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Town Council Business Meeting

Town of Holly Springs · Town Council
Tuesday, June 16, 2026 at 7:00 pm

Regular meeting Roads and transportationParks and recreationWater and sewerAnnexationBudget and appropriationsCivil rights and nondiscriminationComprehensive planContracts and procurementData centers and large loadsEnvironment and sustainabilityFaith and cultural communitiesGrants and outside fundingPolice and public safetySchools and educationZoning text amendment

Agenda document Full packet Minutes Meeting page Watch Meeting recap

What's on this agenda

Holly Springs held a public hearing on 16 June on an up-to-twelve-month moratorium on data center applications. Staff told the council the town's ordinance has defined data centers since 2011 and last touched the definition in the 2020-21 update, and that the use has changed enough since then that the definition is out of date. Modern facilities draw heavily on electricity and water.

The rest of the night was a consent agenda carrying end-of-year budget amendments, the voluntary annexation of Veridea S Village East, and a design change order on Holly Springs Road, plus three proclamations and an overview of the festival street design project.

Summarized from the published agenda. Read the agenda itself before acting on it.

Meeting recap

What happened, drawn from the records published after the meeting. Minutes

The council adopted Ordinance 26-19, an up-to-12-month moratorium on new data center, cryptocurrency mining and related development applications, inside town limits and its extraterritorial jurisdiction, following a public hearing. Staff said the town's definition of a data center, last updated in 2020-21, has not kept pace with how much water and electricity modern facilities use. The Land Use Advisory Committee will spend eight to nine months on water, energy, noise and traffic impacts before staff draft UDO amendments. Adoption is expected to take two and a half to three more months, and the moratorium can end early if the work finishes first.

Council member Chris Deshazor asked for a broader definition, pointing to data centers now renting space inside houses. Mayor Pro Tem Annie Drees said she is not usually in favor of moratoriums but backed this one, and told staff to get it right first and move quickly second. The council also endorsed, unanimously, naming the Holly Springs Road bridge over NC 540 for Deputy Mark R. Tucker, killed near the site in 2004, and entered closed session to discuss an economic incentive.

How the votes went

Ordinance 26-19, the data center moratorium, passed unanimously, as did Resolution 26-20 endorsing the bridge naming for Deputy Tucker. The meeting agenda and the consent agenda, covering budget amendments, the Veridea S. Village East annexation petition, an engineering standards supplement and a road design change order, also passed without opposition.

From the published minutes.

Who spoke

2 members of the public spoke.

  1. A resident said the town's name comes from its water and that data centers could strain the water supply and other infrastructure, and spoke in support of the moratorium.
  2. A resident raised water supply, utility costs, noise carrying hundreds of feet, and effects on property values, said promised jobs often do not materialize, and asked the council to vote yes.

Both speakers at the data center hearing supported the moratorium. No one spoke against it.

Read from the records the government published after the meeting. Members of the public are private residents and are not named or indexed.

Speaking at this meeting

Town of Holly Springs's own rules for public comment — check them before you rely on anything here.

Jump to an item (19 on this agenda)
  1. Call to Order
  2. Pledge of Allegiance
  3. Invocation
  4. Adjustment and Approval of June 16, 2026 Meeting Agenda
  5. Holly Springs High School Women's Soccer State Champions
  6. Juneteenth Proclamation
  7. July Parks and Recreation Month Proclamation
  8. Festival Street Design Project Overview
  9. May 19, 2026 Business Meeting and May 12 and 21, 2026 Workshop Meetin…
  10. End of Year Budget Amendments and Grants
  11. Voluntary Annexation A25-10 Veridea S Village East
  12. Engineering Design and Construction Standards Supplement #15
  13. Holly Springs Rd. (Central) - Design Change Order #5
  14. Consideration of a Moratorium on Data Centers
  15. Bridge Naming Endorsement in Honor of Deputy Mark R. Tucker
  16. Other Business
  17. Manager's Report
  18. Closed Session
  19. Adjournment

Agenda items (19)

Procedural · 5Consent agenda · 4Proclamation or recognition · 3Presentation · 1Budget action · 1Public hearing · 1Resolution · 1Discussion item · 1Staff or committee report · 1Closed session · 1
  1. Call to Order
    Procedural
  2. Pledge of Allegiance
    Procedural
  3. Invocation
    Procedural
  4. Adjustment and Approval of June 16, 2026 Meeting Agenda
    Procedural
  5. Holly Springs High School Women's Soccer State Champions
    Proclamation or recognition Parks and recreationSchools and education
  6. Juneteenth Proclamation
    Proclamation or recognition Civil rights and nondiscriminationFaith and cultural communities
  7. July Parks and Recreation Month Proclamation
    Proclamation or recognition Parks and recreation
  8. Festival Street Design Project Overview
    Presentation Comprehensive planRoads and transportation
    An overview of the festival street design project.
  1. End of Year Budget Amendments and Grants
    Budget action Budget and appropriationsGrants and outside funding
  2. Consideration of a Moratorium on Data Centers
    Public hearing Data centers and large loadsEnvironment and sustainabilityWater and sewerZoning text amendment
    Public hearing on whether to impose a moratorium on data center development in Holly Springs.
  3. Bridge Naming Endorsement in Honor of Deputy Mark R. Tucker
    Resolution Police and public safetyRoads and transportation
    Endorses naming the Holly Springs Road bridge over NC 540 for a sheriff's deputy killed near the spot in 2004, at the request of a Wake County Fraternal Order of Police lodge.
  4. Other Business
    Discussion item
  5. Manager's Report
    Staff or committee report
  6. Closed Session
    Closed session
  7. Adjournment
    Procedural

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