Nashville Community Opposes Controversial Zoo Data Center Plan

WHO:

CBS News - Nashville residents, including country music star Brad Paisley, and Rich Schwartz, CEO of the Nashville Zoo, are involved in the opposition to the data center.

CBS News - DC BLOX is the company proposing the data center.

WHAT:

CBS News - Residents are opposing a proposed nearly 70,000-square-foot data center near the Nashville Zoo.

CBS News - The data center would operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

CBS News - An online petition against the project has nearly 400,000 signatures.

CBS News - The Nashville Metro Planning Commission held a public hearing regarding proposed legislation to ban large data centers within a half mile of certain facilities.

WHERE:

CBS News - The proposed data center is located near the Nashville Zoo in Nashville, Tennessee.

WHY:

CBS News - Residents argue that the data center would expose zoo animals to noise, fumes, and bright lights.

CBS News - Rich Schwartz stated that the health of the animals is a major concern, citing effects on breeding cycles and stress due to noise and light.

HOW:

CBS News - DC BLOX claims to have implemented sound attenuation enclosures for generators and positioned them away from the zoo to mitigate noise and exhaust issues.

(UPDATED June 12, 2026 01:47 UTC)

Residents in Nashville, including country music star Brad Paisley and Rich Schwartz, CEO of the Nashville Zoo, are opposing a proposed nearly 70,000-square-foot data center that would operate around the clock near the zoo. An online petition against the project has gathered nearly 400,000 signatures, with concerns that the data center could negatively impact the health of zoo animals due to noise, fumes, and bright lights. While DC BLOX, the company behind the proposal, claims to have taken measures to mitigate these issues, the Nashville Metro Planning Commission recently held a public hearing on legislation to ban large data centers within a half mile of certain facilities.