Cave City approves data center moratorium. What now?
Over the next year, the city council plans to research the issue and gather community input on data centers, with plans underway to form a committee to study the issue further.
CAVE CITY, Ky. — City officials voted Wednesday evening to enact a temporary pause on potential data center development proposals in Cave City.
The ordinance, which establishes a one-year moratorium on development activity, passed its first reading Monday and received final approval Wednesday.
Council members Andrew Bagshaw, Leticia Cline, Clifton Parsley and Ronald Coffey voted in favor of the measure. Denny Doyle voted against it both times, previously stating he would support a data center in Cave City.
Brennan Crain
The measure temporarily halts the acceptance and processing of new applications for zoning permits, conditional use permits, site plans and building permits related to data center development.
Data centers are large-scale facilities used to store and manage digital information. The moratorium applies specifically to developments such as server farms, cloud computing facilities and co-location data centers.
Planning and Zoning Director Kevin Myatt previously noted across Barren County, municipalities rely on comprehensive plans to guide long-term growth and development.
Cave City’s plan does not include specific language addressing data centers, and its zoning ordinance also lacks regulations governing such projects.
Brennan Crain
Mayor Dwayne Hatcher said he is not aware of any development plans submitted to construct a data center. Any proposals must go before the Planning and Zoning Commission for consideration.
Over the next year, the city council plans to research the issue and gather community input on data centers, with plans underway to form a committee to study the issue further.
“We all need more information,” Hatcher said. “That will be the goal — to get rid of the hearsay and whatever's out there to hopefully be able to give us time to find out details, good or bad, of the data center.”
Hatcher said he hopes to include at least two citizens on the committee, along with council members. He said he plans to consult with council members and City Attorney Bobby Richardson on how the committee should be structured.
It has not yet been determined whether citizens will be appointed or allowed to volunteer. The mayor said he expects the committee to be in place by the June 8 council meeting.
The previous three city council meetings have been packed and at standing room only, with several heated remarks from residents, including calls for an outright ban on data centers.
Not as many residents turned out for Wednesday’s meeting, which lasted about three minutes.
