Lexington-Fayette Urban County Council members still have questions on how data centers should be legally regulated after hearing a proposal from city planners last week.
Like many local governments across Kentucky, Fayette County officials are grappling with the prospect of future data center development as public concern grows. Developer DartPoints has announced plans to expand a data center space in the city once owned by Lexmark.
In July, the city’s planning commission recommended banning data centers larger than 40,000 square feet and limiting power generation to 25 megawatts, along with a 30-decibel noise limit and regulations around decommissioning and stormwater management.
The council has final say on what passes, however.
During a work group meeting Sept. 8 in council chambers, members questioned how equity can be ensured for residents living near data centers, how server rooms are defined and how to regulate and potential limit energy use.
“This is not about allowing the regulated use,” said council member Tyler Morton, whose district houses the proposed DartPoints project. “It's about asking whether it's being planned responsibly and equitably. Government has an obligation to learn from its history. We cannot make decisions based solely on what's technically permitted today without considering the cumulative impact of decisions made over generations.”
Proposals for data centers have cropped up across the state and the nation amid an artificial intelligence boom.
DartPoints announced its intentions earlier this year to expand a data center space owned by Lexmark after purchasing the property off New Circle Road.
Last week, the Woodford County Fiscal Court approved an ordinance banning such development there, the first county ban of its kind in the commonwealth.
At a planning commission meeting last month, Lexington residents advocated for stricter regulations and outright bans. Specifically, they voiced concerns about the vast amount of energy data centers use, effects on the environment and the industry’s ties to artificial intelligence.
Lexington planner principal Daniel Crum told council members the city would have to require a cap on electricity up front in order to track how much power such sites use. Energy generation is normally regulated by the Kentucky Public Service Commission.
“Other than mandating it as a part of a condition on a conditional use, we have very limited ability to get that information or to require that information, especially as an already operating business,” Crum said.
The planning commission’s proposal includes a separate definition for server rooms. While these largely take up the footprints of data centers, they are also spaces used in other developments, including businesses, hospitals and universities that store data on site.
City planners said they want to be cautious regulations with language restricting server rooms don’t have ramifications on those facilities. But District 10 council member Dave Sevigny says he wants more specifics on how those server rooms are defined.
“There's a lot that can fit in there, and anyone could say, ‘Well, it's for my own use. Like, this is my business,’” he said. “So I just think that you may hear from me on how to tighten that up, as well.”
A moratorium on data center development in Lexington is in place through October as council discussions continue. A public hearing is scheduled Oct. 6.
