ROSWELL, GA — The Roswell City Council has unanimously approved a temporary emergency moratorium on new data centers, making Roswell the latest metro Atlanta community to move toward new restrictions as development ramps up across the region.
The moratorium pauses any new data center development while the city’s Community Development Department reviews zoning and land-use standards to determine whether Roswell would be a good fit for the facilities in the future. City officials say the pause will allow staff to examine utility usage, power grid concerns and potential environmental impacts.
The moratorium is set to remain in effect until April 12, though it could be extended.
Roswell resident Derek Wood supports the move, saying data centers would not serve the city well in the long term.
“This I see is maybe a short-term win. I’m sure there’s some attractive revenue that goes with having a big data center with big tech names behind it, but long-term it will be something that people in this city 30 years from now will regret,” Wood said.
Wood also raised concerns about land use and employment opportunities tied to data centers.
“Data centers do not employ a whole lot of people; if you’ve done work in data centers it’s mostly the security guards, and then occasionally you have some technicians in and out. It takes up a big footprint, not to mention the utility that is going to be used by that,” he said.
He added that he believes a data center would be a misallocation of land in Roswell. “I think a data center for Roswell is a misappropriation of resources in terms of land use,” Wood said.
Roswell officials say the temporary moratorium does not necessarily mean new restrictions or permanent bans will be adopted, but rather gives the city time to review the issue.
Local governments across metro Atlanta have taken similar steps in recent months. Just last week, the Henry County Commission voted to begin drafting new restrictions on data centers. Last month, Coweta County officials approved guidelines regulating noise, land use and water usage by the facilities.
A recent report from the University of Georgia shows more than 60 data centers are currently operating in Georgia, with 35 more under construction. Plans for nearly 250 additional facilities have been announced, with the majority located in metro Atlanta; particularly in Fulton, Douglas, Fayette and Cobb counties.
Many have raised concerns about the environmental impact of data centers, which are known for their extremely high electrical demand and play a key role in the growth of artificial intelligence technology.
WSB Radio’s Michelle Wright contributed to this story.