City Council Sets Oct. 12 Hearing on Data Center Moratorium Extension

Charlotte City Council voted to schedule an Oct. 12 public hearing on extending the city’s temporary data center moratorium, which currently expires Nov. 5. The proposed extension follows research, community meetings and recommendations from a 19-member task force that said more time is needed to study data center impacts and regulatory approaches.

City staff identified potential rules involving zoning buffers, discretionary review, water-impact and grid-impact studies, energy and water reporting, noise standards, air-quality monitoring, and renewable-energy requirements. Residents and task force members broadly supported extending the moratorium, citing concerns about water consumption, drought vulnerability, pollution, noise, health and proximity to homes and nature preserves. The city plans to coordinate with the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality, North Carolina Utilities Commission and Duke Energy on issues outside its direct authority.