Moore County weighs moratorium on data centers
8:35 p.m. Jan. 6, 2026
DUANE CROSS
MCO Publisher•Editor
On Tuesday, Jan. 6, the Moore County Planning and Zoning Commission began discussing whether to limit or temporarily restrict land use for large data centers. The discussion, called an “AI moratorium,” focused on data centers used for large-scale data collection and processing, not on artificial intelligence itself.
P&Z board members said this was an early conversation intended to inform the Metro Moore Council, which makes the final decisions on zoning and land use.
Commission Chair Dexter Golden opened the discussion by stressing the need for an open dialogue about what future development could look like and how the county might mitigate risks associated with high-demand facilities.
Board member Jim Crawford gave examples from other places, like big data center projects in Memphis. He pointed out problems such as high power and water use, noise, potential air pollution, and a limited number of long-term jobs.
“Outside of the initial construction phase, there are very few permanent jobs,” Crawford said. “It’s mostly a handful of engineers. I see absolutely no benefits for Moore County and nothing but drawbacks.”
The board collectively agreed they should be careful about how a moratorium is written. They noted that the term “data center” can mean many things and warned that unclear language could inadvertently limit important facilities, such as IT rooms in schools, local businesses, or government offices.
• AI Centers and the Environment
“It’s a data center, but it’s not AI walking around with robots,” board member Scott Fruehauf noted. “You don’t want to word something that would hold back an industry here or even something like a school IT facility.”
The board members also talked about local infrastructure. They mentioned that Moore County now has a renewable natural gas plant, a new solar farm, and several water reservoirs. These features could make the area appealing to developers seeking sites for data centers, and the facilities could generate significant tax revenue without placing extra pressure on schools and first responders.
“This isn’t a 500-house subdivision,” Fruehauf said. “It wouldn’t increase school attendance or require more public safety staffing, but it could bring in a lot of revenue.”
Other board members agreed that these infrastructure upgrades could put farmland at risk if developers want to use large open areas for data centers.
In the end, the commission decided to move the discussion forward to the Metro Council. All members voted to recommend a moratorium on land mainly used for data collection, but they made sure to exclude schools and similar places. The exact wording and legal details will be reviewed before going to the county commissioners.
Planning staff said they will revise the proposed language and bring it back for more discussion at a future meeting.
No zoning changes were made on Tuesday. The vote is just a recommendation and a first step for a wider county discussion about how Moore County should handle data centers and AI-related development in the future.
