Rockingham City Council approved a conditional rezoning of about 165.07 acres at 316 Old Cheraw Highway for a data center campus, according to the Richmond County Daily Journal. The paper reported a 4 to 1 vote, with Councilwoman Holly Howe opposed. The applicant is Terra Nexus Land Fund I, LLC. [Source 1] [Source 3]
Evidence: City of Rockingham agenda packet for the September 8, 2026 council meeting, a March 2026 operational noise study posted by the city, and local reports dated September 13 and 17, 2026.
Rockingham City Council approved a conditional rezoning of about 165.07 acres at 316 Old Cheraw Highway for a data center campus, according to the Richmond County Daily Journal. The paper reported a 4 to 1 vote, with Councilwoman Holly Howe opposed. The applicant is Terra Nexus Land Fund I, LLC. [Source 1] [Source 3]
The city's September 8 agenda scheduled a public hearing on rezoning the site from High Density Residential (R-7) to Conditional Light Industrial (I-1 CZ). The Planning Board recommended approval unanimously on August 4, 2026. [Source 1]
Status: Approved, for a conditional rezoning only. Under the conditions, the site's use is limited to a data center that conforms to the submitted site plan. The conditions run with the land. They do not establish a building permit, utility service agreement or construction start. [Source 1]
The staff report calls the project a $1.2 billion investment at completion, with no city financial incentives. It says the project will be phased, with the first building completed in 9 to 12 months before the next phase begins. That timing is the developer's plan as reported by staff, not a construction milestone. [Source 1]
The applicant's noise study describes four one-story buildings of about 155,875 square feet each and an on-site substation area of about 16 acres. It lists 48 rooftop chillers and 48 diesel backup generators per building. [Source 2]
On power, the staff report says two Duke Energy transmission lines cross the site, which it calls critical to supplying the data center. It also says no on-site or bridge power will be used, so no air quality permit is required. [Source 1]
The cooling design changed to a closed-loop system during review. Staff says average daily water use will be generally limited to domestic use for about 30 employees, down from an original estimate of 75,000 gallons per day. [Source 1]
Local reports describe the campus at 460 MW of total capacity. The city documents we reviewed do not state a megawatt figure. The reports do not specify whether 460 MW is utility service, critical IT load or another basis. Treat it as an unverified campus figure, not IT load. [Source 3] [Source 4]
The reviewed sources do not name an end user or operator, disclose a Duke Energy service agreement or energization date, or state the remaining permits required. The September 8 minutes were not yet posted when we checked on September 22.
This is an early-stage entitlement in Richmond County, outside the major North Carolina data center markets. The notable detail is the power plan: grid service from existing transmission crossing the site, with no on-site generation. That makes Duke Energy's service timeline the key question for anyone tracking when capacity could actually exist.
The conditions also show what communities now ask for. They limit generator testing to weekday business hours, cap noise at 55 dBA at residential property lines with an annual noise study, widen vegetative buffers and require closed-loop cooling. Operators planning similar sites should expect comparable terms. [Source 1]
City documents reviewed do not state a megawatt figure; the 460 MW in local reports has no stated basis. No end user, Duke Energy service agreement, energization date or remaining permit list is disclosed.
Soluna Holdings says ERCOT has conditionally classified its 100 MW Project Dorothy campus in Briscoe County, Texas as Base Load in Batch Zero. A week earlier it reported the same conditional classification for the full 166 MW Project Kati campus in Willacy County, Texas. The company totals the two at 266 MW. [Source 1] [Source 2]
Read the analysisThor Equities has submitted plans for Kingston Technology Hub, a proposed 350,000-square-foot data center in Bartow County. Data Center Dynamics reports a 150MW project with an estimated $1 billion investment and a target completion date in 2030.
Read the analysisEdged announced the topping out of OMA01-1 and OMA01-2 at its 200MW Council Bluffs campus. The milestone marks completion of the buildings' structural framework, with work continuing into subsequent construction phases.
Read the analysis