Description
The proposed zoning rules for data centers (Case No. 25-LDC-0014) stayed held in committee while the committee took educational testimony from experts.
Impact summary
Will determine how, where, and under what noise, water, and power protections future data centers can be built across Louisville.
At a glance
- Hearings
- 3
- Public comments
- 0
- Total mentions
- 2
Last vote · Planning & Zoning Commission
Discussed at 2 meetings in the last 60 days; most recently Oct 6, 2026.
Meeting timeline (2)
Planning and Zoning Committee — October 6, 2026
Citywide text amendments setting rules for data centers — size thresholds, noise standards, decommissioning plans — remain in committee pending further expert input and amendments.
Metro Council — September 10, 2026
The Council took up the long-debated data center zoning rules on first reading, sending the ordinance to the Planning and Zoning Committee with the Planning Commission's conceptual approval in hand.
Related issues (4)
Temporary moratorium on data center approvals
An architect with the Renewable Energy Alliance urged the council to extend its data center moratorium and study the Campground Road project, handing over a checklist of alleged legal loopholes in the current ordinance.
Data center regulations (LDC Text Amendment 25-LDC-0014)
New Land Development Code rules would set noise limits (65 dBA), quarter-mile separations between large data centers, closed-loop cooling, and decommissioning plans. The commission split 5-3 after roughly 20 hours of public testimony across four hearings.
Data center regulations and development moratorium
Rules for the booming data center industry were formally introduced and sent to the Planning and Zoning Committee. Speakers want strong protections on electric rates, water use, noise, and renewable energy.
Data center zoning regulations (Case No. 25-LDC-0014)
Louisville is deciding where big data centers can go and how tightly to regulate them. The current draft allows large data centers only in M1 industrial zones with a conditional use permit, while an alternative would create a brand-new data center zoning district usable anywhere in the county. If the council passes nothing before the moratorium lapses, the old loose rules come back.
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