By Tabitha Evans Moore | Editor & Publisher
LYNCHBURG, Tenn. — It’s gearing up to be the political hot potato of 2026 and on Tuesday, the Metro Planning and Zoning Commission will discuss what’s in Moore County’s best interests when it comes to the possibility of an AI data center coming to Lynchburg, again.
During the January meeting, the seven-member Commission voted unanimously to recommend an AI datacenter moratorium in Metro Moore County for five years. All five members present — Chair Dexter Golden, Jim Crawford, Jeff Ross, Scott Fruehauf, and Bobby Carroll –voted in favor. Jimmy Hammond and Angelica Lightfoot were absent from the meeting.
Then during the Metro Council meeting, Golden presented the Planning Commissions’ recommendation to the full council. Though no formal motion or vote was entered into the record, the bulk of the council seemed to be in agreement that it’s a topic they’d like the Planning Commission to pursue.
As such, it appears on the February Metro Planning agenda under old business as members are now tasked with creating guidelines for the Council to approve.
For those not following the topic in Tennessee, AI data centers are large, industrial-scale facilities filled with servers that store data and run artificial intelligence systems, requiring enormous amounts of electricity, water for cooling, and round-the-clock operation. AI computing is significantly more energy-intensive than traditional data storage.
No current projects have approached the Commission about potential permissions to develop an AI data center in Moore County, but in October of 2025, Arnold’s Engineering Development Center (AEDC) learned it was being considered a location for a private AI data center.
AEDC reportedly offered two sites: a 122-acre site off Highway 55 and a 152-acre site off Wattendorf Memorial Highway. As of press time, no official announcement had yet been made by the Air Force.
That was close enough to get the attention of local Planning Chair Dexter Golden, who’s made no secret of his mindset when it comes to more development inside Moore County: let’s metabolize what we’ve got in front of us — a solar farm, anaerobic digester, and tiny home community — before adding more burden on aging infrastructure.
Word on the street is that several local officials maintained concerns about the legality of a moratorium but The Times could find no Tennessee law that makes it illegal for a local or state government to issue a moratorium on AI-related data center development or similar projects per se. Municipal and county governments in Tennessee regularly use temporary development or zoning moratoriums as a lawful planning tool while they update land-use regulations, study impacts, or rewrite ordinances to address emerging industries.
In fact, according to reports published by Channel 11 – WJHL out of Knoxville, the Bristol, Tennessee Council unanimously approved a two-year moratorium on new data processing centers in October 2025 — setting a statewide precedent.
At the federal level, there have been proposals to preempt state and local AI regulation (including moratoriums on AI laws), but those have not become law. That means local governments still retain general authority over land-use decisions, zoning pauses, or development moratoriums as they have long done.
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Environmental engineer Tony Grown with Grow Environmental Solutions — the local company tasked with overseeing the development of the Silicon Ranch Solar Farm on Highway 55 — will visit the Commission to give local citizens an update on his oversite of the project.
Of late, numerous citizens living on roads that border the solar farm — Cumberland Springs, Raysville Road, Cobb Hollow Road, and others — have complained about muddy conditions, large truck turning around in personal driveways, and other nuisances. Tennessee Highway Patrol officials have issued numerous tickets citing debris in the roadways to Silicon Ranch, but it seems to be an ongoing issue.
Several citizens have also attended to complain about runoff into the nearby Hurricane Creek, which runs along the west portion of the solar farm site. Storm water drains into it and Hurricane Creek appears on the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC)’s Exceptional Tennessee Waters list, which protects streams with outstanding ecological value. This means TDEC should be taking any report of potential runoff seriously.
Local Todd Jennings will also appear before the Commission. The Tennessean’s Molly Davis recently featured Jennings in a series of articles about preserving Tennessee farmland. Molly’s a fantastic journalist who covers topics like housing policy, urban planning and economic equity, among other trends defining the rapid growth in our state for the Nashville newspaper.
Todd, along with brothers Walt and Buford, actively protect their family’s 100-acre Rock Creek Farm on Countyline Road with a conservation easement with the Land Trust of Tennessee. It’s a contract the protects their land from development indefinitely, even if ownership changes.
He has asked to address the Commission.
The Commission is also scheduled to hear a plat review for a combination of lots for Aaron Nunley along Majors Cemetery Road on Map 043 Parcels 012.01 and 010.01. A plat review is the regulatory process where local government agencies, such as planning departments or engineering divisions, analyze a proposed map (plat) of land subdivision to ensure it complies with local zoning, safety, and infrastructure regulations before development begins. It validates property boundaries, easements, and infrastructure needs. Nunley seeks to combine two lots one he already owns with one currently owned by Randy George, according to Tennessee Property Viewer.
The Metro Planning Commission meets every first Tuesday of the month at 5:30 p.m. in the basement of the County Building located at 241 Main Street in Lynchburg. If you’d like an item added to the agenda, contact that Metro Codes offies at 931-759-7068 at least 10 days prior to the meeting. There is also a public comments section at every meeting. •
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