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Regbase

The Data Center Divide

City of Clarksdale

Pro-Data Center Policies

Mississippi offers qualifying data centers substantial tax exemptions and possible public funding, with some utility and local approvals expedited. Benefits require state approval and investment, job, wage, or performance commitments; funding and local property-tax relief are not guaranteed.

Rating and summary from Mississippi statewide as there are no scored current or future laws outside temporary restrictions for City of Clarksdale.

pending · City of Clarksdale
Provides informational guidance on a proposed, multi-billion-dollar hyperscale data-center campus supporting cloud and artificial-intelligence services, but it does not approve construction or create a binding regulation; the project’s size, costs, resource use, schedule, and economic impacts remain undetermined.Clarksdale Data Center Project Frequently Asked Questions (2026)

What this means

The rezoning would open a path for a data center, but it does not approve construction. A $5 million fee, developer-funded utility upgrades, a residential setback, and a daily water-use cap add meaningful costs and limits that roughly balance the benefit.

People behind it

  • Considering and administering the proposed Data Center Project, including rezoning, regulatory compliance, and public engagement.

  • Proposed and approved the rezoning needed for the project, including approving the motion to rezone the 648-acre site for consideration of a potential data center.

  • Recommended rezoning the proposed project property to the Board of Mayor and Commissioners.

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  • Proposing and potentially financing and constructing the hyperscale data center and related infrastructure.

  • Participating on behalf of the City in reviewing the proposed Data Center Project.

Restrictions & requirementsHide restrictions & requirements9

  • The 648-acre site had to be rezoned from commercial and agricultural use to light industrial use before the data center could be developed.

  • The developer must pay a one-time $5 million impact fee before beginning work on the site.

  • The project must comply with a water-use limit of no more than 300,000 gallons per day on average over a 365-day period.

  • The data center must maintain required property setbacks, including an additional 1,000-foot setback from residential areas.

  • The project must use noise-mitigation measures, including noise-absorbing berms and required setbacks to protect nearby residential areas.

  • The developer must pay for electricity used by the project and for utility upgrades, repairs, replacements, transmission stations, or other public power-system improvements required because of the data center.

  • The project must comply with applicable municipal codes, zoning requirements, environmental reviews, and other applicable laws.

  • Backup diesel generators may operate only during power outages and periodic maintenance testing and must comply with state and federal air-quality requirements, including any required Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality or Minor New Source Review air permit.

  • The campus must be secured with fencing and remain inaccessible to the general public and unauthorized personnel.

Benefits & exceptionsHide benefits & exceptions2

  • Rezoning the 648-acre site from commercial and agricultural use to light industrial use makes it eligible for consideration and development as a data center or other significant industrial project. The rezoning does not itself approve construction and remains subject to applicable conditions.

  • Qualifying data center projects may receive certain Mississippi state tax exemptions if they invest at least $20 million and create at least 20 new jobs paying at least 125% of the state average annual wage.

Sources

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