Data Centers: Weekly Briefing // August 17 - 20, 2026

📋 This Week's Decisions

Just Passed ✔️

State Legislation

• Pennsylvania: Gov. Josh Shapiro signed an executive order requiring data center developers to prove local government approval before the state will issue permits, after the legislature failed to pass his broader Responsible Infrastructure Development requirements. Shapiro said the state has roughly 100 pending proposals, only five of which hold permits, and called many of them poorly planned.

Moratoriums Approved

• Alamance County, NC: Commissioners voted unanimously to enact a one-year moratorium on data center development following an Aug. 17 hearing where more than 23 residents spoke in favor of the pause. The moratorium requires commissioners to revisit it at least 30 days before it expires in August 2027.
• Spokane County, WA: Commissioners unanimously approved a four-month moratorium on new data center permits, replacing an earlier nine-month proposal that had split the board 3-2, to give staff time to draft zoning regulations.
• Tulare County, CA: The Board of Supervisors approved a 45-day moratorium on data center development in unincorporated areas, though organizers immediately said they'll keep pushing for a permanent ban. The vote comes as the county fair board separately weighs a proposed edge-computing partnership with Global Stack at the fairgrounds.
• Kalamazoo, MI: The City Commission voted to approve a resolution leading to a one-year moratorium on data centers, joining several other West Michigan communities; some residents say they'd prefer a permanent ban instead.

Regulations Passed

• Bayonne, NJ: The City Council unanimously approved a prohibition on data centers, and Mayor Sharon Ashe-Nadrowski signed it Aug. 13, capping months of grassroots opposition that helped define the mayor's winning election campaign in May.
• Nye County, NV: Commissioners voted 5-0 to ban data centers in the Pahrump Valley and Basin 162 after more than two hours of public comment, while separately setting a public hearing on a companion bill that would create land-use rules for data centers in the rest of the county.
• Chesapeake, VA: City Council unanimously approved a data center zoning ordinance limiting new facilities to conditional uses in industrial areas, closing by-right development loopholes and banning groundwater use, while the city's eight-month application pause remains in effect.

Projects Denied/Withdrawn

• Franklin County, VA: Officials confirmed Project Flash, a proposed data center at Summit View Business Park, is no longer moving forward, following strained negotiations with developer Crusoe and unanimous opposition from more than 40 speakers at an earlier community meeting.
• Raleigh, NC: A proposed 100,000-square-foot data center will not move forward after the applicant withdrew its annexation request following community opposition and skepticism from several council members.

💬 Catch Up on Discussions

• Memphis, TN: A city councilman is set to introduce an ordinance creating a temporary data center moratorium, co-sponsored by three colleagues, to give planners time to study infrastructure and environmental impacts before recommending permanent zoning rules.
• Granbury, TX: Residents are asking a Texas appeals court to revive a recall effort targeting the mayor and four council members over their handling of the roughly 2,000-acre Project Patriot data center, after the city rejected recall petitions citing incomplete addresses. An expedited court schedule could put the recall on the November ballot.
• Keller, TX: City Council voted unanimously to take legal action against neighboring Westlake over a proposed 1.1 million-square-foot data center planned 506 feet from Keller homes, and began the process for a 90-day local moratorium. Westlake defended the project, saying it sits in an industrial zone and would boost town revenue 14%.
• Spartanburg County, SC: Council unanimously delayed a final vote on a proposed 12-month moratorium until Sept. 21, to gather more input on whether a broader pause is needed. If approved, it wouldn't affect the $2.8 billion NorthMark data center already under construction, which is also facing a separate lawsuit over county land-use compliance.
• El Paso County, TX: Commissioners Court approved a resolution and sent Gov. Greg Abbott a letter seeking expanded state protections, since the county falls outside ERCOT and wasn't covered by Abbott's earlier order pausing new grid-connection approvals. The resolution also calls for a local development pause and asks Abbott to consider a special legislative session.
• Greensboro, NC: Residents packed a public hearing after council enacted a 120-day data center moratorium, with many holding signs reading "32" and pushing for the pause to be extended to 32 months to allow time for environmental studies.
• Harrington, DE: City Council unanimously rejected an ordinance that would have allowed data centers as a conditional use in the manufacturing zone, following nearly an hour of public comment from residents worried about water, sewer and electrical infrastructure.
• Tulsa County, OK: Google confirmed it's the end user behind Project Clydesdale, a 506-acre data center campus under construction near Owasso, ending months of speculation; opponent Cheyenne Morgan said residents had no genuine input before the project's rezoning more than a year ago.
• Butte-Silver Bow County, MT: A district court judge is weighing additional briefing before ruling on a lawsuit over the county clerk's rejection of signatures for a data center ballot initiative, after the group 406 People First submitted 3,652 signatures that were later rejected under a 2025 state law; a decision is expected next week.
• Piedmont, OK: Residents are gathering signatures on three citizen initiative petitions aimed at blocking or requiring a public vote on the proposed "Project Open Sky" data center, ahead of a council vote on its rezoning application Monday. The developer says the project would use closed-loop cooling rather than continuous water draw.
• Austin, TX city leaders are weighing new data center regulations covering siting, water efficiency, noise and lighting for larger facilities, with a council work session set for Aug. 25 and possible Land Development Code amendments beginning Aug. 27.
• Anderson County, SC was set to take final action on a six-month data center moratorium at its Aug. 18 meeting, part of a busy agenda that also included a separate $28.2 million Arthrex expansion incentive.
• Mason, MI council members continue weighing a citizen-initiated noise ordinance tied to a proposed hyperscale data center in nearby Vevay Township, after passing a stricter version earlier this year specifically to keep the issue off the ballot.
• Wixom, MI City Council voted 4-3 to advance revisions to its data center zoning rules while its 180-day moratorium remains in effect, following a 54-acre, three-building proposal from Wixom Industrial One and Sansone Group.
• Crestview, FL City Council voted 4-0 to direct the city manager to draft an ordinance prohibiting data center development, a procedural step toward a potential ban rather than a final decision.
• St. Joseph, MO City Council voted down a resolution, 3-6, to create a citizens data center advisory committee, with opponents arguing existing committees already handle the issue.
• Caddo Parish, LA: A commissioner pushed for a resolution establishing a two-year pause on tax incentives for data center projects, though the parish attorney said it isn't legally sufficient without a master plan in place first.
• Hanford, CA issued a statement opposing data center facilities proposed without meaningful local review, while reiterating its existing General Plan prohibition on data centers remains in place.
• North Mankato, MN City Council continued refining a proposed moratorium targeting facilities over 150,000 square feet or 50,000 gallons of daily water use, with a public hearing and council vote still to come.
• Elkhart County, IN held the first reading of a proposed moratorium on data centers and battery storage facilities, with a public comment period and vote scheduled for Aug. 27.
• Maquoketa, IA officials and a development consultant ended preliminary discussions about a potential data center at the South Highway 61 Industrial Park, while planning to review Heavy Industrial District regulations for future proposals.
• Trumbull, CT residents are seeking a one-year moratorium on new or expanded data centers and have gathered more than 1,460 signatures, even as the town considers a $100 million modernization of its existing facility that officials say wouldn't expand its footprint or resource use.
• Bay City, MI's planning commission is reviewing draft data center regulations covering size, power demand, water use and noise, after forming a subcommittee to study the ordinance further and revisit it in October.
• St. Joseph County, IN: A vote to expand the county's AM General TIF District to include the Microsoft data center project was postponed to Sept. 22, after a councilwoman raised concerns the arrangement would lock the project's tax revenue away from broader county benefit.
• Sioux Falls, SD Mayor Christine Erickson said she opposes a data center moratorium, preferring clear regulatory guardrails over signaling the city is "not open for business."

📅 Upcoming Meetings

• Piedmont, OK: City Council vote on the Project Open Sky rezoning, Aug. 24.
• Austin, TX: Council work session on new data center regulations, Aug. 25.
• Elkhart County, IN: Public comment period and vote on the moratorium, Aug. 27.
• Spartanburg County, SC: Rescheduled final vote on the moratorium, Sept. 21.
• St. Joseph County, IN: Vote on the AM General TIF District expansion, Sept. 22.
• Granbury, TX: Possible recall election, pending the court's schedule, November.

👀 In case you missed it...

Read something interesting from this weekly briefing? You can read more about it below.

Data Centers: Daily Notes | August 20, 2026

Tulsa County is seeing Google confirmed as the end user behind Project Clydesdale; Bay City is developing data center zoning standards; Nye County, Nevada banned data centers; Butte-Silver Bow County; St. Joseph County; Tulare County; Piedmont; Austin; Sioux Falls. READ MORE.

Strisker - Short-term rental and data center regulationsGenelaine Urbano

Data Centers: Daily Notes | August 19, 2026

Pennsylvania is tightening data center; Kalamazoo approved a resolution; Keller is pursuing legal action against neighboring Westlake; Spokane County approved a four-month moratorium; Maquoketa; Chesapeake; Tulare County; Trumbull. READ MORE.

Strisker - Short-term rental and data center regulationsGenelaine Urbano

Data Centers: Daily Notes | August 18, 2026

Spartanburg County delayed a final vote on a proposed 12-month data center moratorium; St. Joseph rejected a proposal to create a citizen data center advisory committee; Alamance County; Caddo Parish; Harrington; Hanford; North Mankato; Elkhart County; El Paso; Greensboro. READ MORE.

Strisker - Short-term rental and data center regulationsGenelaine Urbano

Data Centers: Daily Notes | August 17, 2026

Franklin County canceled Project Flash; Memphis is preparing a temporary moratorium on new data center development; Anderson County is set to consider a six-month moratorium on new data center applications; Mason; Wixom; Raleigh; Crestview; Granbury; Bayonne. READ MORE.

Strisker - Short-term rental and data center regulationsGenelaine Urbano

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