Woodford County is looking to block data center construction as developers eye Kentucky.
The Woodford County Fiscal Court unanimously voted Tuesday to direct the county attorney to draft an ordinance that would block data centers from being developed and operated in unincorporated areas.
The group also passed a motion requesting the county’s planning commission review its zoning and land-use regulations.
“I think it's important to the community that we have these kinds of protections, and particularly in Midway. We're forward-thinking communities, but we're also communities that care deeply about land use and how that impacts our quality of life,” said Woodford County Magistrate Liles Taylor, who introduced the two motions.
There are no data center projects publicly proposed for Woodford County, but officials worry such projects could strain the area’s resources.
The county is working on the draft alongside the city of Midway. Mayor Grayson Vandegrift told WEKU he’s concerned about the large amounts of energy large data centers can consume.
“I don't know that there's any data centers looking at Midway, but I know with communications I've had with (Kentucky Utilities) that Midway has been identified as a place that has high-voltage power running through it, and that's because in our industrial park, which we call Midway Station, we have those big high-voltage towers,” he said.
Woodford County Judge-Executive James Kay said at the Tuesday meeting he wants to be proactive to preserve the county’s farmland.
“We need jobs, but we do not need to develop farmland in order to provide industrial opportunities,” Kay told the fiscal court, “and we know that there are industrial opportunities, we know that there are data centers and battery storage centers that are looking at central Kentucky communities.”
The court will review the ordinance at its July 14 meeting. Last week, the Woodford County town of Versailles enacted a data center moratorium through Dec. 31. It was modeled after the one put in place by Lexington officials earlier this month.
Data center companies have considered projects in Fayette, Boyd, Mercer and Mason counties.
