Kingston Springs advances temporary moratorium on high-resource facilities while studying data center regulations

The Kingston Springs Board of Commissioners voted July 16 to approve on first reading a temporary 12-month moratorium on applications for "high resource usage facilities," giving town officials time to develop permanent zoning regulations for projects such as data centers.

The ordinance, originally recommended by the Kingston Springs Planning Commission on July 9 with an 18-month timeline, was amended by the Board of Commissioners to shorten the moratorium to 12 months before passing unanimously.

Town officials emphasized throughout both meetings that the proposal is not a ban on data centers or other developments, but rather a pause intended to allow the town to study how facilities with unusually high demands for electricity, water and other utilities could affect Kingston Springs.

The discussion follows increasing statewide attention on data centers, including new legislation passed by the Tennessee General Assembly addressing some aspects of electric consumption. Local officials said additional state action related to water use could be considered next year.

City Planner Sharon Armstrong told the Planning Commission the town currently lacks regulations specifically addressing facilities with exceptionally high resource demands.

"We're not passing legislation or recommending the passage of legislation today," Armstrong said. "This is a moratorium. A moratorium is a temporary toll on certain types of development to give you time to address it."

She said outright prohibitions are unlikely to withstand legal scrutiny, noting numerous Tennessee communities have faced legal challenges after attempting to ban certain developments entirely.

"The goal is that development, in most cases, unless it's just lethally offensive, can be accommodated somewhere," Armstrong said. "The odds of regulating it outright are pretty low."

Instead, Armstrong recommended the town focus future regulations on issues such as resource consumption and location.

She also advised against extending the moratorium beyond 18 months, explaining that state law requires local governments to demonstrate a legitimate community concern while actively working toward a permanent solution.

Planning Commissioner Chair Tony Gross supported the longer timeline, saying it would allow Kingston Springs to monitor pending court cases and additional state legislation.

"I like the idea of 18 just because we really want to see how these play out in court," Gross said.

Other commissioners stressed that the moratorium should be used as an active planning period rather than simply delaying action.

"It seems to imply that we're putting a moratorium in place so we can study and plan," Commissioner Mike Patenaude said.

Armstrong responded that the Planning Commission's upcoming training sessions will focus specifically on the issue, including evolving technology and pending legislation.

At the July 16 Board of Commissioners meeting, City Manager John Lawless said the moratorium would give the town "breathing room" to research and draft permanent amendments to the zoning ordinance.

Lawless noted the town has not received an application for a high-resource facility.

Mayor Todd Verhoven asked whether there was a current proposal before the town.

"We don't have anything that's passed before the planning commission or an application that's been received as of yet," Lawless replied.

Board members spent much of their discussion clarifying what would qualify as a high-resource facility and whether the ordinance could unintentionally restrict desirable economic development.

The ordinance defines a high-resource usage facility as a building or site placing heavy demands on public infrastructure through unusually high consumption of water, electricity or other utilities.

Vice Mayor Mike Hargis questioned whether the 18-month timeline was necessary and expressed concern about delaying projects that could benefit the town's tax base.

"I don't want to wait 18 months," Hargis said.

Verhoven said the intent was not to discourage economic development.

"The intention wasn't to squelch any kind of good growth," Verhoven said. "What it was is to protect the city from something coming in under our current zoning regulations that is going to hamper the city long term."

Hargis said he supported a shorter moratorium to allow the town to move more quickly on permanent regulations while still protecting local resources.

The board amended the ordinance to reduce the moratorium from 18 months to 12 months before approving it unanimously on first reading.

If ultimately adopted, the temporary moratorium will allow town staff and the Planning Commission to study infrastructure capacity, environmental impacts, noise, utility demands and emerging state regulations before proposing permanent zoning standards for high-resource developments.