East Charlotte residents are pressing Charlotte City Council to extend its pause on new data center development for at least a year, arguing the city needs more time to set rules for projects’ potential impacts on nearby communities. The 150-day moratorium expires Nov. 5. Council was expected to hold a final public hearing on a possible extension Monday, Oct. 12, with a vote anticipated about two weeks later. Cristopher Scalise, co-founder of STOP East Charlotte Data Center, lives about a mile from a proposed 40,000-square-foot data center on Hood Road. He said the project’s scale and location among residential properties surprised him. Scalise served on a city task force that examined data centers and concerns including noise, water use and energy demand. He said the city is not ready to move ahead without more work on policies to address those issues. “I hope the council would do the right thing and go at least another year,” Scalise said, adding that the task force found “an enormous amount of work” remained. Scalise has also launched a webpage compiling timelines, key points and research from the first 75 days of the moratorium’s learning period. He encouraged residents to stay engaged and keep asking elected officials for answers. The council’s decision will determine whether the temporary freeze continues while Charlotte considers how to regulate future data center development, including projects near homes.