Planning Board moves toward data center moratorium
The Plymouth Planning Board directed staff to draft a possible one-year moratorium on large-scale data centers and separately advanced zoning changes renaming "elderly housing" as "senior housing." The board voted 5-0 to approve minutes from three prior meetings.
Planning Board · Meeting of July 22, 2026
PLYMOUTH — The Plymouth Planning Board directed staff to draft a possible one-year moratorium on large-scale data centers and separately advanced zoning changes renaming "elderly housing" as "senior housing." The board voted 5-0 to approve minutes from three prior meetings. Member Frank Mand proposed the moratorium after his conservation group was contacted about data center fights elsewhere; Vice Chair Timothy Grandy called it "good planning" since "it isn't saying no." Staff said the town lacks a zoning definition for data centers and would need Town Counsel's help before filing a placeholder article on the fall Town Meeting warrant, which opens July 28. Staff planner Lauren Lind said the current rule requiring all household occupants to be 55 or older has created fair housing problems, citing a caller barred from listing her 53-year-old husband on paperwork.
A resident, Lewis Walker, told the board UMass Gerontology Center data projects Plymouth will be majority 55-and-over by 2030.
In the full story:
- Who Was There
- Organizations And Documents Referenced
- The complete report — 2,264 words
Source: the Planning Board meeting of July 22, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.
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