One Lawrence Co. city to vote on data center, another tries to ban facilities altogether
The City of St. Joseph in Lawrence County, Tennessee, is considering an ordinance to ban data centers within its limits, citing concerns over water, electricity, and road strain. Concurrently, the Lawrenceburg Planning Commission is scheduled to vote on permits for a Scalepoint TN data processing center.
The City of St. Joseph, a small community in Lawrence County, Tennessee, is actively pursuing an ordinance to ban data centers from operating within its corporate limits. The city's Board of Commissioners recently conducted a first reading of the proposed ordinance, driven by fears that data center operations would impose an unsustainable burden on local infrastructure, including water, electricity, and roads, for a city with fewer than 1,000 residents.
The city indicated that this preventative action follows "credible information" about multiple data center projects being discussed in Lawrence County, with one specifically rumored for the southern part of the county, outside St. Joseph's current boundaries. City leaders emphasized their proactive stance to safeguard public safety resources, utilities, and their rural way of life before any applications are filed.
Separately, within the same county, the Lawrenceburg Planning Commission is set to vote on permits for the Scalepoint TN data processing center. If approved, this facility would be constructed on Flatwoods Road. NewsChannel 5 Nashville has attempted to gather information on this project for months, but their inquiries have remained unanswered.