CHELSEA, Ala. (WBMA) — Chelsea is pressing pause on two types of development that city leaders say are becoming more common across Alabama, approving one-year moratoriums on new data centers and rental residential communities while officials rewrite the city's zoning regulations.
The Chelsea City Council approved the temporary moratoriums Tuesday night, giving city staff time to develop standards for projects that Council Vice President Chris Gace said are not adequately addressed in the city's current zoning ordinance.
"We don't address data centers," Gace said. "That's a relatively new phenomenon in communities across the state."
He said the moratorium is intended to give the city's Planning and Zoning Department, building official and city attorney time to develop regulations before projects are proposed.
"So what we're trying to do is give our planning and zoning along with our city attorney and our building official time to put together requirements that protect our community, protect our citizens," Gace said. "There's a lot of talk in the community about data centers and how they affect quality of life. So we're just trying to do our job as representatives of the city to do what our people want us to do."
Although data centers have become a topic of discussion in several Alabama communities, Gace said Chelsea's action is not in response to a specific proposal within the city.
"None credible," he said when asked whether a data center project had been proposed in Chelsea. "There are lots of rumors on social media about someone looking at a piece of property. I'm not aware of anyone looking to build a data center within the city limits. I am aware of surrounding communities. There are data centers that are being proposed, being built, but not in the city."
The council also approved a one-year moratorium on rental residential communities.
Gace said city officials have received multiple proposals for rental developments but lack zoning standards specifically addressing those projects.
"We've had several developers come to us that have proposed rental developments and we don't know how to handle it," Gace said. "So our moratorium gives us a chance to readdress our zoning ordinance and come up with requirements that enhance the quality of life and don't allow things that would detract from the nature of our community."
He said both moratoriums are intended to provide time for the city to establish permanent development standards rather than stop growth altogether.
"The moratorium's not saying no. The moratorium's saying let's put together some standards and then we'll allow these uses to occur."
City officials said they expect to use the next year to draft and consider updates to Chelsea's zoning ordinance before either moratorium expires.