Lee County commissioners reject data center moratorium

The Lee County Board of Commissioners rejected a proposed 180-day moratorium on further data center development during a meeting on Monday night. The motion to pause development was introduced by Democratic Commissioner Robert Reives Sr., who argued that the current process is flawed and that the public has not had sufficient opportunity to weigh in on economic development decisions.

Commissioner Mark Lovick supported the moratorium, but the motion was defeated by a vote including Republicans Eric Davidson, Andre Knecht, Samantha Martin, and Kirk Smith, along with Democrat Cameron Sharpe.

During the discussion, the board consulted Brady Herman, an attorney specializing in zoning and planning. Herman advised against the moratorium, noting that state law requires specific findings to justify such a pause and pointing out that the county had already adopted specific regulations for data centers six months prior.