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Dade County commissioners in Georgia approved a 90-day moratorium on new data center development after an Atlanta company explored a 300-megawatt project there. The Chattanooga Times Free Press reported that the board acted unanimously on Nov. 5 and that the 
Featured: Editorial photograph illustrating the trend of Georgia municipalities and counties halting data center construction over grid capacity concerns.pause gives officials time to draft rules and residents time to raise concerns. WTVC reported that the project is in early stages and has not been approved.
Evan Stone, executive director of the Dade County Industrial Development Authority, told commissioners that Atlanta-based Masterworks had previously contacted the board about exploring a data center location in its development park, the Times Free Press reported. Stone urged commissioners to adopt a pause and write requirements into county law. WTVC reported that the data center under consideration could require about 300 megawatts of power.
At 300 megawatts, the facility would consume enough energy to power 250,000 homes for a year, based on U.S. Energy Information Administration estimates cited by the Times Free Press. Dade County has roughly 7,500 homes, according to 2025 Census Bureau figures cited in the same report. That means the potential draw could power every home in the county for 33 years.
Commissioner Melissa Christiansen Bradford placed the moratorium proposal on the board's monthly agenda. Coverage of the Nov. 5 meeting differs on the procedural step. The Times Free Press reported the board approved the pause, while WTVC reported that commissioners discussed a 90-day pause and sent the proposed ordinance back to the Special Use Permit Board for input.
"Before we commit a single additional acre, gallon, or kilowatt to a data center, we owe it to our residents to understand exactly what these facilities will take from our community and what, if anything, they will give back," Bradford said,
according to Local 3 News. Bradford has called for public hearings and a review of potential regulations and tax incentives during the pause, along with a study of the effects on water supplies, electricity, roads, emergency services and utilities.
Baxtel tracks 351 data center facilities in Georgia, operated by 108 providers, with the largest being Microsoft's Fairwater 2 Building 1 at 340 MW.
The proposed ordinance is with the county's Special Use Permit Board for input. The three-month pause prevents new data center development in the county while officials draft the rules.
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