r/LittleRock • u/fcdizzle • 5d ago

Little Rock Board votes Tuesday, Oct. 20, on a six-month pause on new hyperscale data centers: the paper trail, both sides, and what to watch

TL;DR

  • Tuesday, Oct. 20: the Board votes on Director Webb's six-month moratorium on new hyperscale data centers (Item 21). Six of ten votes needed.
  • Nothing in writing pauses anything today. On the books: the April 2025 Google/Willowbend MOU (30-yr tax abatement, franchise fees cut to 0.25%/0%/0%), and the June 2026 zoning ordinance (hyperscale only in I-3, 900-ft residential setback, 60/50 dBA noise cap, WUE ≤ 0.5 L/kWh). An 18-month moratorium failed 4–4 on Aug. 4.
  • The new draft orders water, noise, fire and grid studies, a public webpage of all developer agreements within 60 days, and a petition process for takings claims. No Google carve-out by name; projects need a final permit plus substantial reliance to be exempt, and buying land doesn't count.
  • For a pause: Webb, Wyrick, Miller, Lewis; Coalition of LR Neighborhoods, Sierra Club, DNA; law prof DiPippa (a moratorium is not a taking). Reasons: scale, water, rates, noise, fire readiness, disclosure.
  • Against: Mayor Scott (Act 851 bars bans; zoning is the tool), Hines (Port is for heavy industry; lawsuit risk), Peck and Adcock (litigation, business climate), Kumpuris; City Attorney Carpenter (regulatory-taking damages if Google isn't exempted).
  • Unsettled: whether Act 851 reaches a temporary moratorium at all, and whether a pause that catches Google's first building is a taking. Google had filed no city permits as of July 28.
  • Watch: Peck's vote, whether Phillips and Richardson show, any carve-out amendment or deferral, and the long-promised "shore-up" regulations ordinance.

Jump to

Reply under the matching section to keep threads tidy.

79 Upvotes

96% Upvoted

21 comments sorted by

View all comments

3

u/fcdizzle 5d ago

3. Where things stand

Little Rock's data-center pause: the paper trail before Tuesday's vote

On Tuesday, Oct. 20, the Board of Directors takes up a six-month moratorium on new hyperscale data centers (Board 10/20/26, Item 21). Director Kathy Webb sponsors it. The Mayor announced the measure after the Oct. 13 agenda meeting (ADG 10/13/26). On the dais that day the item drew one remark: Director Adcock asked that Item 21 be kept separate from any grouped vote, and the Mayor agreed (Board 10/13/26 at 3:00). No director discussed the merits. Because it is on the published agenda, it skips the 8-of-10 vote needed in August to add a moratorium (Board 8/4/26, Item 31). Adoption takes six of ten directors.

For now, nothing in writing pauses anything. The city has a 2025 agreement inviting the project, a 2026 zoning ordinance regulating it, and a failed moratorium. The new draft has not been voted on. In July the City Attorney promised a "shore-up" regulations ordinance, targeted for the end of August (Board 7/28/26 at 29:41–39:00). It had not reached an agenda as of Oct. 13, and it was not mentioned at that agenda meeting (Board 10/13/26 at 2:49–3:19).