‘Not a good fit’: Woodford County leaders push to stop data centers, citing farmland preservation concerns

WOODFORD COUNTY, Ky. (ABC 36 NEWS NOW) — Woodford County officials are taking steps to prohibit data centers from being built in the county, citing concerns about farmland preservation, infrastructure capacity, and the character of the rural community.

Judge/Executive James Kay, District 1 Magistrate Liles Taylor of Midway, and Midway Mayor Grayson Vandegrift are working together on regulations that would block data center development across the county.

At a Fiscal Court meeting Tuesday night, Kay said in a Facebook post that Taylor is prepared to introduce a motion for the County Attorney to draft a formal prohibition on data centers. Officials will also ask the Planning Commission to enact laws to protect the community from such developments. Notably, the Versailles City Council passed a moratorium last week.

Kay said the county’s purchase of the former Yokohama plant in Versailles is an example of the proactive strategy officials have used to prevent industrial properties from being converted into data centers, ensuring the site is used for jobs that benefit the local tax base.

“Midway’s Magistrate Liles Taylor, Mayor Vandegrift and I want to assure every resident that this process will be transparent. We will ensure that every single voice is listened to, and that the citizens of Woodford County have the final say. We will not allow data centers to compromise our future,” Kay said.

“We in Midway, and in Woodford County, have worked very hard to preserve the delicate balance that makes our community truly special. Data centers are simply not a good fit for the quality of life and services that we seek to improve on a daily basis. I’m thankful that we’re working together as city and county to present a strong, united front. We will not allow our precious farmland to be swallowed up by massive, resource-draining data centers,” Vandegrift said.

Kay said most proposed data centers require significant amounts of land, resources, and infrastructure that the county’s current grid is not built to support. He said farmland, once developed, cannot be recovered.

The Fiscal Court and the Midway City Council are working together to implement a policy that would complete county-wide protection against data center development.