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The Data Center Divide

Stokes County

Neutral Data Center Policies

Stokes County’s enacted amendment allows data centers in the heavy-manufacturing conditional-zoning district, subject to approval and operating standards such as noise and heat limits. An enacted resolution voids prior project approvals; new requests must restart with notice and hearings.

current law · County measure
Voids the January 12, 2026 data-center zoning-text amendment and Project Delta rezoning because the public-hearing notice did not fully comply with statutory requirements, including for the approximately 1,844.9-acre site.Stokes County Resolution Voiding January 12, 2026 Data Center Text Amendment and Project Delta Rezoning

What this means

The measure would undo the data-center zoning change and the rezoning of about 1,845 acres, removing the project’s current approvals and the countywide permission for data centers in the affected manufacturing district (void and of no effect). It would not ban data centers: the county says an applicant may submit a new request, but it must start over and follow the notice and hearing process (start over and follow all notice and hearing rules).

People behind it

  • Governing body that approved the January 12, 2026 zoning text amendment and rezoning, later declared both actions void, and adopted the related resolution.

  • Proposed the zoning text amendment defining “Data Centers” and adding them as a permitted use in the applicable heavy-manufacturing zoning district.

  • Applicant and petitioner for Rezoning Request Case #0884 covering part of the approximately 1,844.9-acre data-center site.

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  • Co-applicant and co-petitioner for Rezoning Request Case #0884 covering the proposed data-center site.

  • Project proponent that submitted the Project Delta conditional-rezoning application on behalf of the data-center proposal.

  • Local government responsible for administering the zoning actions and defendant that stipulated to their invalidity in the consent judgment.

Restrictions & requirementsHide restrictions & requirements9

  • The January 12, 2026 zoning text amendment adding data centers as a permitted use in Heavy Manufacturing districts is void and has no legal effect.

  • The January 12, 2026 rezoning of approximately 1,844.9 acres from Residential Agricultural to Heavy Manufacturing Conditional Zoning is void, returning the property to its prior zoning designation.

  • All zoning designations, applications, fees, conditions, map amendments, zoning-code language, and permit authorizations resulting directly from the January 12 actions must be removed or voided.

  • Any effort to continue the project must begin with an amended or new application, satisfy the current criteria, and undergo a fully compliant public-notice and hearing process from the beginning.

  • Future zoning submissions must undergo comprehensive Planning Department review for compliance with all statutory and local notice requirements.

  • For the proposed replacement rezoning, the County’s voluntary safeguards call for public materials to be posted and available for in-person review at least 10 days before the hearing, with an online public-comment portal available beforehand.

  • For the proposed replacement rezoning, the County’s voluntary safeguards call for a separate special-called public hearing, with deliberation and voting postponed until the next regularly scheduled commissioners’ meeting rather than occurring the same night.

  • For the proposed replacement rezoning, the County’s voluntary safeguards reserve three hours for public comment, generally allow three minutes per speaker, and provide advance and same-night speaker registration procedures.

  • For the proposed replacement rezoning, the County’s voluntary safeguards call for the largest reasonably available ADA-accessible venue and overflow accommodations when attendance exceeds room capacity.

Benefits & exceptionsHide benefits & exceptions7

  • The January 12, 2026 zoning text amendment defined “Data Centers” and added them as a permitted use in the Heavy Manufacturing zoning provisions, although the documents inconsistently refer to M-2 and M-2-CZ districts. The amendment was later declared void.

  • The rezoning approved approximately 1,844.9 acres from Residential Agricultural zoning to Heavy Manufacturing Conditional Zoning for the proposed data center development. That rezoning was later declared void.

  • The proposed conditional-zoning standards allowed not only data centers but also accessory and supporting facilities, including power generation, substations, electrical transmission infrastructure, natural-gas infrastructure, batteries, backup generators, equipment yards, maintenance facilities, container storage, and fuel storage.

  • The proposed standards required the project to use a closed-loop cooling system as its primary cooling method, allowing data-center operations while limiting reliance on ongoing water consumption for cooling.

  • The proposed standards allowed buildings up to 80 feet high and required a minimum 100-foot setback from the site perimeter, with the setback area maintained as a vegetative buffer.

  • The proposed standards allowed power-generation facilities if they were concentrated in the center of the development and kept at least 300 feet from the outer boundary.

  • The proposed standards authorized primary access from U.S. 311 and Oldtown Road and allowed secondary, emergency, and utility access from Tuttle Road or other legally authorized locations.

Sources

current law · County measure: County zoning jurisdiction; may also apply within municipalities that have agreed to county regulation
Defines “Data Center” facilities as sites primarily used to store, retrieve, manage, or process digital data, including servers, storage and network equipment, backup power, cooling systems, and related structures, while excluding incidental business equipment (Data Center definition).Stokes County Zoning Ordinance Amendment R — Data Center Definition and M-2 CZ Use Table

What this means

The proposal would create a clear path to build data centers in the heavy manufacturing conditional-zoning district, but each project would still need conditional approval and meet operating standards. Overall, that is a modest benefit for development, offset by meaningful review and requirements such as noise and heat limits (data center amendment.

People behind it

  • Requested and initiated the zoning-ordinance text amendment to define data centers and permit them in the M-2 Conditional Zoning District.

  • Submitted Rezoning Request Case #0884 to rezone approximately 1,844.9 acres for the proposed data-center development.

  • Co-submitted Rezoning Request Case #0884 to rezone approximately 1,844.9 acres for the proposed data-center development.

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  • Considered the proposed zoning-ordinance amendments and was responsible for formulating recommendations to the Board of County Commissioners.

  • Considered and approved the text amendment and rezoning, and later adopted the resolution declaring those approvals void.

Restrictions & requirementsHide restrictions & requirements15

  • Data centers are listed only as a conditional-zoning use in the M-2 Heavy Manufacturing District, so they require conditional zoning approval rather than being allowed by right.

  • A data-center conditional-zoning application must include a site plan prepared and sealed by a North Carolina-licensed architect, engineer, or surveyor.

  • Conditional zoning requires the applicant to identify the intended use, submit an acceptable site plan, participate in the required review process, and obtain approval from the Board of Commissioners.

  • Before filing a conditional-zoning application, the applicant must hold a public information meeting, mail notice to abutting and nearby property owners at least 14 days in advance, post a property notice at least 14 days in advance, and submit a written meeting report.

  • The Planning Department must schedule a public hearing on a conditional-zoning application within 60 days after filing, with public notice required under state law.

  • The Planning Board must review a conditional-zoning application and provide recommendations before the Board of Commissioners acts.

  • The Board of Commissioners may approve, modify, or deny the conditional-zoning request and may impose mutually agreed conditions addressing matters such as noise, dust, setbacks, traffic, buffers, and operating restrictions.

  • M-2 buildings must meet dimensional limits, including a minimum 40-foot setback from a street or highway right-of-way and additional setbacks where the property abuts residential zoning.

  • M-2 development must provide off-street loading and unloading space and off-street parking under the ordinance's general parking and loading requirements.

  • Data centers in the M-2 district must comply with operational performance standards, including a 75 dB(A) continuous noise limit, limits on intermittent noise and vibration, smoke opacity limits, fugitive-dust controls, odor controls, glare restrictions, downward-directed lighting, heat limits, electromagnetic-interference controls, and all applicable state and federal environmental standards.

  • A conditional-zoning approval binds the property, and only the uses and structures shown in the approved application and site plan may be developed unless an authorized change is approved.

  • In designated drinking-water watersheds, data-center development is subject to additional overlay requirements; the more restrictive watershed standards prevail over the underlying zoning standards.

  • In WS-II critical areas, nonresidential development is limited to 6 percent built-upon area; in WS-II balance-of-watershed areas, it is generally limited to 12 percent, subject to the specified 10/70 allocation; and in WS-IV protected areas, it is generally limited to 24 percent with curb and gutter or 36 percent without, subject to the specified 10/70 allocation.

  • A minimum 100-foot vegetative buffer is required along designated perennial waters in drinking-water watershed areas, and new development is generally prohibited within the buffer except for limited exceptions.

  • The resolution regarding the January 12, 2026 actions declares void the data-center text amendment and the approximately 1,844.9-acre RA-to-M-2-CZ rezoning, and directs staff to remove resulting zoning language, map amendments, and permit authorizations.

Benefits & exceptionsHide benefits & exceptions6

  • The zoning text defines a data center broadly to include servers, data-storage and network equipment, power-supply systems, backup generators, cooling systems, and related accessory structures, allowing these components to be treated as part of the data-center facility. Data Center definition

  • Data centers are listed as a conditional-zoning use in the M-2 Heavy Manufacturing District, creating a zoning path for approval through a site-specific conditional-zoning application rather than requiring a new zoning category. Data Center listed in M-2 conditional zoning

  • M-2 dimensional rules do not impose a general minimum lot area, minimum lot width, maximum lot coverage, or general building-height cap; the principal setback is 40 feet from a street or highway right-of-way, with additional setbacks where the property adjoins residential zoning. M-2 dimensional requirements

  • M-2 operational standards establish measurable limits for noise, vibration, visible emissions, dust, odor, glare, heat, and electromagnetic interference, providing defined operating thresholds; stricter state or federal requirements still control, and the County may impose stricter site-specific conditions in M-2 conditional zoning. M-2 performance standards

  • An approved site-specific or phased development plan can create vested rights to complete the approved development under its terms, generally for two years and potentially for up to five years when factors such as project size, phasing, investment, need, or economic cycles justify a longer period. Vested right certificate

  • In specified WS-II and WS-IV watershed balance areas, up to 10 percent of the balance of the watershed may be developed at up to 70 percent built-upon area on a project-by-project basis, subject to allocation by the Stokes County Board of Commissioners and the applicable watershed rules. Ten-percent/70-percent watershed option

Sources

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