Status: Current pause in effect · Extension proposed · public hearing scheduled 12 October 2026 · Next: Council vote on the extension, 26 October 2026 · Checked: 13 October 2026
If you are planning a data center in Charlotte. A new application of any size cannot be accepted or approved while the pause lasts, and the city is considering an extension. The agenda does not say how long the extension would be, or whether adding to an existing facility counts as a new application.
What is happening
On 8 June 2026 City Council adopted a 150-day moratorium on accepting, processing and approving applications for new telecommunications and data storage facilities in the city and its extraterritorial jurisdiction. It expires no later than 5 November 2026, or earlier if Council approves new data center rules. The Council’s planning committee recommended an extension on 8 September. State law requires a public hearing and a showing of new facts before a moratorium can be extended.
The city gives two new facts: research it commissioned shows data center impacts are “variable and complex”, and Charlotte lacks specific regulatory tools such as capacity verification, monitoring protocols and cooling standards.
Who it affects
Charlotte’s development ordinance treats all data centers the same “regardless of size, type, or capacity”. It defines a data center as a telecommunications and data storage facility, accessed only by employees, housing computer systems, including cloud storage systems and server farms. Data centers are currently permitted by right in several commercial, office, research, industrial and uptown districts. Property and projects exempt under N.C.G.S. 160D-107(c) are not covered.
If you have a project in Charlotte, check
- Whether your project is a new application or a change to an approved one, and whether it is exempt under N.C.G.S. 160D-107(c).
- Whether Council approves an extension on 26 October, and how long it would last.
- What permanent standards the city proposes for capacity, monitoring and cooling.
Primary source
Government source. City of Charlotte, 15-26825, Public Hearing on an Extension of the Temporary Moratorium on New Telecommunications and Data Storage Facilities; City Council Business Meeting agenda, 12 October 2026, item 11.