Metro Nashville could soon take control of a South Nashville property near the Nashville Zoo currently being targeted for a controversial data center by an Atlanta-based tech company.
Mayor Freddie O’Connell’s office filed condemnation legislation on Monday seeking to use eminent domain to acquire the property located at 648 Grassmere Park for public use. O’Connell, in an emailed statement to the Scene, says Metro has a “legitimate need for this property.”
“I have carefully followed the concerns from the community and the zoo and also remain deeply concerned about the proposed use,” O’Connell says.
“With the closure of the Metro Southeast campus and growing needs at [the Nashville Department of Transportation and Multimodal Infrastructure] and the fire department, we’ve identified a variety of needs for this site,” O’Connell says in a video statement issued Monday afternoon. “Nashville will continue to grow, and that’s a good thing. The growth should reflect our values. We can support economic development while also making smart choices about the highest and best use of our land.”
Atlanta-based digital infrastructure company DC BLOX recently filed a building permit with Metro proposing to construct a one-story, 10-megawatt, 69,220-square foot data center at the site. Additional engineering reports indicate that the project could also include a three-story, 40-megawatt data center building, a substation, associated parking lots and a guard house. Metro stormwater permit documents show that the site’s stormwater drainage outfalls flow directly onto degrading stormwater infrastructure located on the Nashville Zoo property.
The proposal has sparked fierce pushback from Nashvillians concerned about the data center’s potential environmental and noise impact on the surrounding neighborhood and animals at the zoo.
O’Connell’s office met with DC BLOX earlier this year and declined to offer the company incentives. The mayor’s office suggested the company discuss the proposal with the zoo before the project was announced. DC BLOX failed to do so.
In a statement to the Scene, DC BLOX says there is “misinformation” about the data center project.
“There continues to be misinformation shared in the public about the DC BLOX project in Nashville and we are proceeding in our efforts to meet with city officials, zoo leaders, and community members to discuss their concerns and to find a favorable resolution,” the statement reads.
Freddie O'Connell's office declined to offer digital infrastructure developer incentives during March meeting
“This project is not an AI factory, as some fear. No noise will be generated above existing ambient sound levels on the site and we are confident we can design solutions to address all other concerns raised.”
The mayor’s condemnation legislation has been late-filed for the Metro Council’s July 7 meeting, where councilmembers can decide whether to consider it. Also on July 7, the council will consider a bill on its second of three readings that would create strict data center regulations. While O’Connell hasn’t expressed explicit support for the regulations, he has pushed for a 90-day data center moratorium temporarily restricting the construction of the facilities.
This also comes as a proposed data center on Fisk University’s campus has sparked additional community backlash from students, alumni and the North Nashville community.
