Data Centers Land Development Code Amendment
Description
New zoning rules for data centers (Case 25-LDC-0014) were introduced and sent to the Planning and Zoning Committee after the Planning Commission conceptually approved draft amendments.
Impact summary
The rules will shape where and how data centers — with big power, water, and noise footprints — can build in Louisville.
At a glance
- Hearings
- 2
- Public comments
- 0
- Total mentions
- 1
Recorded in the meeting · Planning & Zoning Commission
Discussed at 1 meeting in the last 60 days; most recently Sep 10, 2026.
Meeting timeline (1)
Related issues (3)
Data center zoning regulations (Case No. 25-LDC-0014)
Louisville is writing its first real rules for data centers after a nearly million-square-foot facility slipped in before any regulation existed. Experts warned about low-frequency noise that can pierce walls and triggered a federal class action against Microsoft in Wisconsin, plus rising power demand and water use. The committee is weighing whether to apply uniform performance standards, keep the 500,000-square-foot ban, and require a new dedicated zoning district with rezoning and a conditional use permit.
Data center regulations (LDC Text Amendment 25-LDC-0014)
New rules would cap data centers at 500,000 square feet, require conditional use permits for facilities 50,000 square feet or larger, mandate quarter-mile separations from homes, schools and hospitals, and protect ratepayers from infrastructure costs. The committee postponed action to allow more deliberation, and the existing million-square-foot facility on Camp Ground Road would be a non-conforming use that cannot expand.
Data center regulations and development moratorium
Louisville is still deciding how strictly to regulate data centers — who pays for new power plants and water infrastructure, how waste heat and noise are handled, and what generators are allowed. The ordinance remains held in committee while members weigh cost-shifting to ratepayers against growth and tax revenue.
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