Officials answer public’s questions in data center open house

Published 6:00 am Thursday, June 25, 2026

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City-County Planning Commission Executive Director Ben Peterson answers questions regarding new zoning ordinance regulations concerning any future potential data centers at a data center open house at the Knicely Conference Center on Tuesday, June 23, 2026. (Grace McDowell / The Daily News)

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Members of the community gather at the Knicely Conference Center to talk to city and county officials and representatives of Atmos Energy, WRECC, BGMU, Warren County Water District, the Chamber of Commerce and City-County Planning Commission about the city’s new zoning ordinance regulations concerning any future potential data centers during a data center open house on Tuesday, June 23, 2026. (Grace McDowell / The Daily News)

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Members of the community gather at the Knicely Conference Center to talk to city and county officials and representatives of Atmos Energy, WRECC, BGMU, Warren County Water District, the Chamber of Commerce and City-County Planning Commission about the city’s new zoning ordinance regulations concerning any future potential data centers during a data center open house on Tuesday, June 23, 2026. (Grace McDowell / The Daily News)

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Members of the community gather at the Knicely Conference Center to talk to city and county officials and representatives of Atmos Energy, WRECC, BGMU, Warren County Water District, the Chamber of Commerce and City-County Planning Commission about the city’s new zoning ordinance regulations concerning any future potential data centers during a data center open house on Tuesday, June 23, 2026. (Grace McDowell / The Daily News)

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Members of the community gather at the Knicely Conference Center to talk to city and county officials and representatives of Warren County Water District, Atmos Energy, WRECC, BGMU, the Chamber of Commerce and City-County Planning Commission about the city’s new zoning ordinance regulations concerning any future potential data centers during a data center open house on Tuesday, June 23, 2026. (Grace McDowell / The Daily News)

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(From right) Will Heller of Bowling Green talks with Bowling Green Area Chamber of Commerce Interim President and CEO Meredith Wilson and Warren County Judge-Executive Doug Gorman regarding the city’s new zoning ordinance regulations for any future potential data centers during a data center open house at the Knicely Conference Center on Tuesday, June 23, 2026. (Grace McDowell / The Daily News)

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Bowling Green City Commissioner Dana Beasley Brown talks photos of some of the information posters set up at a data center open house regarding the city’s new zoning ordinance regulations for any future potential data centers at the Knicely Conference Center on Tuesday, June 23, 2026. (Grace McDowell / The Daily News)

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Bowling Green City Commissioner Sue Parrigin talks with members of the community during a data center open house regarding the city’s new zoning ordinance regulations for any future potential data centers at the Knicely Conference Center on Tuesday, June 23, 2026. (Grace McDowell / The Daily News)

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Warren County Judge-Executive Doug Gorman talks with members of the community during a data center open house regarding the city’s new zoning ordinance regulations for any future potential data centers at the Knicely Conference Center on Tuesday, June 23, 2026. (Grace McDowell / The Daily News)

Talk of data center regulations and the impact a center would have on Warren County filled the air inside Western Kentucky University’s Knicely Conference Center on Tuesday as local government held an open house meeting on data centers for members of the public.

“I thought it was important for people to get out here speak with people who deal with this day-to-day,” Warren County Judge-Executive Doug Gorman said.

The event comes after both the Bowling Green City Commission and Warren County Fiscal Court gave approval to new regulations surrounding data centers. While no projects are currently in the works, local leaders have said the regulations will ensure the community is protected.

City commissioners gave final approval to the regulations last Tuesday and Fiscal Court is expected to do the same on Thursday this week.

Data centers would only be permitted in industrial-zoned areas and would have to be located at least 500 feet from any adjacent property lines and 1,500 feet away from any residential area. They would also have to use a “closed-loop” water system for cooling, meaning the water that is used would be recycled to cut down on demand for water.

Other rules target the aesthetics of a data center facility, the heat generated from the facilities and they require a decommissioning plan be created if a data center closes. The plan would detail a timetable for shutting down a data center and, among other things, require the land housing it to be restored to its original condition.

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An estimated 300 attendees visited the two-hour open house, speaking with local elected leaders and representatives from other agencies around the community.

Charles Campbell was one of these attendees. An “off and on” resident of Warren County since 1961, Campbell expressed concerns with a perceived lack of transparency on the regulations before they were approved by local government earlier this month.

“My problem has been, why weren’t people educated back before the first reading,” he said. “This was great today, (the public) got a lot of questions answered, (but) there could be more regs added to those.”

Mary Fathbruckner said while data centers don’t “scare” her, the concerns shared widely brought her out to learn more.

“I like to see how it’s being handled, how it’s being done, how it’s being addressed,” she said. “I want to be open minded and see what’s going on.”

She said a big “what-if” in her view is the process for cleaning up a data center site if it closes. She spoke highly of the decommissioning rules, saying they are something that should be required for all economic development projects.

“I was impressed they had enough forethought to (require) that ‘whatever happens, you’re responsible,’ ” she said. “I think it’s been well thought out.”

City County Planning Commission head Ben Peterson spoke with visitors about the commission’s regulations. On the other side of the room, representatives from Bowling Green Municipal Utilities, Warren Rural Electric Cooperative Corporation and Atmos Energy shared details about energy needs for data centers.

Meredith Wilson of the Bowling Green Area Chamber of Commerce, was present as well, reassuring the public that no negotiations with any data center companies are happening.

“I think this has been a really amazing, positive conversation,” Wilson said during the event. “Everybody’s asking ‘are we talking to one,’ and the answer is ‘no.’ “

About Jack Dobbs

Jack covers city government for the Daily News. Originally from Simpson County, he attended Western Kentucky University and graduated in 2022 with a degree in journalism.

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