Savannah City Council approves 155-day moratorium on large-scale data centers

SAVANNAH, Ga. (WTOC) - Savannah City Council leaders voted Thursday to adopt a temporary moratorium on large-scale data centers, pausing any new development or conversion activity for the next 155 days within city limits.

The decision comes as local leaders face growing pressure from technology companies looking to expand, as well as plans for data center construction in neighboring areas like Effingham County. Currently, there are 235 active data centers in Georgia, with more than 4,700 operating nationwide and another 750 planned.

What the Ban Covers

The newly passed ordinance places a temporary ban on:

• Data center developments with an electrical capacity of 10 Megawatts or greater.
• Industrial buildings of 200,000 square feet or more being built or converted for data center use.

The 155-day window will give the city council until just after the new year to study the issue and draft a formal, thoughtful regulatory policy.

Addressing Infrastructure and Community Impact

City leaders pushed for the temporary ban to allow time to study the wide-ranging impacts of these facilities, including noise, water usage, neighborhood disruption, and power grid infrastructure demands.

Savannah Mayor Van Johnson, who discussed the potential moratorium during his weekly press conference earlier this week, reiterated his long-held stance that massive data centers do not belong inside Savannah’s city limits.

“We need to fully understand how many jobs one can create, what public resources are required, and whether the economic benefits are worth the long-term impacts,” Mayor Johnson said.

While the moratorium temporarily protects the city from new projects, city leaders acknowledge that they will continue to face expansion pressure from the tech sector as they work to establish permanent guidelines.