Lexington planners recommend approval of new data center zoning rules for Fayette County
Update: July 30 at 11 p.m.
LEXINGTON, Ky. (ABC 36 NEWS NOW via LEX NEWS) – After much deliberation, listening to residents, and business owners, the Lexington-Fayette Urban County Planning Commission made recommendations to regulations on data centers during a meeting Thursday.
The commission heard from many in the community.
Jim Duncan, Lexington Fayette Urban County Government director of planning, spoke after the lengthy meeting on what the commission had agreed on.
“The planning commission is going to recommend to the to the council that data centers be no larger than 40,000 square feet. That is smaller than what the staff had originally recommended, but the, but they’re also adding a maximum of 25 megawatts of use of electricity,” said Duncan.
Other recommended requirements include a 24-hour limit to noise levels at 30 decibels, as well as increasing a previously set distance from schools, daycares and healthcare facilities from 1000 feet to 1500 feet.
The recommendations go to the city council on August 18. The data center moratorium in Lexington ends on October 31, but can be extended.
Duncan also said he was pleased with how many people showed up.
“We don’t usually see this many young people and then certainly this meant this much passion about an issue that doesn’t have a direct impact on them like they live next door to it. We see all the time people who don’t want development in their backyard, but these were people who were concerned about the development in the community and the impacts on the community,” said Duncan.
Original Story:
Lexington planning staff is recommending approval of a zoning ordinance text amendment that would create new regulations for data centers in Fayette County, including a ban on the largest facilities in all zones.
The Urban County Planning Commission held a public hearing on the proposed text amendment on July 30, initiated by the Urban County Council.
The Zoning Committee recommended postponement of the proposed text, while planning staff recommended approval.
What the amendment would do
The proposed amendment establishes four new definitions: data center, major data center, minor data center, and server room. The threshold between major and minor data center facilities is set at 50,000 square feet.
Under the proposed framework, major data centers would be prohibited in all zones. Planning staff cited significant land use impacts — including noise, emissions, energy and water consumption — as well as incompatibility with the Comprehensive Plan’s goals for job creation and land use.
Minor data centers would be added as a conditional use in the Wholesale and Warehouse Business (B-4) and Light Industrial (I-1) zones, with strict requirements governing noise, generator location and operation, energy and utility demand, and separation from sensitive uses.
Server rooms would be permitted as accessory uses in select business and professional office zones, limited to either 10% or 2,500 square feet of the existing principal permitted use, whichever is greater, the agenda read.
Planning staff said the existing zoning language governing computer and data processing centers predates the rise of large-scale, resource-intensive facilities. Previously, those uses operated in a manner similar to professional office uses and did not generate significant nuisances related to sound, energy, or emissions.
The growth of artificial intelligence has driven demand for data center infrastructure. Projections by the Electric Power Research Institute anticipate that data center uses will account for 9% to 17% of energy demand in the United States by 2030, according a staff report petition.
In June 2026, the Urban County Council initiated a moratorium on data center uses within Fayette County to allow time to study the land use and draft regulations placing appropriate controls on the operation of such facilities.
Staff’s reasons for recommending approval
Planning staff outlined four reasons for recommending approval of the amendment:
- The proposed text amendment clearly defines data centers and removes outdated language related to “data processing centers” from the Zoning Ordinance, providing clarity for land use regulations in Lexington-Fayette County.
- The proposed language protects local communities by prohibiting major data centers, which are the largest and most impactful type, citing a high likelihood of noise, emissions, energy and water consumption that can negatively impact the community.
- The proposed text amendment creates strict, enforceable criteria for evaluating minor data centers and ensures opportunities for public input and participation in the planning process, focusing such uses in industrial areas to minimize external impacts on the community.
- The proposed text amendment allows accessory server rooms to operate without requiring additional review or approval, as such uses provide on-site support for existing business and industrial uses and are proportional to the square footage of the existing principal permitted use.
What happens next
The Planning Commission’s next Zoning Items Public Hearing is scheduled for August 27 at 1:30 p.m.
