Lexington City Council unanimously passes a moratorium on new data center approvals

Update: June 9 at 11 p.m.

The Lexington Fayette Urban County Council unanimously passed a moratorium on new data center approvals, pausing permits, development plan acceptances and zone changes related to data centers until Oct. 31.

5th District Representative Liz Sheehan said the moratorium is designed to give the council time to establish more specific guidelines for tech companies looking to operate in the area.

“Our moratorium says that we are pausing on any approvals for permits, or any authorizations for data centers through our permitting process,” Sheehan said.

“It also puts a pause on acceptance of development plans that involve a data center or any zone changes that involve a data center,” Sheehan said.

Sheehan said existing zoning language is outdated and no longer reflects the realities of modern data centers.

“When our zoning ordinances have referenced data processing or computer processing centers, those definitions and that language was really developed decades ago before we had the modern data center,” Sheehan said.

The move comes after DartPoints Operating Company purchased the former Lexmark data center off New Circle Road.

Sheehan said the city had no role in that transaction and received no advance notice.

“We did not have any say over the sale of that property or weren’t notified at all,” Sheehan said. “But I think the immediate rise of community feedback is indicative of how much the community as a whole is paying attention to data centers.”

As of now, DartPoints has not submitted any permitting requests to the city.

“Currently, they have not submitted anything to the city, so they have not come to us for any kind of permitting with that change of ownership. So at this time, any permits would be paused,” Sheehan said.

Mayor Linda Gorton is also backing the moratorium, saying data centers “do not produce many jobs, and have the potential to increase utility costs on local residents.”

Urban ecologist Leandro “Nachie” Braga praised the council’s action but said the public must use the pause productively.

“It’s fantastic that we’re seeing city council move with purpose and speed on this issue,” Braga said.

“This is just one specific issue, but we’re gonna see issues like this come up over and over again, and we have an opportunity to get organized right now so that we can respond,” Braga said.

Original Story:

Following last week’s sale of a former Lexmark data center to DartPoints Operating Company, members of Lexington’s City Council announced Tuesday that the council has enacted a moratorium on data center development.

Alongside the moratorium, the council initiated a Zoning Ordinance Text Amendment (ZOTA) process “to review and establish regulations for data center development,” said 1st District Councilmember Tyler Morton on social media.

“This action allows our community and local leaders the opportunity to thoughtfully consider the impacts, benefits, and long-term implications of data centers in Lexington before additional projects move forward,” Morton said.

5th District Councilmember Liz Sheehan also announced the moratorium and initiation of the council’s process to develop rules and regulations surrounding data centers.

“As we continue to gather more information about what DartPoints intends to do on the site, Council has declared a moratorium on data center development and has initiated the process to formally modernize our regulations to data centers,” Sheehan said.

Lexington Mayor Linda Gorton also released a statement following the announcement, voicing her support for the moratorium.

“We need to think very carefully about data centers,” she said in a release. “They do not produce many jobs, and have the potential to increase utility costs on local residents, as well as other concerns. I support very tight controls.”

The release goes on to say that Gorton has also refused to support public incentives for the proposed data center on Lexmark property.

Community members gathered on Monday night to voice their concerns and opposition to the project.