Gallatin council set to vote on six-month data center pause

Gallatin City Council will vote on a six-month pause for new data center projects at its meeting on Tuesday, November 3. The vote concerns Ordinance No. O26Ø9-67, which aims to stop the acceptance and processing of new applications during that period. This action follows a period of local debate over the environmental and financial costs associated with large-scale data facilities.

The proposal is not a one-year ban. Council members first introduced the idea in September. However, they amended the text before the September 15 meeting. That revised version, which shortens the timeline to six months, passed its first reading at that session. The current vote represents the second and final reading for the ordinance.

The ordinance includes specific administrative changes. It requires a revision to the local zoning ordinance to clearly define the term "data center." This change is intended to prevent confusion with other telecommunications businesses. The text also grants the city the ability to sever existing applications. Additionally, it sets a specific effective date for the moratorium to begin.

Council members stated the pause allows time to properly evaluate the potential impacts of additional facilities. The goal is to create a suitable set of regulations before new projects move forward. Several other Tennessee counties, including Davidson, Lawrence, Wilson, Shelby, and Johnson, have already approved similar moratoriums. Sumner County also recently joined this group despite already hosting a major facility.

Gallatin is currently home to a massive Meta data center campus. The site covers more than 900 acres. Residents living near the campus have reported that the facility creates disruptive noise. They have also noted that runoff from the site floods neighboring properties. The city annexed more than 100 acres of land near this campus earlier this month, though the specific purpose for that land has not been stated.

The council meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, November 3, at 6 p.m. If the ordinance passes, the city will begin the six-month clock to study the industry and draft new rules. The vote follows a trend seen across the state where local governments are seeking to manage the rapid growth of data infrastructure.