Council hears pitch to pause some residential development

Planners discussing temporary pause on larger residential subdivisions to review growth, infrastructure, land-use rules

2:15 p.m. Sept. 22, 2026

DUANE CROSS
MCO Publisher•Editor

Moore County could temporarily hit the brakes on some new residential subdivisions while Planning and Zoning takes a closer look at the rules guiding growth across the county.

Planning and Zoning Commission Chair Dexter Golden told Metro Council on Monday night that the board has been discussing a possible one-year pause on certain residential development, giving members time to review subdivision regulations, infrastructure demands, and potential loopholes in rules written roughly two decades ago.

No moratorium has been adopted, and no restrictions are currently in effect.

The discussion has focused largely on major subdivisions – described during the meeting as developments involving five tracts or more – although Planning and Zoning has also discussed whether smaller subdivisions should be included.

Commercial and industrial development would be left out of the pause under the direction discussed so far.

“We’re not trying to stop development,” Golden said. “Growth needs to happen to maintain a healthy county, really. But being overrun with growth is one thing.”

Growth is moving faster than the books

Golden said Planning and Zoning needs time to look at whether Moore County’s existing rules still fit the growth now reaching rural areas of the county.

The concern goes beyond lot lines and house counts. Council members discussed road capacity, school enrollment, water availability, fire hydrant coverage, and whether emergency vehicles can safely reach homes built along private or shared easements.

Golden also pointed to the steady loss of agricultural ground as larger farms and tracts are divided for residential development. He said much of the land changing hands in Moore County is likely to be agricultural property, and once that land is carved into residential lots, the change is difficult to undo.

The county’s planning books were written roughly 20 years ago, Golden said, before the current pace and pattern of growth were anticipated.

A year could give planners breathing room

The discussion Monday leaned toward a one-year pause, although no formal proposal has reached Metro Council for a vote. Golden said six months would probably not give Planning and Zoning enough time to do the work properly.

During a pause, the commission could review the county’s subdivision regulations, identify gaps in the rules, and better connect development approvals to roads, utilities, schools, and emergency services.

Members also discussed the possibility that a larger development could be divided into several smaller projects to avoid requirements that apply to major subdivisions.

That is one of the areas Planning and Zoning wants to examine before new rules are written.

A one-year restriction would not necessarily have to last the full year. Golden said that if the commission finishes its work in seven or eight months, for example, the county could potentially lift the restriction early.

The idea is to give Planning and Zoning and the Codes office room to work on the books without each meeting being consumed by the next project in line.

Planning and Zoning is expected to continue shaping the proposal before anything comes back to Metro Council for consideration.

Data center clock keeps ticking

Council also returned Monday to another development issue already under a temporary restriction: data centers. Moore County currently has a two-year moratorium on data center development while Planning and Zoning works toward permanent regulations.

The Council discussion expanded into whether the county could simply prohibit data centers, wind projects, solar developments, or similar uses outright.

Members were advised by County Attorney Bill Rieder that a broad permanent ban, without specific findings and supporting reasons, could be difficult for the county to defend if challenged.

That pushed the discussion back toward the purpose of the existing moratorium – using the temporary window to study the issue and put permanent rules in place before the clock runs out. Golden said Planning and Zoning has already begun that work and has received information from residents as members consider what those regulations should look like.

The two-year moratorium remains in effect, but Monday night’s discussion made one thing clear: The temporary ban bought Moore County time. Planning and Zoning still has to write the permanent rules that will replace it.