NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — Drew Small is hosting a town hall Wednesday afternoon to give residents a chance to learn more about the project and have their voices heard before the planning commission makes its recommendation — expected in two days — on proposed zoning changes. The issue then heads to council on July 7.
The company DC Blox purchased land next to the Nashville Zoo with plans to build a new facility there. The company says its design will limit noise, reduce water use, and avoid extra costs for the community.
Small said he worries the project could still bring major challenges to the neighborhood.
"It creates an enormous amount of environmental impacts that this community's gonna have to shoulder, we're gonna have to deal with poor air quality, we're gonna have to deal with water contamination, we're gonna have to deal with higher electricity and water costs, all of that is being seen all across America when these data centers go in," Small said.
Small has invited council members, conservation experts, and zoo representatives to the meeting to discuss not only the project itself, but also a proposed moratorium and potential zoning changes.
"Knowledge is power, and so the biggest thing we wanna do is empower people in this community with information, what's going on with the legislation," Small said.
For Small, the stakes are personal.
"I love my neighbors, I love my city, and I want the future to be better," Small said. "I wanna be able to continue to live in my neighborhood, I wanna raise my children here, I want them to go to school, I want to know that my neighbors have that same ability too, and so I can either do nothing or I can at least try."
The town hall is Wednesday June 24 at 6:00pm. The address is 1224 Martin St. Nashville, TN 37203.
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