Data Center Census Near me

Project Bluegrass

Burgin, Mercer County, KYDeveloper: Panattoni Development

ProposedAnnexation of the site into Burgin stalled when the council lost its quorum on Sept. 8, 2026; Mercer County's temporary pause on data center construction does not apply in Burgin
  1. Rumored
  2. Proposed
  3. Approved
  4. Under construction
  5. Operating

Panattoni Data Centers proposes Project Bluegrass, a hyperscale data center on parcels north of Burgin in Mercer County; Panattoni says the project would occupy 950 acres, and DatacenterDynamics reports four buildings are planned. Burgin officials gave a first reading to annexing some 500 acres for the project in July 2026, but on Sept. 8, 2026 a council member walked out, the council lost its quorum and no annexation vote was taken.

Key facts

Size & schedule

Site size950 acres [2]
Panattoni figure; DatacenterDynamics reports 900 acres, and the city considered annexing some 500 acres for the project
Source excerpt
“On the site, Panattoni says the project would occupy 950 acres, with less than 50% of the overall site developed.”
Buildings4 [1]
per a presentation shared by an interim Burgin council member
Source excerpt
“Four buildings are planned, according to a presentation shared by Burgin interim city council member Scott McCoy this month.”

How big is that? Data center sizes compared with football fields and Central Park.

Water

Coolingclosed-loop [1]
Source excerpt
“The site will use a closed-loop cooling system to reduce water use.”

Local decisions & site

ZoningBurgin has no planning and zoning regulations; the city could adopt regulations by joining the joint county planning and zoning commission [4]
Source excerpt
“Burgin does not have planning and zoning regulations and could adopt regulations as a part of the joint commission.”

Figures are as stated by the cited source. Where sources disagree, each figure is shown.

Timeline

  1. Burgin officials give a first reading, on a favorable but not unanimous vote, to annexing some 500 acres into the city for the project [1]

  2. Mercer County Joint Planning and Zoning Commission votes to advance data center zoning regulations restricting where large data centers can locate [4]

  3. Mercer County Fiscal Court passes a temporary pause on data center construction that does not apply in Burgin [4]

  4. On the mayor's tie-breaking vote, Burgin City Council approves on first reading an ordinance for the city to rejoin the joint Mercer County, Harrodsburg and Burgin Planning and Zoning Commission [3]

  5. A planned council vote on directing the city attorney to draft an ordinance annexing the data center site does not happen after council member Melinda Wofford walks out and the council loses its quorum [4]

  6. Mercer County Fiscal Court gives a first reading of the commission's data center regulations [4]

Issues raised

  • Residents raised concerns about noise, water contamination, road deterioration and tax increases [3]
  • The Burgin school superintendent and school board have advocated for the project because of potential tax revenue for the district and city [4]
  • Panattoni says it will cover transmission upgrade costs and that Burgin residents should not be asked to subsidize the infrastructure serving the project [1][2]
  • A resident said records she obtained showed school board and council members communicating with Panattoni weeks before the project was raised at a council meeting [2]
  • The Kentucky Lantern describes the stalled Sept. 8 item as a vote to direct the city attorney to draft an annexation ordinance, the second time the city considered annexing the site; WKYT describes it as a separate annexation ordinance [3][4]
  • The mayor said joining the joint planning and zoning commission would not by itself stop the project [3][4]

Issues are concerns and claims raised by the parties, officials or residents named in the cited sources. They are reported as attributed, not as findings by the Census.

Sources

  1. 900-acre data center project proposed outside Lexington, Kentucky
    DatacenterDynamics · Jul 28, 2026 · news
  2. Panattoni releases new details on Project Bluegrass data center
    Spectrum News 1 (Kentucky) · Aug 25, 2026 · news
  3. Burgin votes to rejoin zoning commission amid data center fight
    WKYT · Sep 8, 2026 · news
  4. Burgin city council member walks out to stop a vote for a proposed data center project
    Kentucky Lantern · Sep 9, 2026 · news

Cite this page

Last updated Sep 24, 2026. Figures may change as records are updated — include the date you retrieved them.

APAData Center Census. (2026). Project Bluegrass. Retrieved from https://datacentercensus.com/dc/panattoni-project-bluegrass-burgin-ky
MLA“Project Bluegrass.” Data Center Census, Sep 24, 2026, https://datacentercensus.com/dc/panattoni-project-bluegrass-burgin-ky.
Linkhttps://datacentercensus.com/dc/panattoni-project-bluegrass-burgin-ky

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