Data Centers | March 4, 2026
Moratoriums sweep from Birmingham to Ypsilanti, Lansing reverses on a downtown data center, and datacenter politics take center stage in a North Carolina primary.
At A Glance 🔽
- Birmingham, AL: 180-day moratorium approved for data centers over 20 MW.
- Lansing, MI: Planning Commission in favor of downtown data center rezoning.
- Louisville, KY: Data center rezoning moratorium dies in committee.
- Athens, GA: Moratorium unanimously extended to June 5.
- Rice Township, PA: New regulations set 1,000-ft setbacks and 250K sq ft cap.
- Independence, MO: 185 signatures filed seeking referendum on Nebius project.
- Ypsilanti, MI: 60-day emergency ordinance and 365-day resolution passed.
- Urbana, OH: Council votes 6-1 for 12-month moratorium, reversing prior rejection.
- New Castle County, DE: Regulations near final vote March 10.
- NC primary shows datacenter opposition now shaping elections, $1.6M in PAC spending.
BIRMINGHAM, Alabama
📆 March 3, 2026 - 9:30 A.M Agenda
Birmingham City Council approved a 180-day moratorium on new hyperscale data centers Tuesday after a second public hearing where residents voiced opposition. The ban applies to any facility using more than 20 megawatts.
During the pause, the city will review how data centers should be defined, categorized, and regulated. No new permits, site plan approvals, or business licenses will be processed. Two projects already in the pipeline are exempt: the DC Blox expansion and Nebius's planned AI Factory on Lakeshore Parkway.
LANSING, Michigan
Lansing's Planning Commission voted to approve conditional rezoning for a 24-megawatt data center proposed by UK-based Deep Green, reversing a rejection in December.
The rezoning now heads back to City Council, with a possible final vote as early as April 6. The process hit a snag in February when a councilmember questioned whether the application was valid because Deep Green didn't yet own the land, forcing the company to resubmit.
LOUISVILLE, Kentucky
A proposed moratorium on data center rezonings in Metro Louisville died in committee Tuesday after running out its procedural clock.
Committee Chair Andrew Owen said he wasn't worried because nothing is currently in the rezoning pipeline. The only active project, a 153-acre, 400-megawatt data center by Poe Companies and PowerHouse Data Centers near Rubbertown, sits on land already zoned industrial.
Owen said he's awaiting recommendations from the Planning Commission on updating Louisville's land development code. A public hearing on the Camp Ground Road project is scheduled for Thursday.
ATHENS-CLARKE COUNTY, Georgia
Dane Artisola
Continuation from...
Athens-Clarke County commissioners voted unanimously Tuesday to extend the data center moratorium to June 5, originally set to expire March 6.
The commission also unanimously voted to hold proposed text amendments for further revision. Those amendments would classify data centers as level 3 industrial uses requiring a special use permit, mandate closed-loop cooling systems, and set noise barriers within 400 feet of property lines.
The commission's next work session is March 10.
RICE TOWNSHIP, Pennsylvania
Rice Township supervisors approved a zoning ordinance regulating data centers Tuesday in the Mountain Top community, taking a proactive approach before any developer submits an application.
The ordinance (available for download via the link) permits data centers only as a conditional use in the I-1 industrial district, with a 1,000-foot setback from residential areas. Buildings are capped at 50 feet in height and 250,000 square feet. All decisions go before the board of supervisors with a required public hearing.
INDEPENDENCE, Missouri
Dane Artisola
Continuation from...
Opponents of the multi-billion-dollar Nebius data center filed a referendum notice with the city Tuesday, one day after the council voted to approve the project.
Organizer Rachel Gonzalez submitted 20 pages with 185 signatures to the city clerk. Once verified by the Jackson County Board of Elections, the group needs to collect 3,700 signatures in 30 days to place the issue on the ballot.
YPSILANTI, Michigan
Ypsilanti City Council approved both a 60-day emergency ordinance and a 365-day resolution placing a moratorium on data centers.
No data centers are currently proposed in the city, and there likely isn't enough space for a large project. But Community Service Director Joe Meyers said a smaller facility could find a location, noting the GW Kent parcel on the city's south side is up for sale. The emergency ordinance carries the force of law and can be renewed.
URBANA, Ohio
Urbana City Council voted Tuesday to approve a 12-month moratorium on new data centers over 10,000 square feet.
A petition opposing the project has gathered nearly 8,000 signatures. The moratorium takes effect immediately once signed by the mayor. Urbana City Council’s next meeting is scheduled for March 17.
NEW CASTLE COUNTY, Delaware
New Castle County Council held a second hearing on proposed data center regulations Tuesday, with a tentative final vote on March 10.
A key sticking point: the removal of a "pending ordinance doctrine" that would have retroactively applied new rules to projects already in the pipeline, including Starwood Digital Ventures' proposed 6-million-square-foot facility in Delaware City. Starwood recently suffered a blow when state regulators ruled the project violated the Coastal Zone Act.
The amended ordinance requires closed-loop cooling systems, 1,000-foot residential setbacks (reducible to 500 feet with a noise study), and compliance with existing noise standards.
🎏Industry...
NORTH CAROLINA
Data center opposition is no longer just a zoning fight. A North Carolina congressional primary Tuesday shows the issue is now shaping elections, with candidates staking out positions on datacenter development and big tech PAC money flowing into races.
In the Durham-area fourth district, Congresswoman Valerie Foushee faces progressive challenger Nida Allam. The race centers on a proposed 190-acre data center near Apex by Maryland-based Natelli Investments. Allam opposes the project and supports a federal datacenter moratorium. Foushee says she doesn't personally favor it but believes local leaders should decide.
Jobs and Democracy, a Super PAC whose sole disclosed donor is Anthropic, has spent about $1.6 million backing Foushee since February 21. At peak demand, the Apex facility could consume up to 1 million gallons of water per day and require roughly 300 megawatts of electricity. Hundreds of residents signed an open letter urging candidates to oppose the project and reject big-tech PAC money.
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