2026-10-19 - City Council Special Meeting
Summary
Built from YouTube captions (manual); the agenda and minutes were not read. Names and figures are as captioned and may be misspelled.
- Opening: Council opened with an invocation and the Pledge and approved the agenda unanimously. The meeting was devoted to the proposed data center amendment to the Unified Development Ordinance (UDO).
- Background: Staff reviewed the timeline: Planning Commission in February, a Council work session, then a 120-day study period with a 60-day extension instead of a vote. Three listening sessions on September 30 (College Lakes, Massey Hill and Cliffdale) sorted comments into noise, power, water, emissions, setbacks and appearance. The most common request was a moratorium, followed by 1,000-foot setbacks and more study.
- Expert input: Staff said they consulted experts and other jurisdictions, including Loudoun County, and the state environmental agency. Suggested standards included pre- and post-construction noise studies (dBA and dBC), written power and water use documentation, tier four generator standards and screening requirements.
- Legal advice: An attorney from Pointer Spruill explained the 2024 state downzoning limits: a city cannot reduce development density, reduce permitted uses or create nonconformities without owner consent. He recommended treating data centers under the existing warehouse and storage use rather than a new use class, applying standards going forward only, and using the existing 500-foot setback, since a blanket 1,000-foot setback could be challenged. He advised conditional rezoning as more defensible than a special use permit requirement.
- Process concerns: Councilmember McMillan said the materials were not given to Council or the public in advance and the slides were uploaded about an hour before the meeting. Councilmember Jones said the process felt unbalanced, that resident concerns were sometimes dismissed, and that residents wanted the city to get it right rather than ban data centers outright. Councilmember Hondros noted the item went to the Planning Commission in February but reached Council only in a spring work session.
- Moratorium: McMillan moved to schedule a public hearing under G.S. 160D-107 on a temporary moratorium on data center applications and to have staff draft an ordinance. The voting display changed during the first vote, so Council voted again and the motion carried. The city attorney noted the draft ordinance would have to go through a work session first.
- Text amendment: Mayor Pro Tem Thompson moved to remove ordinances two, four and five from the proposed amendment and fold the attorney's recommendations into ordinances one and three, with revisions back at the next Council meeting. It carried, with Jones, Greene, McMillan and Ferguson opposed.
- Two tracks: Staff were directed to continue revising the amendment with counsel and, separately, to prepare a draft moratorium ordinance for the hearing.
Related: Data Centers and Moratorium
Agenda
No agenda on the Legistar calendar.
Sources
- Legistar calendar: https://cityoffayetteville.legistar.com/Calendar.aspx
- Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lzcs3HF1JCU (City of Fayetteville NC YouTube channel, titled "City Council Special Meeting - October 19 2026"; date taken from the title)
Video
Transcript
*These are auto-generated captions; names and numbers may be misheard.
Transcript
16:44Well. Good evening everyone. We
16:46will call our October 19th
16:48special meeting to order. We
16:49thank you for your patience
16:50this morning. Uh, at this time,
16:52as we do with every meeting, we
16:54will start with the invocation.
16:55We'll ask the council member,
16:57uh, and Minister D.J. Hare, if
16:58he would give us our invocation
17:00immediately following that, if
17:01we could, uh, repeat the Pledge
17:03of Allegiance in unison.
17:04Council member Hare. Thank you,
17:07mayor. Thank you.
17:15Dear Lord Jesus. Thank you.
17:18Thank you, Heavenly Father, for
17:21just taking us all through the
17:23night. And no harm or danger.
17:27We thank you, father, and we
17:28applaud you for just letting us
17:30inhale and exhale on our arms.
17:34We thank you for that. Lord, we
17:36thank you for our men and women
17:38that not only work for the city
17:41of Fayetteville, but our men
17:42and women and our first
17:44responders, our soldiers all
17:47over the globe. Father, we ask
17:48you to protect them and take
17:50care of their families wherever
17:52they may reside. This
17:55afternoon, father, on October
18:00the 19th, as we move forward
18:02with this special meeting, we
18:05ask you, father, that our minds
18:08would be open to understand and
18:11to achieve as many goals as we
18:15can for the residents of
18:17Fayetteville. Lord is so much
18:20that I could thank you for.
18:21You've been so good to me. And
18:24we just ask you to allow us to
18:26have a positive move meeting
18:29moving forward and these things
18:31that we ask out loud and these
18:34things that we ask in our
18:35hearts, we ask them in the name
18:37of Jesus, Amen.
18:39Amen. Pledge allegiance to the
18:42flag of the United States of
18:44America and to the Republic for
18:47which it stands. One nation
18:49under God, indivisible, with
18:51liberty and justice for all.
18:56Thank you. Councilmember here.
18:57So, Council, with that, we
18:59will, uh, look for a motion to
19:01approve the agenda. All right.
19:06A motion by Council Member
19:07Green, seconded by Davis. I
19:11think we are using the share
19:12system, y'all. All right, uh,
19:14council look to you for your
19:15votes to approve the agenda.
19:21All right. Motion carries
19:23unanimous. Thank you, Madam
19:25Clerk. All right. Um, so,
19:28Council and to the listening
19:30audience, uh, we're here today
19:32with the special meeting. We
19:34have, uh, over the last several
19:36months. I think, actually, uh,
19:39staff begin conversation back
19:41in September, October of of
19:43last year, uh, discussing, uh,
19:46or preparing, uh, something in
19:49our current, uh, ordinance
19:51classification to address, um,
19:54data centers. Uh, there was a
19:55public hearing held in the
19:57Planning Commission. Um, then
19:59it was presented to council in,
20:00in February, March time frame
20:02or maybe April. Um, Council
20:04then at that time, um, chose to
20:08not take any action. Um, and to
20:11use that as a, uh, period to,
20:14to learn as much as possible
20:16over 120 days initially. Then
20:18it was another, um, motion that
20:20was presented and passed for 60
20:23days, uh, to stay and to
20:25continue to do that. And so
20:26over the last 8 or 9 months
20:28since this made it to our, uh,
20:30or 7 to 8 months since has made
20:32it to the council. Um, we have
20:34had our planning and we've had
20:36Doctor Menzel and Mister Bray
20:37boy, uh, working on this. And
20:40so today, uh, they will present
20:43their findings. We also have,
20:45uh, our attorney here and
20:46outside counsel to talk to us
20:49about, uh, some new updates and
20:51changes that have been
20:53instructed to municipalities by
20:54the state. So the school of
20:55government. So they will share,
20:57uh, what cities and local
20:59governments are able to do as
21:00well. And so with that, I'll
21:01turn it over to Doctor Menzel
21:04or Mister Braidwood.
21:17Good morning. Mayor, Council
21:19members. I'm Doctor Andrew
21:21Mansell, senior assistant to
21:22the city manager. Mr. Andy
21:24Bray. Boy here, uh, senior
21:25corporate analyst. And today we
21:27are going to go over the text
21:30amendment where the process
21:31stands. The presentation will
21:33be in four parts. Basically,
21:34we'll cover how we got here.
21:36We'll cover what the community
21:37told during the listening
21:38sessions, what we learned from
21:39that, we'll go over again what
21:41the experts have told us and
21:42directly compare that to what
21:43to 2601 currently says. And
21:46then we'll end with where does
21:48that leave us in this whole
21:49process? Here's a timeline that
21:55shows the path of how we got to
21:57where we are today. Back in
21:59February was when this text was
22:00first presented to council
22:02counsel, then held a work
22:03session in March and then in
22:04April. Rather than taking a
22:05vote, Council adopted 120 day
22:09stay in order to study this
22:10whole process. And that's
22:11exactly what council did. They
22:13began taking chores and their
22:14first trip was in June. We
22:16started right across the street
22:17here at eight and data center.
22:19That's been in operation since
22:201995. We went up to Raleigh. We
22:23visited MCMC, which runs the
22:25state's research and education
22:26network, and we ended at Tier
22:28Point, which is an eight
22:29megawatt facility. The next
22:31month, we went up to Loudoun
22:32County and we saw a lot of mega
22:34hyperscale data centers,
22:36multiple campuses. We went on a
22:37bunch of tours, uh, several
22:39council members went in the
22:40neighborhood and was able to
22:41talk with the community,
22:43discussing with them impacts of
22:44having a data center directly
22:46across their house and got to
22:47got to hear firsthand what they
22:49had to say. We also met with
22:50Mr. Michael Turner in Leesburg,
22:52and he told us all the things
22:53that he learned about data
22:55centers and how many that they
22:56had there. Um, just for scale
22:58there. And we ended we ended
23:01the tour with a private tour,
23:03um, of a hyperscale data
23:05center. After that, we brought
23:07a bunch of experts down to
23:09speak directly to council. A
23:11lot of them were able to review
23:12the 2601 that we had and come
23:15down and give their
23:17recommendations based on what
23:18we currently had. We heard from
23:20Mr. Ben Rusnak from NC state,
23:22uh, along with Mr. Briggs. Mr.
23:24Zuko came and presented PwC and
23:26the Department of Environmental
23:27Quality. Then in August 10th,
23:30uh Council voted to fold in all
23:33those recommendations based on
23:35what we heard into the 2601. So
23:38that's what this is. Uh, since
23:40then, we held multiple
23:41listening sessions. And at the
23:43end of September and we
23:45gathered a lot of cards, both
23:46online and in person, and we'll
23:48go over what we learned in the
23:49community sessions next. So we
23:52held three sessions, and on
23:55September 30th we started at
23:56College Lakes. We went to
23:57Massey Hill and we ended at
23:59Cliff Dale. The reason we did
24:00that all across the city was
24:01able to capture as many
24:03residents as possible, rather
24:04than doing it in one place all
24:05day. Uh, each of those meetings
24:08was structured the same, where
24:09we had the six categories here
24:11on the right hand side of the
24:12screen noise, power, water
24:14emissions, setbacks, and
24:15appearance. At each station, we
24:17had the proposed text, along
24:19with information that we heard
24:20from best practices, and there
24:22was a comment box there that
24:23residents were able to fill out
24:25any questions they had, any
24:27concerns, and we told them all
24:29that information. We'll get
24:30back to council. We collected
24:31all those cards and the numbers
24:34are here on the side. We also
24:36were able to do sort of a
24:38priority dot voting structure,
24:40where each person was given two
24:41dots and they could vote for
24:42any category that they liked.
24:45Um, that most impacted them. We
24:47understand that all categories
24:49matter, but this was just a way
24:50for staff to gauge sort of what
24:52comes first in the in the minds
24:53of residents. So you'll see
24:55here, uh, the voting structure
24:57water got the most votes along
24:58with a tie for noise. And, um,
25:02power. One of the biggest
25:07questions that we got from
25:08residents while we were out
25:09there is so what happens with
25:10these cards? And our answer was
25:12they will all go back to
25:14council. Council will read and
25:15they'll be able to see
25:16everything you wrote down.
25:17That's exactly what staff did.
25:18We scanned everything in and we
25:20typed them up to make sure that
25:21all handwriting wouldn't get
25:23missed out, so every word would
25:25be legible. And we gave those
25:27back to council in full.
25:28Transcript, along with sort of
25:30an analysis that we did
25:31separately from all that
25:32information we gathered. And
25:33we'll go over that on the next
25:34slide. But different subjects
25:36that everything fell into,
25:37along with the most frequently
25:39asked questions and the most
25:41frequently stated word as well.
25:43And uh, previous next couple of
25:45slides, we'll cover that. But
25:47you see at the bottom here, I
25:48have on the bottom left is the
25:51most frequently asked
25:52questions. Moratorium or pause
25:54was the biggest one. A close
25:55second was set back 1000ft or
25:57more. Um, and then studying or
26:01surveying before adoptions
26:02third, followed by the best
26:04practices, vegetation and noise.
26:10The final analysis here shows
26:12kind of a word cloud. And the
26:14way that we did this was each
26:16time a word is stated is the
26:18number of points it got. So if
26:19a sentence had the word water
26:20in it three times, got three
26:22points. So the larger it is,
26:24the bigger it was in frequency.
26:26The colors don't mean anything.
26:27It's just so you're able to see
26:28the words better. So we we
26:31coded all of the cards per
26:33subjects. And that's what's on
26:34the right here that you'll see
26:36in order of um, the most
26:38prevalent subject, the top one
26:40setbacks, the noise water
26:42moratorium, health and so on.
26:46So that's what we heard from
26:48the residents. Um, we also want
26:51to recap all of the experts
26:53that we've heard from, from
26:54beginning until now, in sort of
26:56one slide. Just a reminder, in
26:58no particular order, we did
27:00speak with Mike Turner, vice
27:02chair of Loudoun County. And
27:03they've run you know, he wrote
27:04the 15 best practices. Clarence
27:06Briggs reviewed our text
27:08amendment, came here and talked
27:10with counsel. John Zovko also
27:11reviewed our text amendment. He
27:13didn't get to meet. He didn't
27:14get to present at the expert
27:16session, but he was able to
27:17meet public forum and present
27:19his findings. Ben Rusnak also
27:21reviewed our text amendment,
27:23came here and gave advice. PWP
27:25came and talked about capacity.
27:26David Payne came from the
27:28Department of Environmental
27:29Quality, came and talked about
27:30air permitting, and we also
27:32spoke directly with people who
27:33worked at MCMC, Tier point and
27:36the hyperscale data centers up
27:38in Virginia. From all of that
27:40information that we learned
27:41from the resident comment
27:43cards, from the expert
27:44speakers, we lined it up
27:46directly to where it relates to
27:48our current draft amendment,
27:50and you'll see it side by side
27:52in category by category that
27:54Mr. Bradbury will cover next.
27:59Good morning. Council mayor,
28:00mayor pro tem. As Doctor Menzel
28:03mentioned, a lot of our work.
28:05Uh, we have it broken out per
28:07category. Noise, power, water,
28:09uh, emissions set back in
28:12appearance. So as I go through
28:13this section of the
28:14presentation, you'll see each
28:16one of those categories are
28:17listed here at the top. Um, and
28:19then it also part of this next
28:21section, as Doctor Menzel
28:23mentioned, we will look at what
28:25the experts said for that
28:26category and then what our, um,
28:29August 3rd draft ordinance says
28:31in that regard. So the current
28:34draft from August 3rd, it sets
28:36a measurable sound standard for
28:38DBA, um, and a 60 day test. Uh,
28:41the experts have asked for a
28:43DBA and a DBC, which is that
28:45low frequency home, um, that
28:48many people mentioned to be
28:49measured and a baseline to be
28:51taken before construction
28:53begins. So in this first
28:57category here, for this first
28:59column, uh, Mike turn of
29:00course, was the, uh, the expert
29:02from Loudoun County who we
29:04spent and spent time with,
29:06spoke with him and, uh, took a
29:08lot of his work back with us as
29:09we gauged our, um, research for
29:13council. So he mentions in his
29:15practice one and two, uh, a pre
29:17and post construction noise
29:18study, which measures both DBA
29:21and DBC, um, and a limit of 50
29:24DBA at the property line. Mr.
29:26Briggs in turn called the the
29:28drafts model a build test and
29:32fix sequence. Um, as he quotes,
29:35this is exactly the kind of
29:37measurement loop the city would
29:39like to have in their
29:40ordinance. And then Mr. Zucker
29:42asked for a low frequency,
29:44which is that DBC measurement
29:47and a stronger night time
29:48limits at the residential
29:49property line. Now for the
29:51August 3rd draft. The draft
29:53ties data centers to our
29:54chapter 17 commercial limits,
29:56which is 65 DBA from 6 a.m. to
30:0110 p.m. and 60dB from 10 p.m.
30:04to 6 a.m. it also requires an
30:06acoustical compliance
30:07memorandum with the site plan
30:09and a boundary sound test.
30:11Within the 60 days of
30:12continuous operation, and then,
30:14of course, routine generator
30:16testing is limited to Monday
30:18through Friday from 9 to 5
30:22p.m.. Next category for power.
30:26The draft requires a utility
30:28impact statement or uses, uh,
30:31PDQ or other utility
30:33coordination, and then also
30:36with energy centers if it
30:39permits a special use permit.
30:41The experts asked for written
30:43maximum load and an operating
30:45standard for energy centers for
30:48Mr. Turner's recommendations on
30:51power, the maximum power
30:53requested should be in writing,
30:55so stations should be on site
30:57or adjacent and no closer than
30:59two times the right of way to
31:00power lines. Storage should be
31:02ten hours or more, and you
31:05should emphasize microgrid
31:06design. Mr. Briggs has quoted
31:10saying that we should, in
31:13essence, coordinate with the
31:14utility. This is paramount, but
31:16this is not the same as the
31:18project will create
31:20unacceptable impacts to the
31:22residents. And what this means
31:24is you can require it, but
31:27impact is measured post
31:29construction. And this is
31:32because at hyperscale, a energy
31:35center can become a private
31:37power plant that needs its own
31:38operating standards. For Mr.
31:40Briggs, Mrs. Oka has mentioned
31:43that the existing families and
31:44small businesses should not
31:46have to subsidize
31:47infrastructure serving a new
31:49large load customer. Now for
31:51our August 3rd draft, the
31:54Utility Impact statement covers
31:56projected peak demand, the
31:57number and rating of backup
31:59generators. This is at tier
32:01four or tier two type
32:03generators, on site fuel
32:05storage and any energy storage.
32:09With the confirmation of PDQ or
32:11other utility coordination, the
32:14site plans must document that
32:16coordination. A data center
32:18with Energy Center is a special
32:20use permit in every district
32:22based on the base district. For
32:28water, again, the Utility
32:30Impact statement, which is
32:32proposed brings the water
32:34figures, the cooling method and
32:36places or other utilities
32:38coordination and with the site
32:41plan, the experts have asked
32:44for annual use in writing and
32:47existing capacity confirmed for
32:50the existing utility customers.
32:52How does it affect that utility
32:54customers capacity? For expert
32:58Mr. Turner practices seven and
33:00ten, the annual water use
33:03should be in writing, air open
33:05loop or closed loop. Cooling
33:07should be noted. Potable and
33:10reclaimed water or reclaimed
33:11water should be noted. And
33:13whether the treatment plant can
33:15process a process. The
33:16wastewater. In turn, Mr. Briggs
33:20warns that the annual averages
33:22can actually hide peak summer
33:25stress. And this is this is
33:27important when taking this into
33:29consideration. Mr. Zucker
33:31mentions that TWC should
33:32certify that adequate capacity
33:34exist without jeopardizing
33:36existing customers, and the
33:38ordinance should not prescribe
33:39a cooling technology or set a
33:42water use cap because it moves
33:44into lines with strictly
33:45regulating technology. The
33:49August 3rd draft requires that
33:50water consumption and
33:52wastewater flows by process.
33:56Portable cooling and fire
33:57reserve, plus the cooling
33:59method and public or other
34:01utility coordination all in the
34:03same submittal. The next
34:06category, emissions. The
34:09experts actually rate this the
34:11current August 3rd draft as
34:12addressing emissions very well,
34:14Mr. Turner adds that a
34:15generator equipment standard
34:18should be implemented and then
34:21for also for Mr. Turner, a part
34:23of practice seven. He mentions
34:25that the tier four generators
34:27of course that is the the the
34:29top tier generator that could
34:30be used should be implemented
34:32or a tier two with a selective
34:35catalytic reduction. Mr. Briggs
34:38mentions that the draft
34:39currently separates emergency
34:41generators from energy centers,
34:43and this is important because
34:45one runs in an outage and the
34:48other runs by design or by
34:49operation. Continuous use.
34:51Mrs.. Mr. Zucca mentions that
34:52the draft addresses um
34:54emissions fairly well, while
34:56also remaining technology
34:58neutral. The August 3rd draft
35:02defines emergency backup
35:03generators for outages and
35:06emergency testing only. Those
35:07are defined with federal and
35:09state agencies regulating air
35:11compliance as they currently
35:12do. And important to note, the
35:14worst case sound testing must
35:17also include a schedule
35:18generator test all at the same
35:19time. For setback dogs, third
35:26draft sets, distances for
35:28equipment, and Mr. Turner
35:30recommends 500 to 1000ft
35:32setback for the facility. Mr.
35:35Zucker calls the draft
35:36reasonable and notes that the
35:37blanket setbacks can actually
35:39act as a prohibition, i.e.
35:41while the School of Government
35:42calls down zoning. Mr. Turner's
35:45practice 11 mentions 500ft if
35:49near residential but 1000ft is
35:51ideal. Mr. Briggs mentions that
35:54a hyperscale campus should not
35:56be viewed like a modest server
35:58room facility, because these
36:00operate very differently. Mr..
36:02Mr. Zucca mentions that the
36:03draft takes a reasonable
36:05approach, and that large
36:06blanket setbacks can function
36:08actually as a prohibition or
36:10down zoning. He also mentions
36:13that the draft should allow
36:14setback reductions when an
36:16acoustical engineer can
36:18demonstrate equivalent
36:19protections from the nearest
36:21residential area. For our
36:24August 3rd, draft. Generators
36:26and mechanical yards should be
36:27placed at least 150ft from the
36:30residential lot line and 200ft
36:31from the energy center.
36:33Equipment should be within
36:35200ft of the lot line and must
36:38be enclosed. Any lot line
36:40within 500ft automatically
36:42triggers the acoustic. The
36:44acoustical memorandum and also
36:46the type D perimeter buffer is
36:48also required. As part of this
36:51building. Setbacks follow the
36:52city Ordinance Base District,
36:54which is listed within chapter
36:5630. For our final category
37:00appearance. The draft go. The
37:02draft governs where equipment
37:04sits and how it is screened.
37:06Currently, the draft does not
37:08include a standard for the
37:10building phase, which is your
37:12fenestration. Mr. Turner's
37:16practice 13 and 14 calls for
37:19natural screening berms and
37:20fenestration on all principal
37:22facades. He also mentions that
37:24the height and floor area
37:25ratio, or FA, should also be
37:27limited. Mr. Briggs mentions
37:29that the amendments are
37:30strongest on land use and
37:32compatibility, but less on
37:34appearance, and he also
37:36mentions that 60 to 100 foot
37:39concrete walls can mitigate
37:41some of the setbacks. Berms and
37:43greenery, and also for windows,
37:45which is that fenestration that
37:47we've seen in Loudoun County.
37:48When we did our trip. That
37:50would be an example. 30% of the
37:53building must have X amount of
37:55windows per se. Dogs, third
37:58draft places, ground mounted
38:00equipment to the side or rear
38:02of the principal building and
38:03screened slated uh, to the side
38:06or rear of the principal
38:08building and must be screened.
38:10Slated chain link fence does
38:13not qualify. Lighting also must
38:16be fully cut off, with the
38:18city's current Fort Bragg light
38:20spill protections, and the
38:22operator must maintain a 24
38:24hour compliant contact for best
38:26practices. There is no data
38:29center specific height or floor
38:31to area ratio to reference, or
38:33a facade standard. This is more
38:35of an area specific measurement.
38:45So all that information is
38:46consistent with what we
38:48presented to the community at
38:49the Community Engagement
38:50listening sessions. What we
38:51heard from the experts compared
38:53to what we currently had in the
38:54draft. So where does that leave
38:56us? Uh, council has been
38:57studying this for eight months
38:58now and has not done a vote yet
39:01at all. Looked at facilities,
39:03went on visits, starting from
39:04downtown all the way up to
39:06Loudoun County, Virginia, where
39:07we saw megawatt campuses.
39:09Council listened both to the
39:10experts, to PwC and DEQ, and to
39:13the resident comment cards have
39:14all reached your table. So we
39:16put together what we've heard
39:18compared to the draft category
39:19by category, which you just
39:21heard, and our read is that the
39:23draft is a solid foundation,
39:25but a number of points raised
39:27by the experts and by the
39:29community can be carried into
39:31it. So the next step would be
39:32to consult with an attorney who
39:34specialized in this work, who
39:35can advise you and us on on
39:38where they can be properly
39:39placed, you know, hear from him
39:40next.
39:59I was hoping you were, um.
40:02Water setting that up. I'll go
40:04to you. Madam attorney, you
40:04want to introduce, uh, the
40:06attorney that will be speaking
40:07to us?
40:08Thank you, Mayor Colvin. Good
40:10morning everyone. This is, um,
40:11attorney Nick Tosco with
40:14Pointer Spruill. He's going to
40:16give us a little more
40:16background on his experience
40:18working with data center
40:19ordinances and other
40:21municipalities in North
40:22Carolina.
40:23Right.
40:25Welcome. Attorney.
40:27Thank you, Mayor Colvin and
40:28members of the council. Uh, my
40:30name is Nick Tosco, and I'm a
40:32partner at Pointer Spruill. And
40:35it's good to be with you this
40:36morning to talk about data
40:38center regulations and the
40:39legal aspects of that. Um, I
40:42want to give you just a very
40:43brief introduction about
40:44myself. So I've been practicing
40:47in land use, zoning, local
40:48government law for over 13
40:50years. I'm the town attorney
40:52for three towns in North
40:53Carolina, so I and, um, almost
40:57all of which two of the three
40:59have adopted data center
41:01regulations. Um, so I've gone
41:04through this aspect that you're
41:06going through. And so I know
41:07kind of a little bit about
41:09what, um, this process has
41:11entailed. Um, and I also was
41:14chair of the zoning planning
41:15land use section of the North
41:17Carolina Bar. So, um, we were
41:20very much in the thick of what
41:21you're going to hear a lot
41:22about, which is what's called
41:24down zoning. And, um, when when
41:26we were tasked with trying to
41:30work with the General Assembly
41:32to the extent possible on how
41:35this legislation would impact
41:37local jurisdictions, including
41:39cities and counties. Um, so
41:40that's a little bit about
41:42myself. Um, and, um, happy to
41:44be here to present with you on,
41:47um, what you're considering and
41:50perhaps some legal limitations
41:52that you should consider when
41:54adopting this text amendment to
41:57related to data centers. So,
42:00um, I always like to just give
42:01a quick, uh, executive summary
42:04of it, um, so that you all know
42:06what's coming, which is, um, as
42:08you heard, the text amendment
42:10that's proposed for data
42:11centers really involves five
42:13ordinances. Um, a new
42:15definition section, um, adding
42:18allowable districts and youth
42:21standards is the third parking
42:23and loading requirements of the
42:24fourth and application of an
42:26airport overlay regulations.
42:29Um, the main thing that you all
42:32need to be aware of and
42:33understanding is down zoning
42:35legislation. And I'll go into
42:37that in more detail, as well as
42:39a little bit of case law. Not a
42:40lot. Um, this is going to be a
42:42law school lecture. Um, so the
42:44the main things to take away
42:46from the legal considerations
42:49as it relates to data centers,
42:50four things. One is you got to
42:53avoid decreasing development
42:54density. You have to avoid
42:57reducing the permitted of uses
42:59that were allowed before your
43:01tax amendment. So that that
43:03I'll get into that a little bit
43:04more. Uh, it's a little bit
43:06confusing, but the third is you
43:09can't create any nonconformity
43:11without getting the property
43:12owners permission. And for is
43:15more of a technical aspect,
43:16which is, um, related to how
43:18you deal with unlisted uses,
43:20which your data centers are an
43:22unlisted use. Um, and so I'll
43:25go over those in more detail.
43:27But, um, I have made several
43:30recommendations working with
43:32the great staff here. Um, on
43:34the, the data center, and I'll
43:36have some slides to explain
43:38what those revisions are to
43:40ensure that you're fully
43:41complying with, um, down zoning
43:44and case law. So, um, as was
43:47mentioned, I'm not going to go
43:49into detail that you all got a
43:50good summary of what has been
43:53proposed with the five
43:54ordinances that are making up
43:56to 2601, um, uh, you know, to,
44:01for the interest of time, I'll,
44:03I'll let you, um, see this
44:05there, but, um, I'll be
44:07referring to ordinance one,
44:09two, three and four and five,
44:10um, as separately, because I
44:12have some suggestions as it
44:13relates to each of those, which
44:14you all can do with what you
44:16will. Um, but those are I've
44:19already kind of summarized what
44:20each of the five ordinances do.
44:23Um, I did want to, um,
44:26specifically focus in on
44:28ordinance two and three. Um,
44:31again, this may be duplicative.
44:32You may have all already be
44:34well aware of what is in
44:36ordinances two and three, but
44:38essentially is made up of
44:40ordinance two is changing how
44:42where they are allowed, where
44:44data centers are allowed, and
44:45what districts, um and
44:47ordinance three relates to the
44:50specific standards for data
44:52centers. And that's involves
44:54equipment separation, buffer
44:56and screening, noise generator
44:58testing, acoustical review and
45:01utility coordination, and
45:03contacts and things of that
45:04nature. Um, and so what you can
45:07see in this table is that, um,
45:09the way staff has drafted this,
45:12you know, after all this
45:13community engagement is to
45:16separate a data center from a
45:18data center with an energy
45:19center. Um, and so you can kind
45:21of just see there what the
45:22difference is. There's a lot of
45:24it's the same for a lot, but
45:26there's a few differences. So
45:32first, before we talk about
45:33what the legal limitations are,
45:35it may be helpful to know what
45:37the legal authority is. So as
45:39you all know, chapter 160 D of
45:41the North Carolina General
45:43Statutes authorizes local
45:45governments, including
45:46municipalities such as
45:47Fayetteville, to enact zoning
45:49ordinances. And and that's what
45:51this is. That's what data
45:52center regulation is. It's it's
45:54a it's a zoning ordinance. And
45:56so there's inherent authority
45:58in the statutes for you to
46:00adopt data center regulations.
46:02And I've listed them here. I'm
46:04not going to go through all of
46:05them. But um, the the statute
46:07allows you to regulate the size,
46:10the street yards, the location
46:12and use of land. Um, it allows
46:14you to, you know, do things
46:16like utility impact statements
46:18and, and district permissions,
46:20um, lighting and noise
46:22standards. These are inherent
46:24authority that you have, um,
46:26through chapter 160, you also
46:29have a specific statute that
46:31allows you to enact airport
46:33zoning regulations. So the of
46:38the five ordinances that you
46:40saw, you you have inherent
46:42zoning authority for most, um,
46:45of of those regulations, um,
46:48you can define data centers,
46:50you can add them as permitted
46:51use. Again, as long as and I'll
46:53get into this, as long as you
46:54are not decreasing the number
46:57of permitted uses, you've got
46:59an authority for screening and
47:00lighting and noise and testing
47:02hours and acoustical submission
47:04requirements. Um, and, and and
47:06things of that nature that you
47:08have the authority to do that
47:10um, under state statute. A
47:13couple of important legal
47:15limitations. Like I mentioned,
47:16there is a case law, the
47:18Franklin County case that has
47:22essentially said in the School
47:23of Government, UNC School of
47:25Government has advised on this
47:26that you can't just have a
47:28reject or a rejection or a
47:31blanket ban on unlisted uses.
47:35Um, so you can spell out a
47:37process which you have in your
47:38youdo for what you do when you
47:41have an unlisted use, but you
47:43can't just say no, you know, if
47:45it's not listed, it's
47:47prohibited. Um, and so I have a
47:49weak suggestion for that. Um,
47:52and then for down zoning, um,
47:55you know, I'm not going to go
47:58into, um, the, the history, the
48:00legislative history of that,
48:01but essentially it was put into
48:03a to a 2024 budget bill. It
48:06was, um, kind of tucked away at
48:09the end of a very long
48:10legislation. And what it, what
48:12it requires is, um, is three
48:15main things. And I've got the,
48:17the down zoning statute right
48:19here for you to look at. Um,
48:21essentially, you can't adopt a
48:23text amendment to your youdo
48:26without the written consent of
48:28all property owners, which, of
48:29course, would be impossible in
48:30a city of this size. Um, if it
48:33does, one of the three things
48:36one, decreased development
48:38density to reduce the permitted
48:41uses of land that were
48:42specified in the Udo um, to
48:44fewer than we're allowed under
48:46before it was adopted, and
48:49three, by creating any type of
48:51nonconformity. So those are the
48:53three like down zoning
48:55parameters that you all should
48:56be aware of. And, um, it's
48:59important to note that there
49:01are no cases on this. So there
49:03is there's no appellate case
49:04law that says what does
49:05decreasing development density
49:07mean? There's no case law to
49:09say what is reducing permitted
49:11uses. Is it a numbers game? Is
49:12it, you know, just you got ten
49:15uses in this district. You've
49:16got to have ten uses after the
49:18text amendment. These are
49:20things that are unknowns. And
49:22so, um, this is uh something
49:26that all the jurisdictions that
49:28are are adopting data center
49:31regulations that didn't have it
49:33already are dealing with. Um,
49:38so, um, I have, um, set forth
49:42some adjusted adjustments or
49:45revisions to the five
49:47ordinances that I think would
49:49be helpful. Um, in terms of
49:52ensuring legal compliance.
49:54Number one is like as stated in
49:57the Byrd case, to just strike
49:59that one sentence in the Udo
50:01related to uses that are
50:03unlisted, um, being prohibited.
50:05Um, number two is to ensure
50:08that you're allowing
50:09development density instead of
50:11decreasing it by, um, doing one
50:14of two things. You can either,
50:17uh, incorporate data centers
50:20into an existing use that you
50:23already got in your Udo. So you
50:25are not, um, setting new
50:28regulations that could be
50:30determined to decrease
50:31development density, or you
50:33could just remove the the
50:35setbacks and the buffer
50:36requirements and the things in
50:38there that would be considered
50:42decreasing development density.
50:45Um, the second thing is that,
50:47you know, in terms of reducing
50:49permitted uses, uh, again, if
50:52you incorporate data centers
50:55into an existing use, you're
50:57not decreasing the permitted
50:59uses of land. So in other
51:00words, wherever that existing
51:02use is allowed, you are simply
51:05saying that's where data
51:06centers would be allowed. So
51:07you are not decreasing or
51:09increasing the permitted uses.
51:11Um, and so that's another way
51:15you can do it. You could also,
51:17um, decide to change it to
51:19conditional rezoning or special
51:21use permits within those
51:23districts. Um, but um, you
51:27know, in terms of ensuring down
51:30zoning compliance, I think the
51:32best bet is to ensure that you
51:34are incorporating data centers
51:37into an existing use. And the
51:39final thing is to just avoid
51:41creating nonconformity. And
51:43that's a pretty straightforward
51:44way of doing that, which is to
51:45just say this applies to any
51:48data centers going forward. And
51:50so you're not creating any
51:52nonconforming because you're
51:53not trying to apply it to any
51:54existing data centers. And
51:56there's legal language that we
51:59can include in the text
52:00amendment to do that. Um, so
52:04these are, these are this is
52:06what the adjustments or the
52:07revisions would look like to
52:09it. And um, you know, if you
52:11have questions about these, you
52:13know, happy to to answer those.
52:15Like I said, this is what the
52:17current ordinance says as it
52:19relates to unlisted uses. Um,
52:21the process involves the city
52:23manager determining whether an
52:24unlisted use is part of it. Uh,
52:27you know, a certain existing
52:28use or not. Um, and seeing what
52:30is, quote, substantially
52:32similar. That's the process
52:34that is currently done. And so
52:36all this change would do is you
52:37see the red strikethrough is,
52:39would just strike the part that
52:40says uses that are not
52:42substantially similar to an
52:43existing use are prohibited.
52:45And that's to comply with the
52:47case law. Um, and then as it
52:51relates to um, the suggestion
52:54in working with staff, what we
52:56did is we looked at, okay, all
52:58of the uses in the, um, in the
53:00Udo. What which one do data
53:03centers most closely resemble?
53:05And if you look at it, the
53:07warehouse, uh, storage use
53:11definition aligns the most
53:13with, uh, data centers. And so,
53:16uh, what the suggestion there
53:19is, what's an underlying, which
53:20is just essentially including
53:22data centers. As an example of
53:25a warehouse storage use. I
53:27mean, that's what they're
53:28doing. They're storing large
53:30data equipment. Um, and so, um,
53:33they, they have some of the
53:34same, a lot of the same impacts
53:36as some types of warehouse
53:38storage and other things. So,
53:41um, that's.
53:43Uh, can can we keep it down,
53:45please? Um, we're trying to
53:47trying to hit a presentation.
53:48All right. Attorney.
53:49Okay. Uh, so that's the the
53:53first suggested revision, and
53:55then you can see here what by
53:58doing that, by incorporating
54:00data centers into the warehouse
54:02storage units, you would be
54:03prohibiting it in every single
54:05zoning district aside from the
54:08I and H. I, you know, the light
54:10industrial, heavy industrial.
54:12Um, and then, you know, a
54:14master plan in the PDC
54:17district. Uh, so that again,
54:20would seem to align well with
54:22where you want to be able to
54:23allow data centers versus not
54:26allow, um, if you did that, if
54:30you incorporated it in like,
54:31like I suggest, then you would
54:33have these buffers, um, and
54:36what you could see is, um, if
54:38you go all the way down to the
54:39bottom, HHI is probably where a
54:41lot of these would go or lie.
54:43Um, you would be getting the
54:45maximum buffers, you'd be
54:47getting class D or I'm sorry,
54:49type D buffers. Um, for the
54:52most part in, in in everywhere.
54:55Um, if you're adjoining those
54:58districts, um, and I know I'm
55:02moving quickly, but I'm trying
55:03to get through to be able to
55:05answer questions and, and then,
55:06um, let you all discuss
55:08yourself, but, um, so there are
55:12for every use, there are or not
55:15every use, but a lot of the
55:16uses there are specific
55:19standards for that use. And as
55:21you can see here, there are
55:23specific standards for the
55:25warehouse, um, storage use. One
55:27is it has to be at least 500ft
55:29from any residential district,
55:31school or childcare center. Um,
55:32it needs to be the the storage
55:35areas, which that's mostly
55:37everything in a data center,
55:39um, is going to need to, um,
55:42ensure that they're not located
55:44within any of the setbacks or
55:46the perimeter buffers like the
55:47type D buffers that I was just
55:49going through. Um, and then
55:52requirements about where the
55:53outdoor storage areas are
55:55located as it relates to the
55:56principal structure, and then
55:58ensuring that the site has, um,
56:01adequate vehicle circulation,
56:04turning, movement, stacking,
56:05etc., and then, um, ensuring
56:07that there's direct access onto
56:09an arterial or major collector
56:11street. Um, so again, that
56:14seems to make sense. You don't
56:15want these tucked away back in,
56:18you know, minor roads and
56:21arterial streets. Um, and then
56:24finally, the the last
56:26recommendation is what I was
56:27mentioning to ensure that we
56:28don't have a nonconformity
56:30situation. Um, this is kind of
56:33boilerplate standard language
56:34to include in the text
56:35amendment, um, to ensure that,
56:40um, a court or anybody looking
56:42at this will understand that it
56:44is not intended, intended to,
56:47um, constitute a down zoning.
56:50And so to the extent that
56:51something could be considered a
56:53down zoning, you would be
56:54saying it doesn't apply to that
56:56property. Um, and that, um, it
56:59also has a savings clause in
57:00there at the end of the, the
57:02middle section there that says
57:04that if down zoning legislation
57:07is changed and the legislature
57:10or the General Assembly, um,
57:12you know, doesn't make this a
57:13requirement anymore, that you
57:15could then, uh, enforce this to
57:18the maximum possible meaning
57:19you could change it. Um, and
57:22and then finally, and perhaps
57:25most importantly, the language
57:27at the very bottom, which is
57:29that this will only apply to
57:30new development, and it doesn't
57:32try to go backwards and apply
57:34retroactively. So the key
57:37takeaway is we start with the
57:38summary. But, um, you have a
57:40lot of inherent authority,
57:42zoning authority, most of the
57:44regulations that are proposed
57:45at the five ordinances, there
57:47is authority for it. Um, there
57:49are some important case law and
57:51down zoning legislation, legal
57:54limitations to be aware of. Um,
57:56and so that's why I'm
57:58suggesting or recommending
58:00making some adjustments or
58:02revisions to ensure that you're
58:03complying with those. And to
58:05continue to monitor the legal
58:07and, uh, legislative landscape
58:09and best practice and amend in
58:12the future should you decide
58:13it. So that's my presentation.
58:17Happy to, um, further discuss
58:20with you or let you all
58:21discuss.
58:22All right. Thank you. Attorney
58:23um, did have a couple questions
58:25for you before you go. Okay.
58:27Um, you mentioned it a couple
58:28of times. The down zoning. Um,
58:31so I know you briefly kind of
58:33told us what that was, just to
58:35make sure that we're clear on
58:37it. Basically, you're saying in
58:392024, the legislator, uh,
58:41legislature put into law, uh,
58:44some specific triggers that
58:47that would be considered down
58:49zoning, that that limit local
58:50government's ability, like so,
58:52for instance, in this, you
58:55showed um, one is I think what
58:57the way I understood it is, you
58:58said that, uh, it needed to fit
59:01into a classification that that
59:04existed already, or it's
59:05closely aligned to something
59:06like that. So in other words,
59:08you can't create its own class,
59:12uh, of restrictions. And then
59:15the, the setbacks in, in the
59:17event that a council or a
59:19commission, I know the county
59:20is working on, uh, doing this
59:23as well, um, wanted to increase
59:25the setbacks. You're saying you
59:27believe that triggers, uh, then
59:30the the down zoning triggered
59:31it, that the legislature said
59:33in place. Did I hear that?
59:34Right?
59:34Um, well, it, um, like, all
59:37good legal answers, it depends
59:39a little bit. So, um, yes, the
59:42the idea in incorporating data
59:45centers into an existing use
59:47and using the setbacks and the,
59:50the buffer that's in those
59:51already, is that by doing that
59:54you are not quote you know, I
59:56have the slide up here. You are
59:58not decreasing the development
59:59density. There's a, I guess, an
1:00:01argument to be made that when
1:00:03you put setbacks In and you and
1:00:06they're new and you put buffers
1:00:08in that are new. You're
1:00:10decreasing the amount of
1:00:11development density that's
1:00:13allowed. And so this is a way
1:00:16to ensure that you are not
1:00:17decreasing the development
1:00:18density because nothing is
1:00:20changing. The only thing you're
1:00:21doing is assigning an unlisted
1:00:23use to an existing use. Does
1:00:25that answer the question?
1:00:26Okay. Yeah. So basically you
1:00:28wouldn't be able to take it in
1:00:30and increase it if it didn't
1:00:32already exist.
1:00:33In my words, yes.
1:00:34In your opinion. And then the
1:00:35last thing I had, you said
1:00:37something about because
1:00:39something is not listed that
1:00:42that is, that is not a basis
1:00:44for being able to deny it. Can
1:00:46you touch that a little bit? So
1:00:47in other words, if if you know,
1:00:50um, data centers or, you know,
1:00:53space centers, whatever doesn't
1:00:55exist, you can't deny it based
1:00:56on the fact it's not in there.
1:00:57It's what you're saying.
1:00:58Correct? Yeah. If you if you
1:00:59look at this slide here, um, I
1:01:02it deals with what do you do as
1:01:06a city when you have an
1:01:07unlimited use. Um, meaning a
1:01:10use that is not defined and you
1:01:12can't, you know, find out.
1:01:14Okay. Well, what use is this?
1:01:15And the way you do that is the
1:01:17city manager determines what
1:01:20is, quote, substantially
1:01:21similar. And so there's a
1:01:23there's a process. And that
1:01:25provision there. Section 30.4
1:01:30point B1D tells you what you
1:01:33kind of do to determine whether
1:01:35a use is substantially similar
1:01:37or not. Um, and so that's the
1:01:39process you go through. And
1:01:40that's all staying the same.
1:01:42Nothing's changing there. What
1:01:44what I'm recommending, based on
1:01:45the case law, is to remove that
1:01:47last sentence which says that,
1:01:49okay, if you can't find
1:01:51anything that's substantially
1:01:53similar, it's prohibited. Um,
1:01:56because because courts in North
1:01:58Carolina, they favor the free
1:02:00use of land and property owner
1:02:02rights. And so to just say,
1:02:05well, we can't find something
1:02:06that's substantially similar.
1:02:07So therefore we're prohibiting
1:02:08it is been said by courts to
1:02:10not be allowed. So this is a
1:02:12recommendation. All right.
1:02:14All right. Uh, Councilmember
1:02:15here.
1:02:16Thank you, mayor. And thank you
1:02:19all for coming forward with, um,
1:02:24your presentation. Um, I've got
1:02:29you know, I've got a number of
1:02:30questions I'm asking for
1:02:33leniency here. Um, let's stick
1:02:37with the thousand feet setback.
1:02:41And I know that you had the
1:02:43different zones that you
1:02:44thought this would set in, and
1:02:46and data centers, probably more
1:02:49so in the, um, storage room.
1:02:53Large storage facilities, type
1:02:56zoning. And did I understand
1:02:59correctly, sir, that you're
1:03:02saying that the 1000 foot
1:03:06setback. Well, let me let me
1:03:09propose that again. I like the
1:03:121000 foot setback. Especially
1:03:19from from residential area.
1:03:24Explain to me what was just
1:03:27presented about the thousand
1:03:30foot setback. And then you you
1:03:33had that, uh, five you had here
1:03:37that you had the 500 distance
1:03:41from schools. Uh, in one part
1:03:44of the ordinance. Are we
1:03:47changing something if we want,
1:03:50or is that triggering something
1:03:51if we want the thousand period.
1:03:55Um.
1:03:56The 1000 foot period.
1:03:59Okay. So I, I, I'm I'll try to
1:04:02answer that as best as I can.
1:04:03Um, the by taking data centers
1:04:07and incorporate them into the
1:04:09warehouse storage existing use
1:04:10you're using all the same
1:04:13setbacks, buffers, etc. that
1:04:16that is allowed because what
1:04:17what happens is when somebody
1:04:19goes to determine whether or
1:04:21not they want to put a data
1:04:22center somewhere, they have to
1:04:23go look at what is the setback
1:04:26for the warehouse storage use.
1:04:27What is the buffer, etc.. And I
1:04:29showed you some of the buffer
1:04:30there. Um, you will also in
1:04:33addition to that, you also have
1:04:34to make sure and I don't know
1:04:36if you can see my slide that's
1:04:37pulled up or you can't.
1:04:38Well, not while you're talking.
1:04:40Oh, okay. Um, well.
1:04:42There's a there's a slide on
1:04:44page 11 that explains what
1:04:47additional standards apply to a
1:04:51warehouse storage. Um, and
1:04:52that's the 500ft from a
1:04:55residential school or childcare
1:04:56center. And so what what I'm
1:04:59recommending is that you go
1:05:01with that because that's what's
1:05:02existing already. You're not
1:05:05putting in a new setback that
1:05:07could constitute possibly a
1:05:11down zoning.
1:05:12Which you were saying that the
1:05:13thousand feet could if you
1:05:15changed it.
1:05:16Yeah.
1:05:17Yeah, yeah, I mean, I, I
1:05:18understood that. I was just
1:05:19wondering if that could be, um.
1:05:28Okay. You stated, uh, our staff
1:05:31stated that, um, it can be put
1:05:36in writing and you all tell me
1:05:40if you did it. Not a doctor
1:05:41zone. I'm in my zone that they
1:05:45put in writing. If about the
1:05:49use of water, the amount, use
1:05:52of water, the amount, use of
1:05:56electricity or proposed. Come
1:05:59up, come up. Doc. Um, that is
1:06:02something that could be a part
1:06:06of it. That's in this proposal.
1:06:12Yes, sir. That ties.
1:06:13And then that and.
1:06:14That there would not be an
1:06:16impact on the residential
1:06:19surroundings, the business
1:06:21surroundings, you know, just
1:06:22period.
1:06:23The utility impact statement
1:06:24requires the data center to
1:06:26coordinate with park or
1:06:27whomever the utility is to
1:06:30ensure capability and capacity
1:06:32and all of that's in writing in
1:06:34in the utility impact statement.
1:06:37For both, for both water and
1:06:39power. So they're both so both
1:06:42be the same.
1:06:43And that's what is in these
1:06:46proposals. If they are are
1:06:48accepted.
1:06:49Yes sir.
1:06:50This right. And what we're
1:06:52talking.
1:06:52About.
1:06:52Until the impact statement.
1:06:53Yes, sir.
1:06:53Okay.
1:06:55Explain to me once more. And I
1:06:59wish we had this where we could
1:07:00have had it ourselves.
1:07:02Explained to me once more about
1:07:06what is done between 8 and 5.
1:07:10That time frame that.
1:07:12You gave us.
1:07:12You're talking about the noise?
1:07:13Yes, sir. It's just different
1:07:16levels of noise limitations. So
1:07:18currently it references
1:07:20whatever's the commercial use
1:07:21in chapter 17. So daytime hours
1:07:24would be, you know, business
1:07:26hours 65dB is the limit. And
1:07:29then at nighttime it switches
1:07:30to 60.
1:07:31Okay. Then what I didn't hear
1:07:35on that was and that was a
1:07:38conversation that came from our
1:07:41speakers at one time. And even
1:07:43among ourselves. I didn't hear
1:07:47anything about how the water
1:07:50would be returned back. Um, to
1:07:55our basins. I didn't hear
1:07:56anything about how it'd be
1:07:58filtered. Uh, what what it
1:08:01would go through to try to put
1:08:03it back cleaner than it. Once
1:08:08it goes through the system. Did
1:08:09I over overlook hearing that
1:08:11today?
1:08:12So the utility impact statement
1:08:15includes, uh, peak water
1:08:17usages, cooling methods, um. I
1:08:22have it in writing. There's
1:08:23more water, waste, waste water
1:08:26flows by process. And the
1:08:27cooling method, um, it doesn't
1:08:30cover how it returns to the
1:08:31basin. And the utility impact
1:08:33statement. Now, that is an
1:08:34agreement that the data center
1:08:36would have to, you know,
1:08:38discuss with the utility. And
1:08:40the utility could potentially,
1:08:43you know, have that writing
1:08:44with them. But that's not.
1:08:45From I.
1:08:46Thought that was one of the I
1:08:48thought that was one of the
1:08:51concerns or one of the issues
1:08:53that we had discussed on, uh,
1:08:55any water. And I know they said
1:08:56it wouldn't be much that would
1:08:57be going back, but I thought it
1:08:59was something that we had
1:09:00discussed about the how that
1:09:03water would return back to the
1:09:05basin. Um, during that cycle
1:09:07period of time when they are
1:09:08filtering and cleaning. Uh,
1:09:10thank you, mayor.
1:09:12All right. Councilman Davis.
1:09:14Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Uh, this
1:09:15is my question is for the
1:09:16attorney. So I get everything
1:09:18about the, um, storage and all
1:09:20that. The warehouse storage
1:09:22and, um, make sure the data
1:09:24centers are reflective of that.
1:09:26But this down zoning amendment
1:09:29says, uh, where is it that it
1:09:32says it cannot be an active or
1:09:33enforce without written consent
1:09:35of all property owners. So,
1:09:37council this council do have
1:09:38the right to maybe put
1:09:40conditional zoning and the
1:09:42owners could agree to it.
1:09:43Correct. For the thousand feet.
1:09:45Uh, yes. Okay.
1:09:46Yeah.
1:09:47All right.
1:09:47Thank you.
1:09:48Yeah. And, uh, I should add to
1:09:50that, um, if you see, um, the
1:09:54use table where it has in the.
1:09:57I'm sorry, I'm blinking on the
1:09:58name of the district, but
1:10:00there's one that has a master
1:10:02plan that would need to be
1:10:03submitted. That and that would
1:10:05be that back and forth, like a
1:10:06conditional zoning that the
1:10:07property owner would work with
1:10:09and they would consent to it.
1:10:11So yes.
1:10:11We want.
1:10:11To make sure that the council
1:10:12does have jurisdiction to put
1:10:15conditions on the zoning
1:10:18because like I said, it says
1:10:19that if it would written
1:10:20consent, that it could be okay
1:10:22just to make sure.
1:10:23Right? Yeah.
1:10:24Thank you.
1:10:25Clarify something attorney,
1:10:26because you said you said
1:10:28something earlier that said
1:10:30with a city this size now. So
1:10:33to his point, is that specific
1:10:36only to uh, the people in the,
1:10:38in the noticed area or, or if
1:10:41you, if you make a change to a
1:10:43clarification, are you saying
1:10:45every business in that city in
1:10:47that classification has to sign
1:10:48off, which is the two.
1:10:50Yeah. So I believe what your
1:10:52question was, is could a data
1:10:54center have a conditional
1:10:55rezoning and voluntarily
1:10:57consent to having 1000 foot
1:11:00setback? That is, yes, they can
1:11:02do that. Could could you put a
1:11:041000 foot setback on the whole
1:11:08city? You know, that is what I,
1:11:11we don't know.
1:11:12Okay. All right.
1:11:14All right. Uh, Councilman
1:11:15Hondros.
1:11:16Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Um, Mr.
1:11:19attorney, thank you for your
1:11:20presentation. Can you, um, tell
1:11:23us for my edification and for
1:11:24those listening, what state law
1:11:27or laws prohibit an outright
1:11:29ban on a specific type of use
1:11:30is in the Constitution, general
1:11:32statute, case law.
1:11:33Case law. And that was the, um,
1:11:35case that I referenced there,
1:11:37the Byrd v Franklin County
1:11:38case.
1:11:39Because there's a couple
1:11:40counties, I think that, uh, I
1:11:42think Clay and or Buncombe
1:11:44County that have outright bans
1:11:47on data centers. Can you speak
1:11:48to that?
1:11:49Graham Murphy?
1:11:51Um, I cannot speak on that. I'm
1:11:54I'm I have to see kind of what
1:11:56that is. I, I don't, um, I
1:11:59mean, this is all kind of
1:12:00uncharted territory. There's
1:12:02again, there's no case law on
1:12:03whether you can just outright
1:12:06ban it. But I would think based
1:12:08off that, uh, case law and the
1:12:10uncW School of Government
1:12:11guidance on banning unlisted
1:12:13uses, that that would be
1:12:15subject to legal challenge.
1:12:17So then the verdict is still
1:12:19out. If it was challenged
1:12:20legally, if that would
1:12:22withstand.
1:12:23Correct.
1:12:23The trial. Um, next question is
1:12:25on moratoria. We've heard a lot
1:12:26of, um, um, folks that that,
1:12:31um, really wanted a moratorium.
1:12:33Can you speak to the guardrails
1:12:34or the guidelines? Um, that
1:12:37state law puts on, um, how
1:12:40counties and municipalities,
1:12:42um, can enact a moratoria and
1:12:44what they can be used for.
1:12:45Sure. I mean, I, um, that's a
1:12:50that's a different thing than
1:12:51what we're looking at today.
1:12:52But there is a statute that
1:12:54provides a process for enacting
1:12:57a development moratorium. Um,
1:12:59and there's certain notice
1:13:02requirements. There's I mean, I
1:13:03don't I have I don't have the
1:13:04statute in front of me or have
1:13:06it memorized, but, um, there is
1:13:08a process for doing that. And
1:13:10that's what a lot of
1:13:11jurisdictions have done.
1:13:12And then, um, we mentioned
1:13:14conditional zoning, uh, earlier.
1:13:18Does North Carolina law allow
1:13:20for counties, municipalities to
1:13:22require, uh, conditional zoning
1:13:24for specific type of uses?
1:13:29Okay. So the answer to your
1:13:31question is yes. But if you're
1:13:33talking about it as it relates
1:13:35to a use that is unlisted, like
1:13:39data centers or not currently
1:13:41defined, that is an open
1:13:44question. Um, because same
1:13:48thing for um, for a special use
1:13:52permit that would be required.
1:13:55It's unknown whether or not
1:13:57requiring a data center to get
1:13:59a special use permit is
1:14:01considered changing the amount
1:14:03of permitted uses. UNC School
1:14:05of Government has argued or not
1:14:07argued. They have said that
1:14:08there is at least an argument
1:14:11to be made that that is,
1:14:13reducing the number of
1:14:14permitted uses because it was.
1:14:16There's an argument to be made,
1:14:18it was permitted, and then now
1:14:21you're requiring a special use
1:14:22permit, a special use permit.
1:14:23And so therefore you're it's
1:14:25not, um, the same as it was
1:14:28before. And so, um, now
1:14:31conditional rezoning to answer
1:14:33your specific question again,
1:14:35that goes back to Councilmember
1:14:37Davis's question, which is you
1:14:39can always get the property
1:14:40owner consent for that
1:14:42specific, um, setback or that
1:14:44specific conditional rezoning.
1:14:46And, and, and go about it that
1:14:48way.
1:14:48So on a specific, um, project,
1:14:52if it requires rezoning, if
1:14:54that applicant chose to do the
1:14:55conditional zoning is what
1:14:56you're saying, but you can't
1:14:57just make it a blanket
1:14:58requirement. Incorrect. In your
1:15:00opinion. Okay. Thank you..
1:15:03All right. Council member
1:15:05McMillan.
1:15:05Yeah.
1:15:06Thank you, Mr..
1:15:06Mayor.
1:15:07Uh, first question before.
1:15:09I do have some questions for
1:15:10you, and I appreciate your
1:15:11time. I have a question first
1:15:12for City clerk. If you could
1:15:15let us know. Um, when the
1:15:19agenda packet, uh, containing
1:15:21these briefs, this information
1:15:24will be provided to the public
1:15:25and to the council. And I would
1:15:28love to understand why we
1:15:31didn't have the advanced
1:15:33materials, uh, both in text and
1:15:36in PowerPoint form prior to
1:15:39this meeting. I would like to
1:15:45know who made that call as well.
1:15:55Who probably made the call is
1:15:56not here today. Who could
1:15:58answer that best? But I don't
1:16:00know. Uh, Jody, I'll probably,
1:16:02I guess.
1:16:03I'm sorry. The city clerk was
1:16:06out of the office last week,
1:16:07and I just got here this
1:16:08morning, so I was just. I don't
1:16:12have this presentation that the
1:16:14attorney's presenting. Um, the
1:16:16other presentation was just
1:16:17uploaded about an hour before
1:16:19the meeting, so I did not have
1:16:21it.
1:16:21Miss Jody.
1:16:23We can certainly make sure that
1:16:25it's available to the public
1:16:26and to everyone.
1:16:27But I think to to that point
1:16:29that y'all want to talk about
1:16:31that. Did you get some
1:16:32information from, uh, School of
1:16:34Government somewhere today or
1:16:37recently or something? You were
1:16:38saying?
1:16:38Yeah.
1:16:39Yes, sir. The school
1:16:40government, um, posted their
1:16:43findings a couple of weeks ago,
1:16:44and this presentation has
1:16:46changed. Um, kind of and been
1:16:50shaped by those findings over
1:16:51the, over the past couple of
1:16:53weeks to what's the final
1:16:54product being presented to you
1:16:56all today? Um, and that's what
1:16:59you all.
1:16:59Saw. Okay.
1:17:01All right, all right.
1:17:02Councilmember.
1:17:03Yeah. So obviously, uh,
1:17:07disappointed with that. Uh,
1:17:09there's a lapse in process
1:17:10there. Uh, we've we've talked
1:17:11in the past about, uh,
1:17:14transparency. This is very
1:17:17obviously a subject or a topic
1:17:20that's of high interest to the
1:17:21public. If you don't think so,
1:17:23look at the fact that a room
1:17:24was filled at 11 a.m. on a
1:17:27Monday. If I could see by show
1:17:29of hands how many people that
1:17:30showed up today knew about this
1:17:31a week ago.
1:17:32Yeah, yeah.
1:17:34How many of you have just found
1:17:35out within the last 4 or 5 days?
1:17:40You okay?
1:17:42So there's a couple of lapses
1:17:44in transparency, and I think
1:17:46that's something the council
1:17:47and the staff could address.
1:17:49One, the materials were not
1:17:50provided. So if y'all could
1:17:52imagine this, a lot of
1:17:52information to receive the
1:17:54morning of and make a decision
1:17:56on uh, two, you were not
1:17:58properly, uh, noticed and
1:18:00advised, and you all should
1:18:02have these materials and be
1:18:03able to make decisions for
1:18:04yourself and be able to respond
1:18:06to your representatives so that
1:18:08we can make the right decisions
1:18:09for the public, and wanted to
1:18:10make sure that that was clear
1:18:11before I asked the rest of the
1:18:13questions that I have. Um, for
1:18:15the lawyer. We miss them. If he
1:18:17could come back up. Yeah. We
1:18:20didn't get a proper
1:18:21introduction. Can you tell us
1:18:23what towns you represent? And
1:18:25I'm very interested to know of
1:18:27the towns that you represent.
1:18:28Have any of them had a
1:18:29moratorium process or have any
1:18:32data center projects currently
1:18:33in the works?
1:18:35Um, I can tell you where I'm
1:18:36the town attorney. I cannot
1:18:38tell you who my clients are.
1:18:39Uh, that's, um, that,
1:18:42unfortunately, is confidential
1:18:43information that I'd have to
1:18:44get their permission before I
1:18:46say who I've worked with. What
1:18:48else? That's a that's a rules
1:18:49of professional conduct. But I
1:18:50am the town attorney for the
1:18:52town of Highlands. I'm the town
1:18:53attorney for the town of
1:18:54Rancho. And I'm the town
1:18:55attorney for the town of Ellon.
1:18:57Okay.
1:18:57Thank you for letting us know
1:18:58that that much. Uh, I have
1:19:01questions. I have one of my
1:19:02colleagues already asked a
1:19:03question about, um, what? You
1:19:06knew, uh, in terms of, uh, what
1:19:08the process was for protective
1:19:11ordinance. And I think this is
1:19:13something the staff has to work
1:19:14through in the city as well.
1:19:15But in both, uh, Clay County in
1:19:18North Carolina and in Murphy,
1:19:19North Carolina, there are
1:19:20protective ordinances that are
1:19:22in place that do, uh, allow us
1:19:25to have a greater latitude as a
1:19:26city to put in protections.
1:19:28We're very interested in that.
1:19:30But what the what the citizenry
1:19:33has already asked for was a
1:19:34moratorium. I want to also
1:19:36correct, uh, Doctor Manziel,
1:19:38that timeline. Uh, it did talk
1:19:40about how we got here in terms
1:19:42of looking at the, amendments.
1:19:44What it omitted was the dates
1:19:46of April 13th and April 27th.
1:19:48April 13th was the first time
1:19:50that this council got from our
1:19:51city attorney and her able
1:19:53staff. The directions for what
1:19:55fits into a moratorium. And
1:19:57then April 27th, uh, for for
1:20:00anybody that's that's new to
1:20:01the room is the date this this
1:20:04council made a decision not to
1:20:06move forwards, towards a
1:20:07moratorium, but instead put 120
1:20:09day pause on a moratorium
1:20:11itself. So I want to I want to
1:20:13ask to you, Mr. Attorney, if
1:20:15you could let us know what your
1:20:17experience is, not only with,
1:20:18uh, putting in place a
1:20:20moratorium, uh, your legal
1:20:22experience moratorium, but also
1:20:24protective ordinance, like, was
1:20:26mentioned by my colleague.
1:20:27Also, things like a citizen
1:20:28task force, uh, and other ways
1:20:31that allow the public to have
1:20:32input on the process.
1:20:34I'm sure. Yeah, I have, um,
1:20:37assisted municipalities with
1:20:39adopting a development
1:20:41moratorium and going through
1:20:43that process, as I mentioned,
1:20:45is laid out in statute. Um, and
1:20:47I have, um, assisted, um,
1:20:50creating committees to look at
1:20:53this committees of city
1:20:54councils, committee, public
1:20:55facing city, um, uh, public
1:20:59facing task force or
1:21:00committees, um, to address
1:21:02this. And so that that is
1:21:04definitely something that is
1:21:05able to be done.
1:21:06Okay.
1:21:06I appreciate that. I have
1:21:08something that's very much in
1:21:09line with that, and I
1:21:09appreciate the time that I've
1:21:11been given to say this. Uh,
1:21:12there is by right language and
1:21:14this morning's presentation and
1:21:17one of the earliest signals we
1:21:18got from the public is that
1:21:20this should not be a process
1:21:22that includes, by right, or
1:21:23privileges or action. Uh, one
1:21:25of my colleagues already
1:21:26brought up conditional zoning.
1:21:28And how, if anything, uh, an
1:21:31issue like this that is of high
1:21:32public interest should have
1:21:34conditional zoning application
1:21:37rules applied. What did you, if
1:21:39you could, to let us know what
1:21:40the differences are or what we
1:21:42would give up by having
1:21:43conditional zoning versus BI,
1:21:45right. Which is unfortunately
1:21:47still being mentioned, uh, in
1:21:48this process, despite the
1:21:49public saying that they're not
1:21:50going to stand for that.
1:21:54Um, so I think if if I'm
1:21:57understanding the question
1:21:58correctly, you're wanting to
1:21:59know. So, um, are you able to
1:22:02see the slide if I pull up a
1:22:03slide because I think it would
1:22:04be helpful.
1:22:05Fortunately.
1:22:05You know, if it was my in my
1:22:07email, like normal or, you
1:22:08know, up on I would. But right
1:22:09now our screens aren't even
1:22:11working.
1:22:11Oh, okay. Um, well, if if you
1:22:14remember the slide as it
1:22:15relates to the use table, um,
1:22:17it would the difference is that
1:22:21right now you don't have the
1:22:24the use table says if you're in
1:22:27a district and you're using
1:22:28that use. So in this case a
1:22:30warehouse storage use if you're
1:22:31in that district it's either
1:22:33it's a P for permitted which is
1:22:35by right what you're referring
1:22:36to an S for special use, or an
1:22:39MP, which is a planned
1:22:41development master plan. And
1:22:43then that slash is what is
1:22:46prohibited. And so if you were
1:22:49to incorporate data centers
1:22:50into the warehouse storage use,
1:22:52you would be using that table
1:22:57area of what is allowed and not
1:22:59allowed and how it's allowed.
1:23:01And so as I mentioned that it
1:23:05slashes everywhere a backslash
1:23:07for everything. Uh, unless
1:23:09you're in an industrial
1:23:10district. And that's because
1:23:12that's where you all have
1:23:15determined warehouse storage
1:23:17uses should be allowed. It's in
1:23:18the light industrial and the
1:23:21high industrial, um, districts
1:23:22in the, in the BP district, the
1:23:24business park. And so, um,
1:23:28there you all could, if you
1:23:31wanted to change that P to a C
1:23:35or D C's to make it a
1:23:37conditional zoning. But you
1:23:38would need to rewrite, you
1:23:41know, your because you, you
1:23:42don't currently have that as an
1:23:44option right now in your Udo.
1:23:46And so to no fault of your own
1:23:49that's something we're slow on.
1:23:50You know, as a city, we've been
1:23:52we've gotten the message loud
1:23:53and clear. And thank you to
1:23:54everybody that showed up today.
1:23:56The in terms of our write that
1:23:58language should not be in
1:24:00anything we're looking at at
1:24:01this point. After all, we've
1:24:02heard from the public and all
1:24:03the concern we've had
1:24:04conditional zoning, uh, as my
1:24:06colleague, uh, Councilmember
1:24:08Davis said, is where we should
1:24:10head. And I'll pass it back to
1:24:12you, Mr. Mayor, those are the
1:24:13questions for now.
1:24:14All right. Thank you,
1:24:15Councilman Hondros.
1:24:16Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Um, I
1:24:18agree with my colleague. Uh,
1:24:20and I've said it many times
1:24:21before for different topics.
1:24:23Any presentation we're being
1:24:24presented should be in our in
1:24:26our cecum. But, um, if Doctor
1:24:28Menzel could come up for a
1:24:29moment if you could put the
1:24:30first. I think it was the very
1:24:32first slide of your
1:24:33presentation, um, which had the
1:24:35timeline, because I've been
1:24:37looking through our, our
1:24:40timeline. Um, I think the first
1:24:43date was February, but February
1:24:4626th is when the Planning
1:24:47Commission got this
1:24:48presentation, not city council.
1:24:50It's not on any of our February
1:24:52agendas. It didn't come to
1:24:56council until the April work
1:24:58session.
1:25:02Um.
1:25:10Yes, sir. My apologies. It was
1:25:12first presented in February and
1:25:14that was to that.
1:25:15To to the Planning Commission?
1:25:16Yes, sir. Correct. Then it went
1:25:18to the work session and then.
1:25:19So then normally when the
1:25:22Planning Commission hears, uh,
1:25:24proposed revisions, they have
1:25:25their public hearing or the
1:25:26zoning Commission has a public
1:25:28hearing on a rezoning case. It
1:25:31comes to council the very next
1:25:34meeting, uh, the very next
1:25:35month at our second regularly
1:25:38scheduled meeting of the month,
1:25:39which is the fourth Monday. So
1:25:40if that was presented to the
1:25:41Planning Commission in
1:25:43February, should have come to
1:25:45us the fourth Monday, the
1:25:46second regularly scheduled
1:25:47meeting of March. So why didn't
1:25:50that happen?
1:25:51I don't have an answer, sir.
1:25:53And then, um, council had to
1:25:56take action to receive the
1:25:58presentation. Um, so it was put
1:26:01on the, uh, April work session.
1:26:04We took action that day to
1:26:05receive the, um, presentation,
1:26:08and it came to us not as a
1:26:10public hearing, but instead
1:26:12just just as a informative
1:26:14presentation. So that's kind of
1:26:16the timeline of how we got to
1:26:18where we are today. And I
1:26:19think, um, the discussion could
1:26:21have gone differently if the
1:26:22motion that was made in April
1:26:25wasn't an in lieu of motion,
1:26:27um, that was made. So thank
1:26:29you, sir.
1:26:30And Councilman Hondros, uh,
1:26:31before I go to Mayor Pro tem,
1:26:33you know, the the agenda is
1:26:35prepared by the manager,
1:26:36correct. Who's not here? So a
1:26:38lot of those questions we have
1:26:39asked and and but don't want to
1:26:42redirect, redirect your
1:26:45questions to them. You know, it
1:26:47starts with his preparation of
1:26:48it. So that's something that we
1:26:50can we can address. All right.
1:26:52Mayor Pro tem.
1:26:53Uh, thank you, mayor. Uh, and
1:26:54thank you for clearing that up,
1:26:55because I was going to add the
1:26:56doctor. Manzella. I don't even
1:26:57know if he was here during that
1:26:58time. I don't think he's been
1:26:59with us for less than a year or
1:27:01so, but I wanted to ask some
1:27:02questions in reference to how
1:27:03we got here. And, uh, we talked
1:27:07about adding it to an existing
1:27:10ordinance in the stories you
1:27:11mentioned, Lee and I, what was
1:27:13the other zoning that was
1:27:14mentioned? Because I'm not
1:27:15familiar with that.
1:27:21The business park. business
1:27:23park, BP.
1:27:24BP, and you talked about site
1:27:27plans. Where do site plans go
1:27:28first when you want to have
1:27:29somebody that want to come
1:27:30here, did that go to TRC?
1:27:32So. Yes.
1:27:36And when TRC reviews it, as my
1:27:39colleague was talking about
1:27:40energy and water before they
1:27:42approve it or disapprove it,
1:27:43did that come to council?
1:27:45I've been to as far as I know.
1:27:48I'm waiting for Doctor
1:27:49Manzella, Doctor Newton.
1:28:00And Doctor Newton and I'm
1:28:02Doctor Newton. And I'll ask you
1:28:04to ask a question. I'm sorry. I
1:28:06did not hear it. I was looking
1:28:07to see about coming up.
1:28:09A lot of people have the
1:28:10impression that we council is
1:28:14familiar with people with
1:28:15projects that come to the city,
1:28:17but most of them are just in
1:28:19the planning phase. And it goes
1:28:20to TRC. When does council get
1:28:22aware of it?
1:28:25If the answer to that is if you
1:28:28have an item that requires a
1:28:30council action. So there are
1:28:32projects that you never
1:28:34directly see or take action on.
1:28:36For example, a subdivision that
1:28:38meets all the standards
1:28:39doesn't, but it will still go
1:28:40through a technical review. Uh,
1:28:42we have the list, a very large
1:28:45list of people who are notified
1:28:46of all technical review
1:28:48committee actions.
1:28:50So if our ordinance is if they
1:28:53don't want to come for a
1:28:56reconditioned, I'm sorry, a
1:28:58conditional rezoning or an Sup,
1:29:00we would never see it correct.
1:29:05If if it's an item that's also
1:29:08coming, being considered for
1:29:10annexation.
1:29:10Annexation.
1:29:11Right.
1:29:12Um, since we are talking about
1:29:15unclassified uses, if it was to
1:29:18come as an Sup, we would never
1:29:20be able to disapprove it
1:29:21because we can't disapprove
1:29:22something. A special use
1:29:24permit. I'm sorry. We would
1:29:26never be able to disapprove it,
1:29:28because this is something that
1:29:28we have never done before.
1:29:30Correct.
1:29:33When we put the standard of
1:29:35special use permit, they have
1:29:37standards that are very
1:29:38specific, that are in our
1:29:40ordinance, that have to be met
1:29:43if they meet those, then it
1:29:46needs to be approved.
1:29:48Gotcha. State standards. Well,
1:29:51let me rephrase it. Uh, I'm
1:29:55sorry, Mr. Tazewell, can you
1:29:56come back up real quick? You
1:29:58put out you reviewed our UDL,
1:30:02and you made some required
1:30:03recommendations. Those
1:30:05recommendations are to keep us
1:30:09from being litigated against in
1:30:12the future. I would presume.
1:30:13Yes. The goal is to ensure that
1:30:16you somebody doesn't legally
1:30:18challenge your UDL.
1:30:19And have you given those
1:30:20recommendations to our staff
1:30:22for us to delete and to approve
1:30:25what you have? You have, yes.
1:30:27So that would be our motion
1:30:29tonight. I would presume.
1:30:31Yes.
1:30:32Thank you sir. Thank you, Mr.
1:30:34Mayor.
1:30:34All right.
1:30:35Uh, Councilmember Jones, uh,
1:30:38since he hasn't spoken. And
1:30:39then I'll go to the second
1:30:40rounds of McMillan.
1:30:41And thank.
1:30:41You, Mr. Mayor. Just have
1:30:43several questions. Um, one key
1:30:45word that keeps popping in my
1:30:47mind is unbalanced. Um, just
1:30:51unbalanced perspectives. Um, I
1:30:54appreciate everything that's
1:30:56been going on. I know we've
1:30:56been working extremely hard on
1:30:58this. Uh, and when I say
1:30:59imbalanced, it's it's just that
1:31:01if you can imagine a scale and
1:31:03you, you're presented with
1:31:05information and it's really
1:31:07tilted. It's really, really
1:31:09tilted. And, uh, I tried my I
1:31:11tried my best to be very, very
1:31:12objective and, uh, in
1:31:14everything, uh, but it's just
1:31:16challenging when it comes to
1:31:18this because it really seems
1:31:20unbalanced. Uh, it just really
1:31:22seems unbalanced. We've heard
1:31:24from, uh, several attorneys
1:31:25today. We were hearing from
1:31:26one, uh, I believe that was
1:31:28mentioned that could, you know,
1:31:30could we hear from an attorney
1:31:33that has also dealt with some
1:31:36of the possible challenges of
1:31:38data centers? And that was
1:31:39pretty much shot down, uh, as
1:31:42well. So I want I want to leave
1:31:44with my two questions with
1:31:46this, uh, one for my district.
1:31:48A lot of the individuals that I
1:31:49have spoke with, uh, when they
1:31:51speak of supporting, uh, a
1:31:54moratorium, from my
1:31:56perspective, it's not a ban at
1:31:58all. So I know that may have
1:31:59been some of the cases for, for
1:32:01some of us up here, but that
1:32:03that was not my case. They're
1:32:04like, you're moving too fast. I
1:32:06don't know much about it. The
1:32:07information is is just is
1:32:09coming forth. Uh, but man, it's
1:32:11just a lot of missing pieces
1:32:13and again, unbalanced there. So
1:32:15when I hear it from my end,
1:32:17it's not a we want a total ban.
1:32:19It's can we get this right the
1:32:21first time. So I want to make
1:32:22that clear for the ones I've
1:32:24been, uh, listening to uh, as
1:32:26well. So I, I need to ask a
1:32:28question. Factual questions
1:32:30have come up. This has come up
1:32:31within the, uh, within my my
1:32:33district. So I need I need to
1:32:35ask a question. When you say,
1:32:37uh, residents, whoever it is,
1:32:39can I ask questions? You will
1:32:40answer factual questions.
1:32:44Please give me a quick example
1:32:45of what is a factual question.
1:32:47What would you deem a non
1:32:48factual question? And what
1:32:50basis is that? Uh, considered?
1:32:53Because that was one of the
1:32:55caveats as far as when we had
1:32:56this, uh, when the public, uh,
1:32:59meeting went out September,
1:33:02whenever it was the two, the
1:33:04six hour, it was noted you all
1:33:06were only answer factual
1:33:08questions. What is a factual
1:33:11question? What is a non factual
1:33:13question. And again, by what
1:33:14basis are you determining that.
1:33:18Who is that question for.
1:33:20That's for staff.
1:33:22What are you talking about. The
1:33:23committee.
1:33:24It was stated yes for the
1:33:25public hearing. And I I've
1:33:26heard this before, but even for
1:33:28the listening session it was
1:33:31stated, you know, you have to
1:33:32you all were answer factual
1:33:35questions. What is a factual
1:33:39question? What is deemed not a
1:33:41factual question? And how would
1:33:43you determine that? Because if
1:33:44you're out there, if resident
1:33:46actual question, how are you
1:33:47going to determine what's a
1:33:48factual question?
1:33:55Sir, um, I can speak with the
1:33:58community engagement session
1:34:00that was staff's listening to
1:34:02what the community had to say.
1:34:04So that was us capturing those
1:34:06questions and bringing them
1:34:08back to to council to review,
1:34:10uh, several residents put their
1:34:13contact information on there
1:34:14and requested a follow up to
1:34:16answer their question. We will
1:34:18absolutely do that once we've
1:34:20been.
1:34:20Legally.
1:34:20With all due respect, that's
1:34:22going a totally different
1:34:23direction. I I'll summarize it
1:34:25for the sake of time because I
1:34:26want a factual question. That's
1:34:28that's, uh, very familiar with
1:34:30those, those those are pretty
1:34:31much a, a it's a corporate com,
1:34:33uh, tactic. It's a strategy
1:34:35that's used for the most part,
1:34:37where you want to narrowly
1:34:39define what a fact is. And part
1:34:42of that, what it does, it will
1:34:45potentially it can discourage
1:34:47someone from asking a question
1:34:48because there's no basis
1:34:50because it doesn't align with
1:34:52what we're trying to say.
1:34:53Right. And so when you do that
1:34:56and this is just me. So when
1:34:57you do that, uh, one, it does
1:35:00discourage it will discourage
1:35:01anyone from asking a question
1:35:03because it's like, man, do I
1:35:05have proof, do I don't? So the
1:35:07second part of that is, uh,
1:35:09most of the concerns I'm not
1:35:11here to, to refute any of my
1:35:12colleagues perspective. We're
1:35:13ten different individuals
1:35:15representing people. I'm not
1:35:16here for that. I'm not here to
1:35:17just to to discount. Definitely
1:35:20not the the public's, uh,
1:35:21concerns and things of that
1:35:23nature. But I want to put some
1:35:24things in context for me. So
1:35:25still sticking in line with
1:35:27that factual questioning thing,
1:35:28we're going to answer factual
1:35:29questions. I've heard that time
1:35:31and time again. Uh, and so for
1:35:33me, some of the concerns even
1:35:35that the community has have
1:35:36brought up, they're not
1:35:38unfounded. There are very they
1:35:41are nonpartisan. There are
1:35:43Harvards, there are mites,
1:35:45there are a ton of reputable
1:35:47and credible, uh, organizations
1:35:49that do research, whether it's
1:35:50on water, noise, etcetera,
1:35:52etcetera. So what I'm getting
1:35:53at is if they bring concern, if
1:35:55the constituents, the public
1:35:57brings concerns, we can't just
1:36:00discount them and say, well,
1:36:00they're not factual, they're
1:36:01unpaid. They don't have any
1:36:03basis to it. There's research
1:36:04supporting that. Just like you
1:36:07all are giving us what you're
1:36:08giving us. A lot of that is
1:36:10supported by, uh, research as
1:36:12well. So I did I did have a
1:36:14concern with that. And then
1:36:15lastly, I just want to speak to
1:36:17very quickly. I just had to to
1:36:19write some notes.
1:36:21Um.
1:36:23The fact that a lot of what I
1:36:26heard, I even today you, uh, we
1:36:28have some work to do. It's not
1:36:29discounting what you all have
1:36:31done. Uh, I heard something
1:36:33that was said, and there was no
1:36:34intent, uh, from the attorney.
1:36:35I mean, no ill intent, but it
1:36:37was there was a lot of
1:36:38community engagement, and have
1:36:40to respectfully disagree with
1:36:42that. Uh, even I tried to put
1:36:44it out for the listening
1:36:45sessions. It was put out, I
1:36:46think, on a Thursday we had
1:36:47some vegetables going on that
1:36:50weekend, and then we had a
1:36:51council meeting Monday. And
1:36:53even though it we know it was
1:36:54attended by some, I just think
1:36:56that was another opportunity.
1:36:57We could have done a lot
1:36:59better. And that gives the
1:37:00impression not say, I'm not
1:37:01knocking. It gives the
1:37:02impression that we were just
1:37:03going through the motion to
1:37:04check off a box to keep things
1:37:07going. And again, this is
1:37:08perception. This is not a not
1:37:10so. I just really want to make
1:37:12sure again, I have I have a lot
1:37:14of confidence in our staff and
1:37:16what we've done. But again, I
1:37:17go back and I'll leave. Leave
1:37:18with this. It's just been very
1:37:21unbalanced. We we've been
1:37:22hearing from individuals. So
1:37:24it's not a for me, it's not a
1:37:25pro or con for that. Just
1:37:27because of someone like my
1:37:28community made it very clear.
1:37:29Just because we're asking for a
1:37:31moratorium doesn't mean we want
1:37:32an outright ban. That has not
1:37:34been my experience. They're
1:37:35just saying, look, a lot of
1:37:37moving parts and the fact that
1:37:38we didn't have the information
1:37:39today, it took me literally
1:37:41right back to April, when we
1:37:43were sitting here in a work
1:37:44session, and we were presented
1:37:46with data center information
1:37:48without having it. So I just
1:37:50want to say we have some
1:37:51opportunities to do better. I
1:37:52appreciate the work that's
1:37:53being done, but if we can, we
1:37:56can help balance. And when I
1:37:57say balance again, it simply
1:37:58means if we can hear from
1:38:00attorneys that are going to,
1:38:01you know, help us line up these
1:38:03videos and what we can and
1:38:05cannot do, I think it's only
1:38:06fair for you all that staff as
1:38:07well. City manager's office,
1:38:09etc. whoever is over it to
1:38:11really can we balance that out
1:38:13just a little and say, okay,
1:38:15there are some valid concerns
1:38:17and it's not talking points,
1:38:18it's researched and it's by
1:38:20again, nonpartisan, uh, very
1:38:22respected individuals, uh,
1:38:24around the world. And so just
1:38:26to bring that in, uh, I think
1:38:28we, we need to be a little bit
1:38:29more balanced. Thank you, Mr.
1:38:30Mayor.
1:38:30Yes, sir.
1:38:31All right. So so two.
1:38:32Things, all right?
1:38:36Two. Two things. One, um, you
1:38:38know, council and council
1:38:40member Jones in particular. Um,
1:38:42these guys work for the city
1:38:43manager's office. So some of
1:38:45those questions have and need
1:38:48to be directed to them and and
1:38:49not to them. They're just
1:38:50presenting it. And so we see
1:38:52staff up here every day that's
1:38:53asked to present things. And so
1:38:55we need to show that now let me
1:38:59say this. Uh, I would prefer
1:39:02not to be dealing with this
1:39:04period. Right. And so if you go
1:39:06back to the timeline that you
1:39:08described, when the council got
1:39:11this in April, it had already
1:39:13been presented in February. As
1:39:16to council member Hondros, to
1:39:17the Planning Commission. Right.
1:39:19And so a fact based question
1:39:22is, uh, which keeps them out of
1:39:25it. You know, some of the non
1:39:28factual things that have been
1:39:29put out there to the council
1:39:30sign NDAs. The council is
1:39:32making money off of this.
1:39:34That's the kind of stuff that
1:39:35I'm assuming that they were not
1:39:36getting into. If you went to
1:39:38the listening sections and you
1:39:39read the questions, they had a
1:39:41section set up for water
1:39:43concerns, for power, concerns,
1:39:45for noise concerns, and for
1:39:47environmental concerns. And I
1:39:48may be missing one. And so
1:39:50their job was to ask and talk
1:39:53about things related to those
1:39:55things, not to talk about and
1:39:57chase down some of these, these
1:39:58rumors that that have have been
1:40:00put out here. And so, you know,
1:40:03I think Doctor Hewitt can
1:40:05probably answer a lot of that
1:40:06better. But it's not it's not
1:40:08really fair to, to to pin those
1:40:10guys down on that because, um,
1:40:12but we understand that because
1:40:13this is not our first day
1:40:14talking about this. So whether
1:40:16we took the moratorium or we
1:40:17didn't take the moratorium,
1:40:19nothing has been passed since
1:40:21February, and we're now in
1:40:22October. And I think the
1:40:23council is still doing the best
1:40:25we can with what we got. We're
1:40:26not choosing to be here, but
1:40:28the county is doing the exact
1:40:29same thing because
1:40:30jurisdictions are having to
1:40:31answer this question. And at
1:40:33some point, the federal and the
1:40:34state are going to have to say
1:40:35something about it, because
1:40:38this is something new that's
1:40:39been sprung on all of us. But
1:40:40right now, it's in our world.
1:40:42And I think that they're doing
1:40:43their best we can with that. So
1:40:45I don't I don't want to make
1:40:46sure that we're not putting
1:40:47them in an unfair situation.
1:40:49All right. Uh, Council McMillan
1:40:51and then Hondros. Second
1:40:52rounds, both.
1:40:53Yeah. Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Uh,
1:40:56so the public is demanding that
1:40:58we simply move at the speed of
1:41:00trust. Our authority to adopt a
1:41:02data center moratorium is
1:41:03written plainly in state law,
1:41:06and a general statute. 160,
1:41:08Delta Dash 107. We know we knew
1:41:11that on April 13th, that was
1:41:13190 days ago. And more than 50
1:41:18North Carolina communities,
1:41:20including Cumberland County,
1:41:21right next door, have already
1:41:23used this general statute in
1:41:24that moratorium. So the
1:41:26question is no longer how we
1:41:28can whether or not we can
1:41:30execute a moratorium. And so
1:41:32when we will. So since late
1:41:35last year, our residents have
1:41:37been asking us a few things
1:41:38repeatedly. They ask about our
1:41:40water. They ask about our grid.
1:41:42They ask who benefits and who
1:41:44pays the amendments in front of
1:41:46us were not informed by any
1:41:49specific analysis of our water,
1:41:52our grid, or our communities.
1:41:54Return. In fact, no
1:42:00Fayetteville specific
1:42:01environmental impact analysis
1:42:03has been done. So this text
1:42:08amendment, however well
1:42:09drafted, does not answer those
1:42:11questions. A moratorium could
1:42:13give us things like a data
1:42:15center task force made of of
1:42:17people who live here, and the
1:42:18experts who know the field.
1:42:19It's like.
1:42:20Charlotte Westin.
1:42:22To give us time to have
1:42:23environmental impact studies on
1:42:25our water and our grid, which
1:42:27is exactly what Raleigh
1:42:29policies do. Just this month.
1:42:30Yes.
1:42:31It could also yield a community
1:42:33benefits ordinance and a
1:42:34protective ordinance for our
1:42:36city. Things that UDL text
1:42:38amendments never can. They're
1:42:41not designed to do that our
1:42:43residents deserve the whole
1:42:45answer, and not half of one. A
1:42:48moratorium is risk mitigation.
1:42:50It's the kind of solid
1:42:52leadership that we need to
1:42:54provide and the kind that our
1:42:56citizens, our residents, should
1:42:58expect. Uh, the authority is
1:43:00settled and the need is
1:43:01absolutely clear at this point,
1:43:04even by admission of the staff
1:43:05this morning during the
1:43:07feedback sessions from the
1:43:08public, moratorium was one of
1:43:09the top mentioned suggestions
1:43:12by the public. So let's take
1:43:15our time as a council. Let us
1:43:19commit to lead on this issue
1:43:20with wisdom and discernment.
1:43:23And with that, Mr. Mayor, I am
1:43:25prepared to make a motion.
1:43:26All right, so let me circle
1:43:27back to you. Have, uh,
1:43:28Councilmember Hondros and then
1:43:29Mayor Pro Tem Louisville. All
1:43:31right.
1:43:31Councilman Hunter.
1:43:31Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Attorney.
1:43:33Um, Tosca, if you would,
1:43:35please. Um, what statutory
1:43:39authority do counties and
1:43:40municipalities have in North
1:43:42Carolina, per North Carolina
1:43:43laws with regards to
1:43:45environmental protections, air
1:43:47quality, water quality?
1:43:48Oh, there's there's a host of
1:43:49those. I couldn't list them all
1:43:51for you. There's a lot of.
1:43:52As they directly pertain to
1:43:54data centers.
1:43:56Mm.
1:43:57I mean yeah, there's a lot of
1:44:00different statutes that depends
1:44:02on what the data center
1:44:03regulation is. It depends on.
1:44:05Yeah. There's there's, um,
1:44:07there's a lot of.
1:44:08So in your professional opinion
1:44:10on your review of the proposed
1:44:11ordinances, are they, are they,
1:44:14um, adequately addressed in the
1:44:16proposed EDA revisions?
1:44:18I'm not sure I'm. What do you
1:44:19mean by adequately addressed.
1:44:22In the proposed EDA revisions
1:44:23we're talking about today? Are
1:44:25the environmental protections
1:44:27that we have. The city of
1:44:28Fayetteville has statutory
1:44:30authority to put those
1:44:32protections in place. So they
1:44:33adequately addressed in the
1:44:35proposed revisions.
1:44:37Um, if you're talking about the,
1:44:40uh, PwC utility statement, um,
1:44:44yes, there is there is
1:44:45authority for that. And that
1:44:47was, um, in the slide there.
1:44:49Um, but I'm not sure exactly
1:44:51which regulation you're
1:44:53speaking to. But if you're
1:44:54talking about that one, yes, I
1:44:55do think there is legal
1:44:56authority for that.
1:44:57Okay. So previously we spoke
1:44:59about conditional zoning and or
1:45:01special use permits. Right. We
1:45:03talked about the 2 or 3 times.
1:45:04So I just want to make sure
1:45:07because um, telecommunication
1:45:10and data storage facilities or
1:45:11data centers are not in our
1:45:13current use table. Right.
1:45:15Correct. So can we require them
1:45:19to, uh, all data center
1:45:21developments to have either a
1:45:22special use permit and or a
1:45:24conditional zoning?
1:45:27Okay. So, uh, as I was
1:45:28mentioned, we don't know the
1:45:30answer to that. We do not know.
1:45:32No, courts have said by
1:45:35requiring something to have a
1:45:37special use permit or a
1:45:38conditional rezoning, you are
1:45:40violating the down zoning
1:45:41statute. We don't have that. We
1:45:42don't know that I am, in my
1:45:45legal opinion, at requiring a
1:45:50data center to get a
1:45:52conditional rezoning. Is the
1:45:55more legally compliant method
1:45:58than the special use permit.
1:45:59And the reason for that is
1:46:01because when you go through a
1:46:03conditional rezoning process,
1:46:04you have to get the property
1:46:06owner consent. And so therefore
1:46:09it, it it ameliorate that
1:46:13concern that you are somehow
1:46:14doing it without property owner
1:46:16consent especially use permit.
1:46:18Of course that's not required.
1:46:20And especially use permit is a
1:46:21quasi judicial process like a
1:46:23court hearing where they have
1:46:24to go through. And I think as
1:46:25Doctor Newton stated, they have
1:46:27to put on evidence and show why
1:46:29they meet the certain
1:46:30standards. Does that answer the
1:46:32question?
1:46:32It does. Thank you. And my
1:46:34colleague to my right here, um,
1:46:36mentioned unbalanced that um,
1:46:39you know, it feels like this is
1:46:41unbalanced. Would it be safe to
1:46:42say that what's unbalancing
1:46:45this is our state legislature?
1:46:48I will not comment.
1:46:49On that. I wouldn't advise you
1:46:51to. Thank you sir. All right.
1:46:54Um.
1:46:55Back, Councilmember.
1:46:57Councilmember McMillan. Um.
1:46:59Yes, sir.
1:46:59Yeah. Prior to making this
1:47:00motion, I do want to thank our
1:47:02neighbors from Eastover, uh,
1:47:03who showed up. And one of the
1:47:05things we can do during a
1:47:07moratorium period is how it's
1:47:09come to terms on a no
1:47:10annexation agreement. The
1:47:12reason Tara Nexus reached out
1:47:13to the city of Fayetteville is
1:47:15because they intend on us
1:47:17opening up for annexation in
1:47:19your in your neighborhood. And
1:47:20we understand that. So part of
1:47:22this process should be, uh,
1:47:24talks with, uh, with you all in
1:47:26your community about no
1:47:28annexation, what that means for
1:47:29us. So thank you for coming.
1:47:33Thank you sir.
1:47:35Mr. mayor, I'd like to move
1:47:36that the council schedule
1:47:37public hearing under General
1:47:38Statute 160, Delta dash 107 to
1:47:42consider a temporary moratorium
1:47:45on on data center development
1:47:46applications and to direct
1:47:49staff to prepare the draft
1:47:50ordinance for that hearing.
1:47:52All right. Motion by
1:47:53Councilmember. Uh, McMillan. Is
1:47:56there a second?
1:47:58I'll. Second.
1:47:59Second by Jones. Okay. All
1:48:01right. All right. Any
1:48:03discussion on that? All right.
1:48:05Council look to you for your
1:48:06votes on that. You vote. Now
1:48:10you have a question on that.
1:48:11Oh okay.
1:48:23Oh, we miss. All right, Madam
1:48:31Clerk. Motion carries. So, uh,
1:48:33six for those voting. Our
1:48:36screens are black. This is for
1:48:42the public hearing. I can't see
1:48:45who the.
1:48:47Holding here.
1:48:50Did it just change?
1:48:52No.
1:48:53It changed in front of me.
1:48:54I'm looking at it. Yeah, it was
1:48:556497.
1:48:57Okay.
1:48:59My. I saw it, Chappie.
1:49:01Yeah, it went from 6 to 7.
1:49:04That's not right.
1:49:06Yeah. Miss Paula, how did that
1:49:08number change.
1:49:10My change?
1:49:11Okay. All right.
1:49:12So we vote. Just redo it.
1:49:15We do it again. I didn't touch
1:49:17it. I mean.
1:49:19But I changed.
1:49:21It. at me.
1:49:24And me. I was in opposition.
1:49:27All right. Reshuffle it. All
1:49:29right. Council look to you for
1:49:31your votes on that. Now clear.
1:49:34Council you're going to vote
1:49:35one time. Please.
1:49:38All right.
1:49:43Yes, ma'am.
1:49:47All right.
1:49:51I'm a no.
1:49:52All you need to be ready. I
1:49:53mean, yeah okay. All right.
1:49:56Six, four. All right. Madam
1:49:57clerk, can you read that?
1:50:01Here. Opposition. Holding the
1:50:04opposition. Thompson and..
1:50:05All right, all right. So,
1:50:08public hearing schedule.
1:50:09All right.
1:50:09So question.
1:50:11Mayor Pro tem your head. Yes,
1:50:13yes.
1:50:13Thank you.
1:50:13All right.
1:50:15Uh. Mr. Tosco, I wanted to ask
1:50:20you some questions in reference
1:50:21to what my colleague said. Uh,
1:50:24in reference to the draft
1:50:26ordinance. I asked you earlier
1:50:30that you give your
1:50:31recommendations to staff. So if
1:50:32we were to remove items two,
1:50:35four, and five from our
1:50:36ordinance and add your
1:50:38recommendations for one and
1:50:41three, that would suffice us
1:50:42for now. When it comes to a
1:50:44draft ordinance, correct?
1:50:46Um, I think yes, you could, you
1:50:48could. And that is a motion you
1:50:51could make. And then we could,
1:50:52um, incorporate that those
1:50:54revisions into a draft text
1:50:56amendment.
1:50:56And those revisions will still
1:50:57be open for future items that
1:50:59needed to be added to the
1:51:00ordinance. Doctor Menzel.
1:51:09Yes, sir. It will.
1:51:10Be so. Mr. mayor, if I may, I
1:51:11would like to move that into a
1:51:14motion so we can have some
1:51:15protections for now.
1:51:17All right. I got a question.
1:51:18All right.
1:51:19Well, we want to restate what
1:51:21you're saying.
1:51:21For us to remove items two,
1:51:23four and five from our current
1:51:24ordinance and add the
1:51:26recommendations from Doctor
1:51:27Tosco on Ordinances one and
1:51:30three.
1:51:30Can I?
1:51:31All right. Yes, sir.
1:51:32Go ahead.
1:51:32Question.
1:51:33Uh, hold on a minute. I got a I
1:51:35gotta dispose of that. That's a
1:51:37motion. Is there a second to.
1:51:38It?
1:51:41No, I can't.
1:51:42See it. You can't see what?
1:51:44Nobody can't.
1:51:45That's why.
1:51:45He's doing it verbally.
1:51:46So I want to know what. What
1:51:48did they say?
1:51:48Oh, well, repeat your most.
1:51:50Part of this presentation. Of
1:51:51what? He gave us the items that
1:51:52he said, the line out. Those
1:51:53are the items. Well.
1:51:57What is it?
1:51:57We don't have it in front of
1:51:58us, is what they're saying.
1:52:00So I need to I need to make
1:52:01sure we clear on a motion. No,
1:52:03I got to dispose of it because
1:52:04of questions.
1:52:04So go ahead.
1:52:05Can I clarify?
1:52:06Yes, sir.
1:52:06Something for a second. I if I,
1:52:09if I pull up, it might be
1:52:10easier to see it. If I pull up
1:52:12the actual.
1:52:14It. It's the.
1:52:15Same thing. Ordinances. Um and
1:52:18when you said existing I think
1:52:19I think you meant remove
1:52:22ordinances two, four and five.
1:52:25from the proposed text
1:52:27amendment. Correct. What you're
1:52:28referring to. Are you able to
1:52:29see this or. No.
1:52:29You can't because.
1:52:30Our screens is down.
1:52:31Oh.
1:52:31And to revise items one and
1:52:33three.
1:52:33And two, various ordinances one
1:52:35and three.
1:52:35Yes. One, three. Okay.
1:52:37This is working with ours is
1:52:39not.
1:52:41Okay. I'm I'm going to second
1:52:43that for discussion because I
1:52:44have a question and I can't see
1:52:46it. It's not on our monitor.
1:52:48Yeah.
1:52:48I'll second that. But I do have
1:52:50a question.
1:52:52Alright.
1:52:53So let me let me spells it it.
1:52:55Yeah. All our screens are black
1:52:58okay. All right. So there's a
1:52:59motion by council by Mayor pro
1:53:01tem uh, to uh, as stated the
1:53:05second by here. We've got
1:53:06questions. And I guess
1:53:07Councilman Harris trying to
1:53:08read whatever he needs.
1:53:09To read.
1:53:11That's the strike the unlisted
1:53:13uses for those.
1:53:14Who haven't seen that one.
1:53:16Three. That was two for
1:53:18information. That's what he's
1:53:19saying.
1:53:20And take his recommendations to
1:53:22revise one and three.
1:53:27All right. So yeah. So I guess,
1:53:31uh, Mayor pro tem is part of
1:53:33what the confusion is somewhat
1:53:36as it was a long presentation,
1:53:37but there were some things in
1:53:39there that you had reviewed it
1:53:40and made recommendations for
1:53:41it. That's that's what the
1:53:42council needs to see.
1:53:43To.
1:53:45To vote on the motion.
1:53:46I don't know how I can help
1:53:47them because our screens are
1:53:47not working.
1:53:48I asked my questions. Yeah.
1:53:51All right. Yes, sir. You had a
1:53:53question.
1:53:53Okay. This was my question. I
1:53:54want to go back to what, uh,
1:53:56Councilmember Hondros was
1:53:57saying. He stated, um, and I
1:54:01think the the attorney said it
1:54:03gave us a little bit more
1:54:04control. If we could put this
1:54:07into a conditional zoning,
1:54:09wasn't that your, um, your
1:54:14thought, uh, Dina or
1:54:16Councilmember Hondros.
1:54:19If that's consistent with state
1:54:20law?
1:54:21Yes.
1:54:25It was Davis. Okay.
1:54:27Well, I tell you what. Can I
1:54:29revise my motion? Madam
1:54:32attorney, can you get with the
1:54:35attorney to make these
1:54:36revisions and bring it back to
1:54:38us for approval or disapproval
1:54:40at the next council meeting and
1:54:42put it on the agenda for
1:54:44Wednesday.
1:54:46Wednesday or Monday?
1:54:47The agenda for Wednesday. But
1:54:49for the meeting for Monday. Oh,
1:54:50yes. So that way everybody will
1:54:51have it in advance.
1:54:52Yes, sir.
1:54:53And these are just revisions
1:54:54from Doctor Tosca.
1:54:56I'm not a doctor, but.
1:54:57I'm sorry.
1:54:59All right? Just an attorney.
1:55:01All right.
1:55:01All right, settle down, settle
1:55:03down. All right, so the motion,
1:55:04just to make sure I'm clear.
1:55:06Yes, uh, is Mayor Pro Tem your
1:55:09motion or your amended motion
1:55:10is to ask the attorney to work
1:55:12with Attorney Tosco, uh, to get
1:55:16those items back to staff that
1:55:17were mentioned today. Uh, in
1:55:19terms of adjustments to our.
1:55:21That's for.
1:55:21The unlisted uses for two, four
1:55:23and five. Right. To revise one
1:55:25and three. Okay. That was part
1:55:26of his recommendation in his
1:55:28presentation.
1:55:29All right. So the presentation
1:55:30you received tonight would
1:55:31those those edits that you had
1:55:33marked on there, um, is what
1:55:35the motion is instructing legal
1:55:37to work with. Uh, Doctor Manzo
1:55:39and Mr. Bright Boy to bring
1:55:41back to the next council
1:55:43meeting. But you're saying
1:55:44you'll have it published,
1:55:45available publicly to review on
1:55:47Monday, on.
1:55:47Wednesday or Wednesday.
1:55:48Which is for.
1:55:49The agenda on Monday.
1:55:51Okay.
1:55:51The items that we don't have
1:55:53currently in our, um, question.
1:55:56All right.
1:55:56So I'll audience.
1:55:58This is not the public speaking
1:55:59time. Hold on a second. All
1:56:00right. So we got a motion
1:56:02amended motion by council by
1:56:03Mayor pro tem. Is that did you
1:56:04accept the amendment,
1:56:06Councilman Harris.
1:56:06You made? I still have a
1:56:08question.
1:56:08All right. Yes, sir.
1:56:09Your question. I want to make
1:56:10sure I'm understanding
1:56:11correctly about the conditional
1:56:12zoning piece. Uh, and I know
1:56:14what you said about what the
1:56:15state said. I thought, well,
1:56:17not you, but, um, Councilmember
1:56:20Jones, did that give us more
1:56:26jurisdiction? If we could use
1:56:29that within attaching that as a
1:56:32conditional zoning? That was
1:56:34what my my question.
1:56:35Is that that would need to be a
1:56:37part of the motion, because
1:56:38that was not in my presentation
1:56:40to add a conditional rezoning
1:56:42requirement to it. Again, my
1:56:46presentation or my suggestion
1:56:48is to fold this into the
1:56:49warehouse storage unit use. And
1:56:51all of the same requirements.
1:56:52And right now you do not need
1:56:54to get a conditional rezoning
1:56:55approval for a warehouse
1:56:57storage. So if that's the will
1:57:00of of the council, then then
1:57:02that would need to be a part of
1:57:03the motion.
1:57:05All right. Thank you mayor.
1:57:06All right.
1:57:08All right. So council has a
1:57:09motion by Mayor pro tem,
1:57:11seconded by hair. Uh, the
1:57:13amended motion that was stated,
1:57:15uh, this is discussion phase.
1:57:16Councilmember McMillan.
1:57:17Yes. Thank you, Mr. Mayor. So
1:57:20what's what's about to happen?
1:57:21Will we just said in motion is
1:57:22a moratorium, uh, hearing, a
1:57:25public hearing, uh, where we
1:57:26will put a moratorium in place
1:57:28that will pause all data center
1:57:30development until the that the
1:57:33term period or the time period
1:57:35that we decide upon for the
1:57:36moratorium is ended. So for us
1:57:39to make changes tonight. Excuse
1:57:41me this morning, uh, based on
1:57:43information that we just got
1:57:45less than two hours ago would
1:57:47kind of be, I think, in my
1:57:48opinion, foolish. Uh.
1:57:50Thank you.
1:57:54That's that's not a
1:57:55characterization of you, Mayor
1:57:56pro tem at all. And I say that
1:57:58very, very respectfully. But
1:58:00what we just voted to do was to
1:58:03give ourselves some time to
1:58:04make all of these changes, uh,
1:58:06that are going to be tighter,
1:58:09more thorough with analysis.
1:58:12And there's no need to rush to
1:58:13do anything today based on what
1:58:15we just voted to do together.
1:58:17So all right, just put that to
1:58:19to the body.
1:58:20Yeah. And and Councilmember
1:58:22McMillan, just to clarify, your
1:58:25motion to pass was to set the
1:58:26public hearing and they would
1:58:28then present a read, a draft
1:58:30moratorium. So it was not to
1:58:31put the moratorium. So there's
1:58:33another you're right. Right. So
1:58:34that's.
1:58:34What we put in motion today.
1:58:35Gets us Mayor Pro tem to what
1:58:37you're getting towards without
1:58:38rushing us in.
1:58:40This hour.
1:58:40We're not rushing. We're
1:58:42putting provisions on something
1:58:43that we don't have.
1:58:44Well, gentlemen.
1:58:44Gentlemen, what are we doing?
1:58:45All right.
1:58:46All right.
1:58:47Please. We almost, almost do
1:58:48it. So basically, there will be
1:58:51two, two parallel tracks with
1:58:53the two motions, right, that
1:58:55you are doing both. There was a
1:58:56public hearing held to hear
1:58:58this ordinance. There was a
1:58:59draft ordinance that we heard
1:59:00tonight and have been hearing
1:59:01for the last 4 or 5 months.
1:59:03That was what was presented
1:59:04tonight. That's what's being
1:59:05revised. It's always been two
1:59:07parallel tracks. Now there's a
1:59:09motion to bring a public
1:59:10hearing and a draft ordinance
1:59:12for the moratorium. That's what
1:59:13passed in the previous vote. So
1:59:15no need to conflate not to
1:59:17debate it. There are two
1:59:18motions, uh, and if they pass,
1:59:20then you have two different
1:59:21instructions for staff. If they
1:59:22don't.
1:59:23Then we'll stick.
1:59:23With the one that passed. Yes,
1:59:24sir. Real quick. Second round.
1:59:26Final round.
1:59:26Yes, sir. Second second round.
1:59:28Yes, sir. You made a motion
1:59:30that if you think about the
1:59:31context of your motion, doesn't
1:59:33make sense.
1:59:34Correct.
1:59:35We just gave our ourselves
1:59:37space to make youdo amendments
1:59:39that have analysis behind them.
1:59:40They have public input behind
1:59:42them. We just created that
1:59:44space. Why would you then rush
1:59:47into a process that you just
1:59:49voted to give your space for?
1:59:51Uh, that's that's what I'm
1:59:52trying to say. And I hope my
1:59:53colleagues on the, on the dais
1:59:55understand that.
1:59:56All right.
1:59:56All right, Council, look. Mayor
1:59:58pro.
1:59:58Tem, I was going to say call
1:59:59for the vote.
1:59:59Yeah. All right, all right.
2:00:00Councillor, look to you for
2:00:01your vote.
2:00:02No. What have you made?
2:00:08Are we missing?
2:00:11All right.
2:00:12All right. So motion six four.
2:00:14Madam clerk, can you read it?
2:00:16My screen is black.
2:00:18Jones, green, McMillan and
2:00:20Ferguson in opposition.
2:00:22All right, all right, so with
2:00:24that motion carries. So there
2:00:26will be two directions to
2:00:28staff. Staff members. Are you
2:00:29clear? One is, uh, your work
2:00:31with the attorney to continue
2:00:33the revisions and the update
2:00:36and the compliance of the
2:00:37things that we've talked about
2:00:38today. Right now, there is
2:00:40nothing in place. So, uh, even
2:00:42the stay, uh, has expired. So
2:00:44what you're saying and what we
2:00:45heard today, you'll work with
2:00:47the legal to get that to have
2:00:49back for presentation on
2:00:50Monday. In addition to that,
2:00:51there was a motion that was
2:00:53also passed that asked for a
2:00:56moratorium, uh, public hearing
2:00:58to be set, uh, which will also
2:01:00have a draft ordinance of that
2:01:02to be presented at the public
2:01:04hearing. You had a question,
2:01:06Madam Attorney?
2:01:09Um, before the public hearing
2:01:12can be scheduled, we have to
2:01:14bring the ordinance. And I
2:01:15imagine council would want to
2:01:17work on that. So we would bring
2:01:18that to a work session or two.
2:01:21Or I guess it just depends on
2:01:23how quickly y'all can turn it
2:01:25around. I guess you can work
2:01:26with the manager's office and
2:01:27get it. Get it before us as
2:01:28quickly as you can, okay. All
2:01:30right, all right. So. All
2:01:32right, let's do adjourns.
2:01:34All right.
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