What the prohibition covers
Mayor Michael Duman said the pause applies to all data center applications as Suffolk considers how to handle future development. "At this particular time, we will not be accepting any applications for data centers whatsoever," he said.
The ordinance defines data centers as facilities housing computer servers and related equipment for processing and storing data. It also revises warehouse and distribution definitions to prevent developers from using those classifications to bypass the prohibition, according to the Suffolk News Herald.
The ban applies when a data center is a property's principal use. It exempts hospitals, offices and other businesses whose servers support their primary operations. The adopted language provides no conditional-use process or other route to an exception for data centers.
From a June directive to council approval
The council initiated the measure on June 17, 2026, directing the Planning Commission to prepare an amendment to the Unified Development Ordinance that would prohibit data centers in every zoning district. On Sept. 15, the commission voted 8-0 to recommend the prohibition to the council, a step also covered by WHRO. Council adoption followed on Oct. 21.
Only one person spoke before the council's vote: Timothy Wheels, a Suffolk resident whose technology company specializes in artificial intelligence and website development. He described the difficulty of regulating a rapidly changing industry. "It's not much type of governance because all this is new," Wheels said.
Wheels supported giving the city more time to prepare for growing AI use. "I'm in favor because it buys us time to come up with a plan, to come up with a strategy to prepare ourselves on how we use AI," he said.
Other Hampton Roads cities have paused development
Suffolk joins neighboring cities that have halted data center expansion. Chesapeake imposed an eight-month moratorium in summer 2026 and restricted locations for the facilities in August. Virginia Beach adopted a one-year moratorium on large data centers that August, according to The Virginian-Pilot.
Calls for a broader pause brought more than 30 community members to Virginia Beach on Oct. 20. The gathering was the only Hampton Roads stop on the "March for a Moratorium," a two-week statewide tour organized by the Chesapeake Climate Action Network and partner organizations, the Pilot reported.
Advocates for data center development point to potential local investment, tax receipts and construction employment. The Pilot described Northern Virginia as a global hub hosting roughly two-thirds of the world's data centers. It also reported that hyperscale facilities can need about 100 megawatts of power and use as much as 530 million gallons of water annually.
State framework addresses disclosure and water
State action has accompanied the local decisions. Gov. Abigail Spanberger signed Executive Order 22 in September 2026, three days after Suffolk's Planning Commission vote. The order created a statewide Data Center Accountability Framework seeking more public disclosure, stronger environmental safeguards and a greater local role in data center decisions, according to the Suffolk News Herald.
The order does not oblige localities to accommodate data centers. It also directs the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality to designate the Eastern Virginia Groundwater Management Area, which includes Suffolk, as a "cooling water scarcity area."
