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Article by Olivia Lupia, Tennessee Conservative News –
The Memphis City Council passed a resolution on Tuesday that asks certain departments and agencies to help develop policy recommendations to establish guardrails around data center development as the city works to strike a balance between economic benefits and constituent concerns.
Sponsored by Councilmember Yolanda Cooper-Sutton, the resolution asks agencies and departments, like Memphis Light Gas, and Water, to develop “comprehensive data center standards to protect Memphis residents, ratepayers, and public resources.”
“Whereas, the Memphis City Council finds that a uniform, transparent, and enforceable framework is necessary to protect public health, environmental justice communities, utility reliability, the Memphis Sand Aquifer, taxpayers, ratepayers, and the long-term fiscal interests of the City of Memphis,” it reads.
This resolution comes after the council passed a different ordinance on Oct. 20 which instituted a 135-day moratorium on approval of data center applications to give city officials more time to study the effects and demands of such facilities and craft future zoning and development regulations.
During the pause, the Division of Planning and Development will craft recommendations for where future development can occur, suggest how these facilities will be defined in future, develop expansion standards, and draft amendments to the city’s Unified Development Code.
Alongside the new resolution, city leaders will have over four months to devise guardrails before approving any new developments, a concern expressed by many citizens.
“I am for delaying data centers’ foothold in Memphis for as long as possible,” said one resident. “It’s a little tricky with these ordinances because we don’t actually have anything in place stopping [data centers] right now.”
And one more ordinance surrounding data centers passed a second reading which seeks to create a nonprofit community benefit agency responsible for overseeing and distributing funding tied to certain community benefit agreements with data center projects. Proponents say the nonprofit would help provide transparency and accountability by ensuring the funds are appropriately managed and directed to the community.
Any regulations that are proposed as a result of the ordinances will have to face future discussion, revision, and approval by the council, so the conversation surrounding data centers is still far from over in Memphis though it does appear a total ban or permanent moratorium is off the table for now.
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About the Author: Olivia Lupia is a political refugee from Colorado who now calls Tennessee home. A proud follower of Christ, she views all political happenings through a Biblical lens and aims to utilize her knowledge and experience to educate and equip others. Olivia is an outspoken conservative who has run for local office, managed campaigns, and been highly involved with state & local GOPs, state legislatures, and other grassroots organizations and movements. Olivia can be reached at olivia@tennesseeconservativenews.com.
