The Greensboro City Council has scheduled a public hearing for August 17 to consider a proposed 120-day moratorium on data centers exceeding 10 megawatts of electrical power, following a unanimous 9-0 vote on August 3 to initiate the formal process required before such a measure can be adopted.

What the Moratorium Would Cover

If adopted, the moratorium would temporarily pause the acceptance, processing, and approval of development applications for data centers, data storage and processing facilities, and similar uses where electrical power demand exceeds 10 megawatts.

The measure would not be permanent but would instead create a window for city officials to conduct a more thorough examination of the industry's potential effects on the city.

The public hearing will take place on Monday, August 17, at 4 p.m. in the Katie Dorsett Council Chamber at the Melvin Municipal Office Building, located at 300 W. Washington St. in Greensboro, North Carolina.

Council's Stated Rationale

Mayor Marikay Abuzuaiter framed the proposed pause as a responsible step toward ensuring the city has a full picture before making longer-term decisions about data center development.

"Our Council has received questions from our community about data centers that deserve to be answered," Abuzuaiter said. "A 120-day moratorium allows us to gather facts, hear from the public, and make informed decisions.

As a Council, we owe it to our residents to ensure growth is thoughtful, strategic, and in Greensboro's long-term best interest."

The mayor's remarks reflect the council's position that community concerns have already been raised and that a formal review period is warranted before development in this sector continues to move forward under existing processes.

Areas of Study During the Moratorium Period

Should the moratorium be adopted following the public hearing, the city has outlined several areas it intends to examine during the 120-day period.

These include the potential infrastructure, utility, electrical grid, environmental, and land-use impacts associated with large-scale data center development.

The council also indicated it plans to hold a series of work sessions during the moratorium period, during which subject matter experts representing a range of perspectives would be invited to present information.

In addition, the city intends to review best practices adopted by other communities that have already grappled with similar questions about data center development and its municipal impacts.

Potential Changes to Land Development Ordinance

The information gathered during the moratorium period is intended to inform potential amendments to Greensboro's Land Development Ordinance.

The city has not specified what those amendments might look like, but the stated goal is to use the study period to develop a more informed policy framework for evaluating and regulating data center development going forward.

The 10-megawatt threshold written into the proposed moratorium draws a line specifically around large-scale facilities, suggesting that smaller data operations below that power demand level would not be affected by the pause.

Unanimous Council Vote Triggers Formal Process

The 9-0 vote taken on August 3 was not a vote to adopt the moratorium outright but rather to begin the formal procedural steps required under city rules before such a measure can be enacted.

The public hearing on August 17 represents the next step in that process, giving residents and other stakeholders a formal opportunity to provide comment before the council takes any final action.

The unanimous nature of the August 3 vote indicates broad agreement among council members that the formal review process should proceed, though final adoption of the moratorium would follow the public hearing and any additional deliberation by the council.