Walker County Chairwoman Angie Teems is clarifying that the county’s recently approved 30-day moratorium on new data center development applies only to unincorporated Walker County and does not affect any of the county’s municipalities.
In a video released Tuesday, Teems said each city within Walker County would have to take its own action if it wanted to enact a similar moratorium.
“It’s important to note that the moratorium applies only to unincorporated Walker County. Each city would need to take its own action,” Teems said.
The clarification comes after the county’s July 10 news release announcing the moratorium stated that it prohibited “the acceptance of any application relating to locating a data center in the county for 30 days,” without specifying that the action was limited to unincorporated areas.
According to Teems, the temporary moratorium is intended to give county officials time to study the various types of data centers, evaluate their potential impacts, gather public input, and determine whether changes to zoning or land-use regulations are needed before considering future proposals.
She also announced that the county plans to release a series of informational posts over the coming weeks to help educate residents and address questions surrounding the issue.
The Walker County Board of Commissioners approved the 30-day moratorium during its July meeting following public discussion about the potential impact of large-scale data center projects. Several residents expressed concerns about whether such facilities would be appropriate for the county and encouraged commissioners to carefully consider any future development.
Teems said the county has been contacted by one or two individuals regarding possible data center projects but emphasized that no formal applications have been submitted and no companies have been identified publicly.
Following a public forum scheduled for the commission’s Aug. 6 meeting, commissioners are expected to consider extending the moratorium for an additional 180 days, which would pause new data center applications into February 2027 while county leaders continue their review.
Walker County joins a growing number of local governments across Georgia and Tennessee evaluating regulations on data center development. Nearby Hamilton, Bradley and Grundy counties in Tennessee have all considered or adopted restrictions or moratoriums in recent months as communities weigh the economic benefits of data centers against concerns over land use, infrastructure demands and utility impacts.