Countywide data center prohibition (Text Amendment 26-31)
Calvert County
Summary
The Board directed staff to pursue extending the data center moratorium, removing data centers as a permitted use, and rezoning heavy industrial properties. The incoming board sworn in December 15 will make the final calls, but the process clock is now running. Residents strongly support action.
At a glance
- Total mentions
- 25
- Last 30 days
- 2
Discussed at 3 meetings in the last 60 days; most recently Oct 21, 2026.
Impact analysis
Staff identified no direct fiscal impact so far, but data centers elsewhere on the grid could drive up residents' electric bills.
Residents near the Camp Kanoy Road area and across the county who oppose hyperscale data center development.
Data center developers and landowners seeking industrial development of rezoned parcels.
Mentions & discussions (25)
Planning Commission (PC) (Regular) - Oct 21, 2026
A new text amendment would ban data centers in every zoning district in Calvert County, going further than the earlier proposal that only restricted them. The commission sent it toward public hearings. The older conditions-based amendment (26-23) is dead for now per county commissioners' direction.
Regular Meeting of the Board of County Commissioners - Oct 20, 2026
Residents pressed the board on whether the environmental studies promised in the August data center moratorium have actually started — and warned the lack of studies could expose the county to legal challenges from developers.
Regular Meeting of the Board of County Commissioners - Sep 22, 2026
The Board directed staff to pursue extending the data center moratorium, removing data centers as a permitted use, and rezoning heavy industrial properties. The incoming board sworn in December 15 will make the final calls, but the process clock is now running. Residents strongly support action.
Regular Meeting of the Board of County Commissioners - Aug 18, 2026
The county considered pausing all data center site plan approvals for six months while it studies impacts like noise, water use, and power demands and writes new zoning rules. A large-scale data center application is already in, and more are expected.
How one Maryland county defeated an Amazon data center
How one Maryland county defeated an Amazon data center The Baltimore Banner
Amazon abandons plans to develop data centers in Maryland county
Amazon abandons plans to develop data centers in Maryland county Baltimore Sun
Regular Meeting of the Board of County Commissioners - Aug 4, 2026
AWS/Amazon Data Services withdrew its conceptual site plan for mega data centers, but the board will still hold an August 18 hearing on a proposed six-month moratorium on data center site plan approvals. Several public commenters urged a longer, stronger moratorium.
Regular Meeting of the Board of County Commissioners - Jul 28, 2026
Speakers pressed the board to act on the data center moratorium, with the vote scheduled for August 18. The county also confirmed AWS has no plans to resubmit its concept plan, though it hasn't officially withdrawn.
Regular Meeting of the Board of County Commissioners - Jul 21, 2026
The Board finally gave direction to draft a six-month moratorium on data center projects, with a public hearing targeted for August 18 and a temporary pause on data center site plan approvals. Speakers cited noise, pollution, grid costs, and the AWS/Constellation project; the ordinance still has to come back for adoption.
Regular Meeting of the Board of County Commissioners - Jul 7, 2026
Roughly a dozen residents demanded a moratorium or ban on data center projects, citing the primary election that unseated three incumbents and concerns about diesel generator pollution, water use, and the Calvert Cliffs evacuation route. The board couldn't act because the item wasn't on the agenda, but agreed to take it up July 21.
Planning Commission Public Hearing - Jun 17, 2026
The data center text amendment (#26-23) is still being drafted and wasn't heard, but it came up repeatedly — the commission stripped data-center language out of the buffer amendment to avoid prejudging it, and a resident warned about power costs, grid reliability, and pollution.
Regular Meeting of the Board of County Commissioners - Jun 16, 2026
The board deadlocked 2-2 on scheduling the formal process toward a moratorium on data center projects, with a July 7 special work session and July 28 public hearing still expected. An 8,747-signature petition and the county's own Environmental Commission support a pause; opponents of the rush argue independent environmental studies are essential before approvals move forward.
Regular Meeting of the Board of County Commissioners - Jun 9, 2026
Public comment was dominated by opposition to the proposed AWS/Constellation data center campuses near Lusby. Speakers demanded a moratorium and independent environmental, health and evacuation studies, and questioned the legality of the rezoning of roughly 726-800 acres from forest and farming to heavy industrial. Commissioner Hart again pushed a two-year moratorium tied to an independent Environmental Impact Statement; the board agreed to take up the question at its June 16 meeting.
Regular Meeting of the Board of County Commissioners - Jun 2, 2026
The board is shaping the county's rules for data centers, taking up the Planning Commission's comments on Text Amendment #26-23 and the Environmental Commission's warnings about environmental impacts. What standards get adopted will decide where and under what conditions data centers can operate here.
Planning Commission Regular Meeting Agenda - May 20, 2026
Residents are pushing hard on the pending data center zoning amendments — some say setbacks, walls, and buffers won't stop low-frequency noise and fines are too small to deter billion-dollar companies; others say the fears are overblown and the county needs the revenue. The commission is expected to forward recommendations to the BOCC.
Regular Meeting of the Board of County Commissioners - May 5, 2026
The county's handling of proposed large-scale data centers near Calvert Cliffs dominated the meeting. Residents pressed for a moratorium and independent studies on noise, water, power costs and school proximity; the board instead advanced a package of zoning text amendments that would apply to projects not yet under construction, with no grandfathering or fast-tracking.
Regular Meeting of the Board of County Commissioners - Apr 28, 2026
SMECO was scheduled to brief the Board on how large data center customers could affect the electric grid and ratepayers. State law puts upgrade costs on the developers, not necessarily local households.
Planning Commission Regular Meeting Agenda - Apr 21, 2026
The county is drafting extra conditions for data centers after the AWS/Camp Conoy controversy. Commissioners want grandfathering to apply only when construction starts, 1,200-foot setbacks, tough noise limits (45 dBA night, 40 dBC low-frequency), berms, decommissioning bonds, and limited generator testing hours.
Joint Special Meeting of the Calvert County Planning Commission and Calvert County Environmental Commission - Apr 15, 2026
Speakers warned the steady low-frequency hum from data centers isn't covered by the county's noise ordinance and travels through walls, water, and wildlife habitat. A draft text amendment would set a 55 dB C-weighted standard, but a Camp Kanoy Road neighbor says his property line measures just 35 dB today.
Regular Meeting of the Board of County Commissioners - Apr 14, 2026
Residents from Lusby and Camp Conoy demanded answers on the Constellation/Amazon data center plans, saying the rezoning bypassed normal neighbor notification and that 400-foot setbacks are too close. Commissioner Hart's motion to explore a one-year moratorium failed, and Commissioner Hance withdrew a proposal to require developer agreements before permits.
Board of Appeals - Apr 9, 2026
During public comment, an Owings resident raised the topic of data centers — a hot-button land use issue in Calvert County — though no Board action was taken on it at this meeting.
Regular Meeting of the Board of County Commissioners - Apr 7, 2026
The county is considering a temporary pause on data center development after Amazon Web Services expressed interest in building on the Constellation Energy property in Lusby. Staff laid out what a legally sound moratorium looks like and asked commissioners to decide on duration, scope, and justification before drafting an ordinance.
Planning Commission Regular Meeting Agenda - Mar 18, 2026
The county is drafting extra conditions for any future data center — no groundwater cooling, water-use plans, applicant-paid infrastructure, cleaner generators. No project has been submitted yet, but an MDE application reveals a 500 MW, seven-building project proposed near Calvert Cliffs, and residents are worried about noise, water, and the Bay.
Regular Meeting of the Board of County Commissioners - Feb 24, 2026
Planning & Zoning brought forward a zoning text amendment adding conditions for data centers. A commenter criticized the county's history of granting repeated temporary permits to non-compliant businesses and urged strong enforcement tools like work stop orders rather than fines.
Regular Meeting of the Board of County Commissioners - Jan 13, 2026
A resident flagged a data center campus project in southern Calvert, citing an MDE permit number, concerns about the historical tobacco barns and Parent's Park, and urging the county to require on-site power generation.
Related development
Proposed Text Amendment #26-23 – Data Center
Whatever conditions end up in this amendment will shape whether and how data centers can be built in the county — a big deal for land use and the environment.
Natelli data center project
Backup generator emissions and unanswered chemical-use questions have residents worried; the vague plan makes environmental review harder, not easier.
AWS Data Center, Calvert Cliffs Parkway
A 988-acre, 500-megawatt data center campus on forested land near the nuclear plant is the flashpoint of county politics — schools, wells, power bills and noise are the top worries.
Calvert County Zoning Ordinance Text Amendments TA #26-01 through #26-24
These changes will shape everything from how many trees developers must replant, to where food trucks and dispensaries can operate, to how easily farms can add agritourism buildings.
We'll email you when it's on an upcoming agenda and when it's voted on, at most once a day.
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