The Rowan County Fiscal Court voted Tuesday, August 18, to impose a temporary moratorium on the construction of large-scale data centers in Rowan County while officials consider local regulations designed to address their potential impact on residents and infrastructure.
The measure was approved during Tuesday's Fiscal Court meeting, with Magistrates Ray White, Charlie Winkleman, Rob Hamm and Darrell Glover voting in favor.
The resolution, as read aloud by County Judge-Executive Harry Clark during the meeting, cites growing interest in the development of large-scale data centers and other high-density computing facilities throughout Kentucky.
County officials emphasized that the action should not necessarily be interpreted as opposition to data centers. Instead, they said Rowan County currently lacks sufficient local safeguards to determine where such developments should be located and how their potential effects on surrounding communities should be addressed.
Among the concerns identified in the resolution were potential demands on electricity, water, transportation and other infrastructure, along with possible issues involving noise, backup generation, emergency response and surrounding properties.
Officials said the moratorium is intended to temporarily slow the process while Rowan County determines what regulations should be put into place.
During the discussion, county officials pointed to what they see as a significant weakness in the current system: without additional local regulations, a developer with sufficient resources could potentially purchase a large tract of property and begin moving forward with a data center project without the type of public review county leaders believe should occur.
"I'm not saying I'm against the data centers," the Judge-Executive said during the discussion. "All I'm saying is we need to have a say about where they're located and how it's going to impact our citizens."
Judge Clark said the purpose of the moratorium is to give Rowan County an opportunity to establish a process that allows both county government and the public to examine a proposed development before it moves forward.
"At least we want to have a say in it," he said.
A Larger Question About Commercial Development
The discussion quickly expanded beyond data centers.
County officials acknowledged that Rowan County has now found itself responding individually to several emerging types of development.
According to the discussion Tuesday, Fiscal Court has previously taken action involving biodigesters and solar development, with data centers becoming the third issue requiring county intervention.
Officials indicated that continuing to address each new type of development separately may not be a workable long-term solution.
One possibility being considered is some form of conditional-use permitting for commercial developments.
County officials acknowledged during the meeting that such a system would technically represent a form of zoning, but stressed that the concept being discussed would target commercial operations rather than farming, private residences or ordinary uses of personal property.
Under the concept discussed Tuesday, certain commercial developments could trigger a public process in which residents would have an opportunity to hear about a proposed project and voice their concerns before it moves forward.
No such conditional-use permitting system was adopted during this portion of Tuesday's meeting. Officials discussed it as a possible future solution to the broader problem.
The Judge-Executive said Rowan County cannot continue imposing individual restrictions every time a new development trend emerges.
"We can't keep chasing this," he said.
The discussion represents a potentially significant shift in how Rowan County approaches future commercial development. Rather than simply deciding whether the county is "for" or "against" data centers, solar developments, biodigesters or whatever industry comes next, officials appear to be considering a broader framework through which large commercial projects could receive local review and public input.
For now, however, the immediate action is clear: Rowan County has placed a temporary moratorium on the construction of large-scale data centers while county officials work toward establishing appropriate local safeguards.
The Morehead Minute will continue following the issue as additional details and proposed regulations become available.
