Nashville data-center fight: Mayor’s order, zoning rules, and DC BLOX land deal

Metro Nashville is moving to tighten how “data center” projects are reviewed—using a mayoral executive order to drive department impact reviews, while Metro Council considers zoning changes and a temporary pause on certain data-center permits. The push is colliding with reported DC BLOX closing on a site next to the Nashville Zoo, raising the stakes for neighbors as council votes proceed.

Mayor O’Connell’s Executive Order 59 sets up the policy work

Mayor Freddie O’Connell’s Executive Order 59 (effective and issued June 15, 2026) is designed to support the “expedited consideration” of a temporary moratorium on new large-scale data center development while Metro builds a regulatory framework and review/permitting process.

The order also defines what Metro will treat as a “large-scale data center” for this policy work. Under the executive order, it includes facilities whose principal purpose is operating servers and similar digital infrastructure, and that either are at least 20,000 square feet, have expected electrical demand of 5 megawatts or more, or are determined by the Department of Planning (with other Metro departments/agencies) to present substantial impacts.

Executive Order 59 directs multiple Metro departments to evaluate potential impacts—including Codes Administration, Health, Planning, Transportation and Multimodal Infrastructure, Water and Sewerage Services, and Nashville Electric Service—and to deliver policy recommendations within two months of the order’s effective date to the Mayor’s Office of Sustainability and the Mayor’s Office of Economic Development.

It’s important context: this is executive direction to support legislation and policy planning—not a zoning or permitting change on its own.

BL2026-1391 would define data-center tiers and add buffer and sound limits

Metro Council’s zoning bill, BL2026-1391, aims to create a dedicated data-center regulatory framework by adding new defined “data center” use types to the zoning code. The ordinance’s analysis notes that “data center” is not currently a separately classified use; it says the Zoning Administrator classifies data centers as a general office use.

BL2026-1391 creates five categories—data center – accessory, data center – small, data center – medium, data center – large, and data center – campus—with different approval pathways and restrictions.

Distance buffers near homes and sensitive uses (including the Zoo)

For residents weighing where a project might be allowed, the bill’s proximity limits are likely the most immediately actionable parts of the zoning text:

Data center – small: restricted from locating on parcels within 100 feet of parcels containing a residential use, daycare home, daycare center, religious institution, community education use, park, zoo, or other data center. ([nashville.legistar.com](Nashville))
Data center – medium: restricted from locating on parcels within 500 feet of parcels containing the same listed sensitive uses (including park and zoo). ([nashville.legistar.com](Nashville))
Data center – large: restricted from locating on parcels within 2,640 feet (about 1/2 mile) of parcels containing the same listed sensitive uses (including park and zoo). ([nashville.legistar.com](Nashville))

Sound limits and a required noise impact assessment

BL2026-1391 also proposes maximum permissible sound levels measured from any property line, capped at:

65 decibels during daytime hours (7:01 a.m. to 9:59 p.m.)
55 decibels during nighttime hours (10:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m.)

The ordinance further requires a noise impact assessment as part of the zoning permit application, assessed at a distance of 500 feet from the property line of the parcel(s) containing the data center.

Large data centers would require an additional public hearing step

The bill also proposes that “data center – large” would be permitted by special exception in certain zoning districts, which would require approval from the Board of Zoning Appeals—including a public hearing.

BL2026-1448 would temporarily pause covered data-center permits

Alongside the zoning rewrite, Metro Council is considering a moratorium measure: BL2026-1448. The ordinance would declare a moratorium on the acceptance, processing, approval, and issuance of zoning, building, or grading permits by the Metropolitan Department of Codes Administration and the Metropolitan Water Services Department for covered data-center development within Nashville & Davidson County.

The moratorium would run until November 1, 2026 or the effective date of BL2026-1391 and BL2026-1392—whichever occurs first.

How Metro Council handled public input for the July 7 hearing

Metro Council’s Office published additional procedures for the July 7, 2026 meeting and public hearings. For the data-center bills, the notice describes:

A ticketed queuing system for the data center public hearing items. ([nashville.gov](Nashville))
Speaker tickets issued beginning at 5 p.m. ([nashville.gov](Nashville))
Council chamber seating opening to the public at 5:30 p.m. ([nashville.gov](Nashville))
BL2026-1391 (zoning) and BL2026-1448 (moratorium) being the final items in the public hearing section of the agenda. ([nashville.gov](Nashville))
Speakers for the data-center items heard in ticketed order, with up to two minutes per speaker. ([nashville.gov](Nashville))

Reported DC BLOX closing next to the Zoo adds urgency

On July 17, 2026, WSMV reported that DC BLOX closed on the purchase of property next to the Nashville Zoo where the company proposed building a data center. WSMV said Axios reported DC BLOX paid $23 million for roughly 23 acres, and that an attorney for DC BLOX told Axios the company notified Zoo leadership before closing and filed a new building permit application as the property’s new owner.

WSMV also reported that the Zoo said it still has not received information it believes would ensure there are no long-term risks to its animals—and that the Zoo is urging continued public contact as Metro Council prepares to take up final votes on Tuesday on legislation that could prevent a data center from being built next to the Zoo.

Even while the precise outcomes can’t be assumed, the practical point for residents and nearby businesses is clear: if the moratorium is enacted and becomes effective under its terms, it would pause acceptance, processing, approval, and issuance of covered data-center permits during the interim window.

What nearby residents and businesses should watch next

As the Metro Council timeline advances, the biggest “checklist” items for anyone affected by the zoning/moratorium changes are:

Where projects could be allowed under BL2026-1391—especially the 100-foot / 500-foot / 2,640-foot proximity limits tied to residential and other sensitive uses, including park and zoo. ([nashville.legistar.com](Nashville))
Noise standards and the noise impact assessment requirement (including how assessments are evaluated). ([nashville.legistar.com](Nashville))
Whether the moratorium is triggered and effective, and when it ends—under its Nov. 1, 2026 / effective-date “whichever occurs first” rule. ([nashville.legistar.com](Nashville))

Because DC BLOX’s reported ownership change is paired with a reported new permit application filing, residents and nearby businesses may also want to keep an eye on Metro Codes Administration and Metro Water permitting activity through the legislative and moratorium transition period—so they understand what steps are paused versus what steps can still move forward.

Sources

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