cannot stop them because it is already zoned for that use,” the council member said, warning that a blanket moratorium could expose the city to lawsuits and that rezoning or targeted rules might be required. That member urged the council to seek legal review and consider narrowly tailored restrictions to address community concerns about noise, infrastructure impact and neighborhood compatibility.
Public commenters presented video recorded during a site visit. Resident Shakita House said she had videotaped the neighborhood and asked council members to view the footage and the neighborhood context before acting: “I just wanted to videotape as much as I could…just see what I see,” she said. Another resident offered to bring Daniel Stewart, described in public comment as a data-center builder, to brief the council on technical details including water and electric load, so the council and public could hear neutral technical input before adopting policy.
Council members discussed options including moratorium, rezoning or targeted use restrictions and agreed to pursue legal review. No formal ordinance or rezoning vote occurred at the meeting; the council instructed staff and the city attorney to prepare materials for future consideration.
