Kentucky’s two largest cities are taking steps to restrict data centers.
A draft ordinance in Louisville, revealed Tuesday, would ban hyperscale data centers and limit smaller centers to industrial areas.
Developers would need to prove costs wouldn’t shift to ratepayers, and would be required to pay for any needed infrastructure improvements, under the proposed ordinance.
Any data center construction would also need to be “environmentally low-impact” and sites would need to meet noise standards and need to be substantially separated from homes and schools.
Louisville’s ordinance is now in a 30-day public comment period, and then it will head to the full metro council for consideration. Louisville residents can leave comments online using this form.
Meanwhile in Lexington, the Lexington Fayette Urban County Council implemented a data center moratorium from now until Oct. 31, pausing all new applications and zoning changes for data centers while they work on further regulations.
These steps come as local leaders across the commonwealth are weighing just what to do about data centers. Kentucky doesn’t have statewide data center regulations, so local leaders are weighing their own regulations and moratoriums.
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