Bulloch County Planning Commission recommends removing data center and cryptocurrency mining from zoning ordinances

The Bulloch County Planning and Zoning Commission has voted 5-1 to recommend an amendment to the county's zoning ordinances that would remove all permissive references to data centers and cryptocurrency mining. This action follows a directive from the Bulloch County Board of Commissioners and is now scheduled for a public hearing and potential adoption by the commissioners on August 4.

The initiative began in February with a 90-day moratorium on data center creation in unincorporated Bulloch County. Initially, staff drafted an ordinance allowing data centers as conditional uses. However, after public input and a May 5 hearing, commissioners not only extended the moratorium until December 31 but also directed staff to draft an amendment for an outright prohibition. Commissioner Toby Conner, along with Commissioner Nick Newkirk, led the effort to move beyond a moratorium to a full ban.

The proposed amendment clarifies the definition of a "Data center" and explicitly states that data centers are not allowed in General Business, Heavy Manufacturing, or Light Manufacturing zoning classifications. It also removes previous provisions enacted four years ago for commercial cryptocurrency mining operations, which were designed to address noise concerns from facilities like the one proposed by Excelsior EMC in 2022 that ultimately did not materialize.

Bulloch County Attorney Jeff Akins noted that while data centers were not explicitly listed as permitted uses, the amendment provides clarity to prevent interpretations that might allow them under broader categories like "general business." Planning and Zoning member Patrick Mock cast the sole dissenting vote, expressing that data centers "might not be a bad thing." This county-level decision contrasts with a separate move by the Statesboro City Council, which approved an ordinance on June 2 that could permit data centers within city limits.