Nashville moves to regulate large data centers before more projects advance
Mayor Freddie O’Connell signed Executive Order 59 on June 15, 2026, directing Metro departments to support a temporary moratorium on new large-scale data centers while Nashville develops a regulatory framework for how these facilities fit into local zoning and neighborhood impacts.
Residents and neighborhood advocates have pressed for clearer rules—especially around electricity and water/wastewater capacity, potential environmental effects, noise, and whether data centers can be compatible with surrounding land uses.
Executive Order 59: the “pause” effort, the impact review, and the timeline
EO 59 is effective immediately and it frames the policy work Metro departments are doing next. The order defines when a facility counts as a “large-scale data center” (including facilities that are at least 20,000 square feet, or have expected electrical demand of 5 megawatts or more, or are determined by Metro Planning to present substantial utility, infrastructure, environmental, or land-use impacts). It also points to how a moratorium must be implemented through an ordinance reviewed by the planning commission and approved by the legislative body.
EO 59 instructs departments to evaluate potential impacts across categories including:
- Infrastructure impacts such as electrical demand and grid capacity, utility reliability, public infrastructure costs, and wastewater and stormwater effects
- Environmental impacts such as energy consumption, air quality, water consumption, heat generation, and noise
- Compatibility impacts including how facilities may affect nearby residential communities and quality-of-life concerns
- Economic impacts such as public revenues/expenditures and opportunity costs
Departments are directed to provide findings and proposed policy recommendations to the Mayor’s Office of Sustainability and the Mayor’s Office of Economic Development within two months of EO 59’s effective date. The order also calls for an action plan—including conditions for ending any moratorium—to be presented to the Metro Council.
Metro Planning’s June 25 substitute framework: capacity checks, buffers, and performance standards
Metro Planning Commission staff’s June 25 staff report includes a detailed “substitute” ordinance approach that would establish zoning definitions and expectations for different data center categories, with specific emphasis on impacts residents have flagged.
1) Clear data-center categories (and limits on “campus”)
The substitute keeps “data center – campus” prohibited in the county, and creates zoning standards for “data center – small,” “data center – medium,” and “data center – large.”
2) Separation from sensitive uses and along major corridors
- Small data centers: no permit within 100 linear feet of parcels containing residential use, daycare home/center, religious institutions, community education uses, parks, zoos, or other data centers.
- Medium data centers: no permit within 500 linear feet of those types of sensitive uses.
- Medium and large data centers: staff recommends a one half-mile separation from the centerlines of Choose How You Move (CHYM)-designated All-Access Corridors.
3) Power and water/wastewater sign-offs before zoning approval
The staff substitute would require written confirmations at the time of a zoning permit application, including:
- Nashville Electric Service (NES) review/commitment: no zoning permit approval if NES has not agreed to provide electric service, and the developer would have to show NES has (or will have) capacity to serve once payment is made.
- Water and sewer capacity: the water/sewer utility would need to review the proposal and determine there is adequate capacity; no zoning approval if the utility finds insufficient water and/or sewer capacity.
4) Noise controls and monitoring
Staff’s substitute would require a noise impact assessment as part of the zoning permit application, assessed at a distance of 500 feet from the property lines. It also sets maximum permissible sound levels at 65 dB during daytime (7:01 a.m. to 9:59 p.m.) and 55 dB during nighttime (10:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m.).
5) Water use limits tied to cooling system design and a sustainability plan
The substitute includes an operational requirement that all cooling and ventilation equipment operate on a closed-loop system. It also calls for a water consumption and sustainability plan submitted prior to approval of the zoning permit—designed to show the project’s water usage would not significantly strain local and regional water supply.
6) Ongoing oversight via annual compliance reports
Staff’s substitute includes an annual compliance report requirement: the operator would have to submit a report detailing changes/continuation of assessments made during the zoning permit process, and demonstrate compliance/monitoring to the zoning administrator or designee by no later than the first of January each year.
Why residents want tighter rules
WPLN reported that Nashville’s first public hearing on proposed data-center regulations drew hundreds of residents, including speakers raising concerns about air, water, and noise pollution and asking Metro to “put some commonsense legislation” in place before more projects advance.
The policy direction in the EO and the planning substitute tracks those concerns with explicit categories for infrastructure, environmental effects, community compatibility, and enforceable standards—rather than treating data centers as if they behave like typical office or warehouse uses.
Where the moratorium stands: BL2026-1448 is scheduled for a July 7 public hearing
The Metro Council’s legislative record for BL2026-1448 describes a temporary moratorium on how Metro handles certain permits for data center developments. In the Legistar record, BL2026-1448 is listed as a public hearing item on July 7, 2026 (it was created June 8, passed on first reading June 9, and advertised June 12).
If enacted, BL2026-1448 would place a hold on the acceptance, processing, approval, and issuance of zoning, building, or grading permits for “data center developments” by the Metropolitan Department of Codes Administration and the Metropolitan Water Services Department within Nashville & Davidson County until November 1, 2026 or until the effective date of BL2026-1391 and BL2026-1392, whichever occurs first.
The bill’s definition of “data center development” includes not only the server-focused facility but also accessory infrastructure such as cooling systems, power generators, electrical substations, and network hardware. The text also directs the Clerk to publish notice within five days following final passage, and says the ordinance would take effect upon publication of that notice.
What to watch next (and how to participate)
For residents and neighborhood stakeholders, the key next decision point is Metro Council’s July 7 public hearing on BL2026-1448. For anyone tracking the regulatory framework itself, the June 25 staff substitute lays out how Nashville is trying to define data-center types and attach performance and capacity expectations.
A practical next step: review the EO text, the June 25 staff substitute details, and the BL2026-1448 legislative record so it’s clear what is being paused, what requirements are proposed, and what opportunities for public comment may come next.
Sources
- Nashville Mayor’s Office: Mayor Freddie O’Connell signs data centers Executive Order (EO 59) — media release
- Metro Council Legistar: BL2026-1448 (temporary moratorium on data center permits)
- WPLN News: Tennessee communities are blocking data centers — Nashville could be next
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