Durham City Council voted Monday to pause new data center approvals for 60 days, following a public comment session in which more than 30 residents urged the council to act, according to WRAL.
The vote trimmed a proposal that originally called for a 24-month ban. City attorney Kimberly Rehberg explained that moratoriums lasting more than 60 days require joint approval from both city and county planning commissions. Durham County is developing its own separate moratorium, which could create procedural conflicts at that threshold.
Councilmember Nate Baker, who introduced the ordinance, said the legal limit shaped the final number. "The enabling legislation is pretty clear about moratorium, and we need a reason why it would be more than six months," Baker said. Council members said they plan to pursue a longer moratorium after the 60-day period ends.
The concerns behind the push center on the physical footprint of large data facilities. A 300-megawatt data center draws as much electricity as roughly 200,000 North Carolina homes and can use close to 1 million gallons of water daily for cooling. Thermal effects can raise neighborhood temperatures up to 16 degrees.
Durham's 60 days gives officials a deadline. More than a dozen North Carolina governments have already passed similar pauses, including Apex and Orange County, which approved one-year moratoriums in April. Baker and other council members said they expect to build a stronger legal case for a longer ban before the window closes.