The Evansville City Council has unanimously approved a moratorium on A.I. data centers. WNIN’s John Gibson has the update:
The council voted nine-to-nothing to enact the 180-day pause on any data center development in the city.
Democratic Council President Ben Trockman suggested the council is listening to the community:
"Multiple conversations I've heard in Council quite frequently and I think something that we see in our inboxes quite often as well is that there’s concern."
Unlike Vanderburgh County, the city is not forming its own study committee but will work with the Area Plan Commission on establishing parameters.
Democratic Councilor Mary Allen noted the moratorium could last longer:
"It can be extended if you know, we don't have the answers to the questions that we're looking for yet and have a solid idea of and answers to our concerns."
Residents have raised concerns about the enormous amounts of water and power required for data centers and who would pay for the expanded infrastructure.
Warrick County Commissioners approved a 180-day moratorium in August, with a developer reportedly considering a data center in the northern part of the county.
Amazon is considering a site for a data center in Posey County.
