Statesville Planning Board approves 350-acre data center project

The Statesville Planning Board heard a proposal from Compass Data Centers Tuesday night to develop a data center on 350 acres of farmland on Stamey Farm Road.

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The land, owned by David Stamey, has been under consideration for development after years of planning. The Statesville planners have recommended rezoning the land to accommodate the data center.

Some neighbors have expressed concerns about losing farmland. Statesville planners have recommended rezoning for the land.

During the meeting, which was scheduled to start at 6 p.m., the planning board unanimously approved the data center.

Dozens of people spoke, a few for and the rest against the project. The developer of the data center came out and spoke during the meeting.

The main issues Statesville residents have with the data center are traffic, the batteries inside the center and lack of resources to fight fires there.

Those who support the project said it’s good for the local economy.

The proposal for the data center will go to the city council in September.

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