by Leslie Lytle, Messenger Staff Writer

At the Aug. 4 meeting, the Monteagle Planning Commission approved a subdivision plat tabled at the July 7 meeting. The commission also revisited the discussion on prohibiting data centers and other options available to the town.

The Northcutt subdivision plat calls for four lots on Summerfield Road, two receiving water from a 6” line on Summerfield and two receiving water from a 2” line on Bud Pattie Road. Development of the neighboring lots “would require another [subdivision plat] submission,” stressed Mayor Greg Maloof. “And consultation with the engineer about having adequate water supply,” added Commissioner Alec Mosley.

The commission tabled the subdivision plat submission in July due to developer Robert Northcutt only providing three copies of the plat and for the plat lacking signatures from Sequachee Valley Electric verifying service and from the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation allowing septic systems.

“The urban development [rules] don’t say you need five copies,” Northcutt pointed out. He also struggled with the signatures requirement. “I didn’t know who to go to see to get all the signatures,” Northcutt said. “Even though they say Sequachee Valley, who is the person that works for Sequachee Valley that has to sign it.”

“People don’t know where to go or they go there and they redirect you,” agreed Commission Secretary Katie Trahan who signs the final plat verifying the needed signatures have been received. “If we had a list with the phone numbers and the addresses, Jonathan [Rush, the town planner] could send it out with the plat when it’s ready for signatures.”

“To be honest, I don’t know the contact information for all the power companies,” acknowledged Rush.

Commission Chair Richard Black asked Trahan to prepare a contact information list.

“I don’t know the answers to all those questions,” Trahan replied. “I honestly don’t know who all the gas companies are.”

“If you’ll figure out what the questions are, we’ll figure out how to come up with the answers,” Black suggested.

Revisiting the July meeting data center discussion resulting in the commission recommending and the Monteagle council approving an ordinance amendment only allowing data centers as a special exception in Industrial Zoning, Mosley and Trahan both spoke in favor of Rush’s offer to look into more in depth regulations and definitions for data centers.

“Does this have any effect on [the data center amendment] the council voted for at the last meeting?” asked Alderman Grant Fletcher.

“It would put more restrictions on defining exactly what ‘data center’ means,” Rush said. “You could do a moratorium if there are concerns right now. A lot of communities in southeast Tennessee are starting to do that.”

The effectiveness of the data center amendment in stopping data centers from locating in Monteagle in part hinges on Monteagle having no property zoned industrial. At the July 27 Monteagle Council meeting Fletcher raised the possibility of a data center wanting to locate in Monteagle requesting rezoning to industrial. Fletcher asked if rezoning criteria was sufficient to stop rezoning that would allow a data center to locate in the town. “Maybe,” replied Alderman Nate Wilson. [See Messenger, July 31, 2026].

“We could use a moratorium as a stopgap?” Fletcher proposed at the planning commission meeting.

“Yes,” concurred Rush. “I would have your city attorney put the language together.”