The Canton Town Council voted unanimously to pause the building of any data centers for one year following dozens of residents speaking out in opposition at Wednesday evening’s public hearing.
“When I heard about the data center might be moving in, it was heartbreaking. I could feel it in the pit of my stomach that this isn’t right,” resident Arianna Houston said during the meeting.
Houston, who moved to town in 2022, was one of 45 individuals who spoke during the packed meeting. Many echoed her concerns about the negative impact of a data center on the natural beauty of the town and its economy.
More than 150 individuals attended the meeting, but the Canton Town Hall’s fire capacity was just 49 so community members were allowed to enter the room as each person spoke. Some people stood outside in the dark for over three hours listening to the meeting on a speaker.
Community members gathered outside town hall waiting to participate in public comment and listening to the meeting on a speaker. The town hall has been in a trailer since 2021 when Tropical Storm Fred damaged the downtown building. Photo by Lilly Knoepp/NC Local.
Canton Mayor Zeb Smathers told NC Local last week the moratorium will be for one year so that the town can consider the issue.
“Data centers are a relatively new idea. It is one that really has interesting supporters and people that are against it, and it really can’t really fit into a little perfect political box,” Smathers, a Democrat, said.
He said the data centers provide a large amount of taxable revenue, but he is concerned about the amount of water and energy used.
“I’m very, very bullish that we can build a new Canton that is prosperous, that has something for everyone that can create jobs, but [at] the same time not wreck what the good Lord gave us,” Smathers said.
Questions about the future of the former paper mill site
A few companies have reached out about the potential for data centers in Canton, particularly at the former paper mill site, prompting the moratorium discussion, Smathers said.
Many speakers at the public hearing focused on the prospect of a data center moving into the former mill location.
The Pactiv Evergreen paper mill closed in 2023 and marked the end of an era for a town known for the paper industry. The Haywood County mill, which has been in operation under multiple owners since 1908, was the town’s largest employer. After the closure, the mill was purchased by Spritas Worldwide, a demolition and redevelopment company. The sale was finalized in Jan. 2025 and the mill was demolished in March of the same year.
While the town doesn’t have total control over how Spritas uses property, the council is working within zoning and land ordinances to exert as much influence as possible on the property.
In July 2024, the Canton mill property was rezoned, splitting the western half into light industrial and the eastern half into general business. Formerly, the entire site was designated as heavy industry, reported the Smoky Mountain News.
Spritas Worldwide, a demolition and redevelopment company, has not indicated how the property might be used. The property sits along the Pigeon River, which presents unique environmental concerns.
“Obviously, there are economic benefits to having data centers in your town. However, we cannot and we will not for the almighty dollar sell out our natural resources, our water, our energy and our natural security,” Smathers told NC Local.
At the hearing, residents expressed concern for the biodiversity of the Pigeon River and thoughts about how “fish have come back” since the mill closed.
Data centers are required to go through an environmental permitting process with the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality.
Across the state, local governments are considering similar measures to limit data center development. This week, commissioners in Chatham County, in the Piedmont, also approved a moratorium on data centers.
In the eastern part of the state, Edgecombe County commissioners faced opposition from community groups over a proposed data center in Tarboro. The site is part of a proposed $19.2 billion campus that, if realized, would be among the priciest in the Southeastern United States, according to the News & Observer.
Some of the debate at the local level focuses on the economic benefits or liabilities the centers might bring to communities.
A few residents expressed curiosity about how a data center might benefit the town.
Steve Konkle, a Canton resident who moved from Arlington, VA, said he wanted to learn more about the possibility.
“I would like to see the comparisons in what we are wanting to get ourselves into, and a comparison against old technology in middle [of town] and new technology in the new data center, Konkle said.
Carl Courtright of Canton opposed a data center, saying if business receives tax breaks to come to Canton, then it needs to benefit the town.
“It needs to be something that’s going to provide for the community and provide for people that live here that call this place home and not just people that are going to move here from every other place in the country,” Courtright said.
Smathers, Mayor-Pro-Temp Gail Mull and town aldermen Kristina Proctor, Tim Shepard and Dr. Ralph Hamlett all made statements in support of the moratorium before the vote.
At the end of the day, I have to look him in the eye and know when these moments have come – flooding, mill closures, opportunities, the future – that his dad didn’t let him down. That all of us had that moment to do what is right, and we met that moment.
Canton mayor Zeb Smathers
Mull, who worked at the mill union for 30 years, shared her family’s long history with the mill and related that to the future use of the location.
“The future of Canton is my future. I care very deeply about the people of Canton. Having said all this, my point is that I want what is best for our town,” Mull said.
Smathers shed a tear talking about his six-year-old son’s future in Canton.
“At the end of the day, I have to look him in the eye and know when these moments have come – flooding, mill closures, opportunities, the future – that his dad didn’t let him down,” Smathers said during the meeting. “That all of us had that moment to do what is right, and we met that moment.”
The ordinance covers data centers, cryptocurrency mining operations, server farms and any other high density digital infrastructure facilities. During the moratorium, the town will study potential impacts of data centers and draft related zoning and land use ordinances.
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