A six month moratorium on the construction of data centers in Loudon County has been approved by the Loudon County Commission as of July 29.
Scattered applause could be heard throughout the courthouse annex as the moratorium received a unanimous vote in its favor, following much debate and discussion surrounding the centers on both a local and statewide level over the past several months. Factors like environmental concerns, water and electricity usage, noise and the looming threat that AI has on the job market were all concerns cited by citiziens at the commission’s voting meeting. Some taxpayers and local leaders even expressed an interest in barring the development of data centers within Loudon County altogether.
“There’s been a lot of discussion about data center things,” said Commissioner Van Shaver at the July 29 meeting. “There’s been a lot of people saying ‘just ban them outright,’ and that would be my option.”
Shaver then went on to state that the county is currently planning to use these next six months to see how state regulations and the upcoming gubernatorial election inform the opinion on data centers at every level of government within Tennessee. If possible, he expressed an interest in reworking Loudon County’s zoning policies in an effort to discourage developers from pursuing construction from within its borders.
The moratorium is able to be extended by another six months, should Loudon County Planning Commission and Loudon County Commission choose to do so come January.
