Butner adopts temporary moratorium on data‑center approvals to allow rules review

Butner’s Town Council adopted a temporary moratorium on accepting, processing and approving applications for data centers, data‑processing facilities and cryptocurrency‑mining operations at its July 2 meeting, citing the absence of specific local regulations and the need for a public planning process.

Town Manager Jordan opened the public hearing required by North Carolina General Statute 160D‑107 and told the council the moratorium would pause permitting while the planning board and staff study the issue, draft standards and hold public input sessions. Council Member Benoy moved to adopt the ordinance (26‑07‑01); Council Member Lane seconded, and the motion passed on a voice vote.

Why it matters: speakers at the public hearing — including local health and environmental professionals, business owners and residents — urged careful review of potential impacts on power, water supply, forests, noise, lighting, stormwater and long‑term community character. Nurse practitioner Sonia Leven said a pause lets the town “slow down, study the risks, set strong standards” and emphasized that “a pause is not a no.” Data‑center architect Ron Howell urged officials to “do the study” first because proposed facilities vary widely in scale and technology and mitigation options such as on‑site generation or closed‑loop cooling can alter impacts.

What the ordinance does and next steps: town staff and the planning board will use the moratorium period to draft zoning language, special‑use criteria and performance standards (for setbacks, noise, water and wastewater, lighting and other controls) and hold public engagement sessions. Council and the town attorney discussed making the initial moratorium period shorter and easier to defend; staff indicated six months would be a reasonable starting point with the option to extend if needed. The town attorney advised that a citizens’ advisory committee can be formed separate from the ordinance to ensure public input while the planning board performs the formal review.

Public comment highlights: residents raised concerns about water consumption, noise and health risks; some urged keeping development away from residential neighborhoods. Speakers asked the council to require special‑use permits for any future data‑center proposals, require environmental impact analyses and reserve such facilities for remote industrial zones with buffers from homes and schools. At least one commenter urged the town to seek guarantees about long‑term tax revenues and contractual protections if a large corporate operator later vacates a site.

Limitations and authority: the moratorium does not, by itself, prohibit projects already under review and does not create final regulations; it pauses the town’s processing of new applications so staff can propose rules consistent with state law. The town referenced N.C. Gen. Stat. 160D‑107 during the hearing and said the moratorium is a legal mechanism to buy time to update local land‑use ordinances.

What comes next: staff will coordinate with the planning board and regional partners, draft proposed ordinance language for council consideration, and schedule public workshops and hearings. If the planning board or council determines more time is needed, the moratorium can be extended under the legal process explained during the meeting.

The council took the final vote by voice and announced the moratorium was in effect that evening.