Contact Forsyth County Commissioners
Tell our commissioners that you want a moratorium now.
Email, call, or write
The best way to email is the county’s official form. You can write all of the commissioners at once, or choose individuals.
Call the Board office at 336-703-2020.
Send a letter to any or all of the commissioners at:
Forsyth County Government Center
201 N. Chestnut St.
Winston-Salem, NC 27101
Please thank Commissioners Dan Besse and Tonya McDaniel for their efforts to get the Board to vote on a moratorium.
Individual emails
- Gloria D. Whisenhunt Chair whisengd@forsyth.cc
- G. Gray Wilson Vice Chair wilsongg@forsyth.cc
- Dan Besse At Large bessed@forsyth.cc
- Richard V. Linville District B linvilrv@forsyth.cc
- Tonya D. McDaniel District A mcdanitd@forsyth.cc
- Chris Parker District B parkerdc@forsyth.cc
- Malishai Woodbury District A woodbuml@forsyth.cc
Make your message count
Write in your own words, and keep it factual. If you want a starting point, pick a couple of topics from the list farther down this page.
Please do be courteous to everyone.
Please avoid these. These actions weaken our chance for the Board of Commissioners to support a moratorium:
- Personal attacks or dislike of the developer, property owners, staff members, or officials
- Emotional appeals without factual support
- General statements that “we don’t want data centers”
- Arguments based on stereotypes or assumptions
Tips on writing to your elected officials
- Keep it brief. Letters should never be longer than one page and should be limited to one issue.
- State who you are and what you want up front. In the first paragraph, say you are a Forsyth County resident and that you are asking for a temporary moratorium on new hyperscale data center approvals.
- Hit your three most important points. Choose the three strongest points and flesh them out.
- Personalize your letter. Tell them why this matters in Forsyth County. If you have one, include a personal story that shows how this issue affects you and your family.
- Personalize your relationship. Have you voted for this official? Contributed time or money to a campaign? Known them through work or the community? If so, say so.
- You are the expert. Be courteous and to the point, but take a firm position. Officials often know no more about a given issue than you do.
Topics you can raise
Pick a couple. You do not need to cover every item.
Process and approvals
- Treating data centers as their own use category, with a clear definition
- Requiring conditional use permits instead of by-right approval
- Covering expansions of existing data centers
- Rejecting applications that don’t fit county goals
- Putting the burden of proof on the developer
- Independent expert review of applications
- Public notice and community hearings
- Enforcement, penalties, and permit revocation
Transparency
- Disclosing all companies involved in a project, including developers, operators, and financers
- Prohibiting nondisclosure agreements in data center deals
- Releasing application documents well before public meetings
- Ongoing public reporting after approval
- Making water and energy applications public records
Siting and land use
- Allowing data centers only in industrial zones
- Prohibiting them in commercial and mixed-use zones
- Limiting variances and special use permits
- Protecting agricultural land from rezoning
- Protecting historic sites
- Setbacks from homes, property lines, and transit
- Building design, screening, and landscaping
- Limiting conversion of existing buildings
Water
- Defining and reviewing large water users
- Counting all water use, including cooling and construction
- Identifying water sources
- Conservation and recycled water requirements
- Cooling technology
- Paying for water infrastructure
- Water quality testing
- Water-use taxes and enforcement
Energy
- Utility “will serve” letters and capacity commitments
- Renewable energy requirements
- Limits on behind-the-meter and off-grid generation
- Emergency authority to curb data center power use
- Electricity-use reporting
- Taxes on electricity use
Air, noise, and health
- Backup diesel generator limits
- Emission standards
- Cumulative air pollution impact
- Fenceline air and water monitoring
- Noise studies, limits, and mitigation
- Noise complaint and enforcement process
Economics
- Limiting tax incentives and abatements
- Protecting school funding
- Cost-benefit analysis before any incentives
- Taxes and fees on data centers
- Annual public reporting of subsidies
- Job quality and local hiring standards
- Community benefit agreements that are binding and enforceable
- Displacement and environmental justice impact review
Sign the petition too
Thank you for taking the time to make a personal statement for a moratorium in Forsyth County. If you have not signed yet, add your name.