Fort Payne gets ahead of data center boom with development moratorium

The city of Fort Payne, Alabama, has taken a proactive step by enacting a six-month moratorium on data center development, aiming to establish comprehensive zoning regulations. Unlike other communities reacting to active proposals, Fort Payne officials, including Zoning Administrator Nick Brown, emphasized that the city has not yet received any inquiries for data center projects. This moratorium, unanimously approved by the Fort Payne City Council on June 16, provides the Planning Commission with time to develop a new ordinance.

During a June 23 meeting, residents, economic development officials, and technical experts discussed potential regulations, including limiting data centers primarily to heavy industrial zones, requiring conditional-use approval through the Board of Zoning Adjustment, and mandating public hearings. Other suggestions included environmental impact studies, water-use plans, electrical demand limits, noise standards, and setback requirements from residential areas. The city's current zoning ordinance lacks specific provisions for data centers or battery energy storage systems, which the new regulations aim to address.

Fort Payne's initiative follows similar actions in other Alabama cities like Birmingham, which adopted a comprehensive ordinance covering issues such as water use, noise mitigation, and electrical demand, and Cullman, which also approved a moratorium to study the issue. Fort Payne's goal is to set clear standards for new digital infrastructure facilities and battery energy storage systems before any specific development proposals arrive, ensuring that new investments align with community character and environmental considerations. The Planning Commission will continue refining the ordinance before forwarding recommendations to the City Council for final consideration.