Knoxville Mayor Indya Kincannon sent a letter to the Knoxville-Knox County Planning Committee on Monday, saying she will introduce an ordinance seeking a one-year moratorium on large data centers in Knoxville.
Kincannon is pursuing “recommendations” about “guardrails for the site selection and operational requirements of data centers within the city.”
The mayor noted that she, elected officials, and city residents “have concerns about the potential impacts of large data centers on immediate neighbors and the broader community.”
Kincannon (pictured above) said her upcoming ordinance proposal will give the committee’s staff time to consult with Knoxville’s experts and others to provide a recommendation for the commission and city council.
“I appreciate your team’s effort to help the city of Knoxville address this emerging and critical issue,” the mayor wrote.
According to datacentermap.com, Knoxville currently has 10 data centers.
At its June 22nd meeting, Knox County Commission will discuss a resolution that bans data center construction in the county until June 30th, 2027.
“During such moratorium, no county permits, zoning approvals, building approvals, utility extensions, building permits, text amendments, and/or development agreements, etc., shall be issued for the purpose of establishing a Data Center facility, of any form or kind for such operations within Knox County,” the draft resolution says.
The draft resolution notes the commissioners have “a responsibility to protect the health, safety, welfare, and property values of its citizens and to ensure responsible land-use planning that preserves the character of local rural and residential communities of the unincorporated areas of Knox County.”
If the commissioners pass the resolution, it would come after they approved a resolution in May that prevents data centers from connecting to the county’s electric grid. Furthermore, the resolution includes noise-level limits, zoning regulations, and requires data centers to source their own water.
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Zachery Schmidt is the digital editor of The Star News Network. Email tips to Zachery at [email protected].
Background Photo “Data Center” by Chad Davis. CC BY 2.0.
