PROJECT IRON SPURForsyth County · Petition F-1669
The Commissioners vote Thursday, July 30, 2026. You can speak June 25 or July 30.

Help Support Project Iron Spur.

The Forsyth County Commissioners have the final say on rezoning petition F-1669 in Rural Hall, a project that would bring millions a year in new tax revenue for schools, first responders, and county services. They vote on or around July 30, and a few honest sentences from real residents, sent now, are what move the seven votes that decide it.

Write your message → Meeting dates Sign the petition
The project in plain terms

What is Project Iron Spur?

It is a proposed data center campus on a 144 acre site in Rural Hall: three two story buildings set well inside the property, wrapped by a large preserved natural buffer and a public recreation area. The land already sits in an industrial setting, next to active rail, a concrete plant, a mulching facility, and dumpster services.

  • Three buildings, two stories each. About 187,050 square feet per floor, set hundreds of feet back from homes and tucked behind the existing treeline.
  • About 35 acres of preserved natural buffer, plus a 17 acre public outdoor recreation area.
  • Closed loop cooling. The cooling water recirculates in a sealed system, so it does not draw down the public water supply.
  • A 60 decibel limit at the property line, roughly the level of normal conversation, with sound baffled equipment.
  • The power is already here. The site sits beside an existing 230 kV substation and transmission, which is the main reason it works for this use.
  • A $3 billion to $6 billion investment built over three to four years, with almost no new demand on schools or county services.
Aerial site plan of Project Iron Spur showing three buildings set inside the parcel, a large preserved natural buffer and public recreation area along the neighborhood edge, storm ponds, and an on site substation
The filed site plan. The three buildings sit toward the interior, with a roughly 35 acre preserved buffer and a public recreation area facing the neighborhoods, storm ponds, and the substation set next to existing power infrastructure.
$8.5M–$13M
a year in new property tax for Forsyth County, at full buildout
~345
homes get built here instead if the rezoning is denied
$5,800
estimated yearly homeowner savings from data center taxes (Loudoun County, VA)
4 of 7
commissioner votes needed to approve it on July 30
Latest · June 22, 2026

The Town of Rural Hall withdrew its opposition and now supports Project Iron Spur.

By Resolution 912, adopted June 22, the Town Council superseded its earlier opposition (Resolution 901) and affirmatively expressed support for the project, citing the developer's commitment to voluntarily annex the campus into Rural Hall.

How we got here

The plan changed because people spoke up.

This plan did not show up finished. After the application was filed in February 2026, the applicant went through community presentations, steering committee meetings, and staff review, then reworked the plan around the concerns neighbors raised.

What changed

  • Cut from four buildings to three
  • Relocated the substation away from homes, next to existing Duke Energy infrastructure
  • Shifted the buildings north, away from the neighborhoods
  • Lowered the height of Building 1
  • Acquired additional land to make room
  • Added a 17 acre public outdoor recreation area

Voluntary conditions

  • A 60 decibel noise limit at the property line, below HUD thresholds
  • Closed loop cooling
  • Lighting restrictions
  • Screening, fencing, and buffers
  • A decommissioning plan

These conditions came directly from community feedback. They are enforceable, they run with the land, and changing them later would require public approval. That effort is why the Town of Rural Hall reversed its position and now supports the project.

Where things stand

The decision is the Commissioners', and it is close.

What it would bring is significant. The project is projected to generate millions a year in new property tax for Forsyth County, the kind of commercial revenue that funds schools, teachers, fire, and EMS without adding the demand that hundreds of new homes would. Through voluntary annexation into Rural Hall, the Town would share directly in that revenue. Planning staff's one objection is technical, that it does not match the area's older land use plan, and the Commissioners are not bound by it.

That is exactly why your voice matters right now. The opposition has been loud and organized. The Board needs to hear from supporters before they vote, in genuine, individual messages, not a stack of identical form letters.

One thing to know before you write

  • Do not copy and paste. When officials get the same words fifty times, they count it as one voice and move on.
  • Use your own words. A few honest sentences carry more weight than a polished essay everyone sent.
  • One person, one email. Ten separate emails from ten people beat one email signed by ten.
  • Always say who you are and where you live. That tells them you are a local voice.
Take action in about 5 minutes

Send your message down the line.

Start with the Commissioners. The builder below drafts a message in your own voice from the points you pick. Edit it so it sounds like you, then send it.

1
Most important

Email the Forsyth County Commissioners

They cast the deciding vote on July 30. The builder below opens a single email, already addressed to all seven commissioners, with your message filled in. Review it, make it sound like you, and send.

Suggested subject: Please support Project Iron Spur (Petition F-1669)
Open email to all seven commissioners ↗ Copied
  1. Fill in the fields above and pick a reason or two.
  2. Edit the draft so it sounds like you.
  3. Tap Open email to all seven commissioners. Your email app opens with everyone addressed and your message filled in. Review it and hit send.

If your phone does not open an email app, tap Copy my message and paste it into the county contact form instead.
Goes to all seven: Don Martin (Chair), Gloria Whisenhunt, Richard Linville, Gray Wilson, Tonya McDaniel, Malishai Woodbury, and Dan Besse. Commissioners' Office: (336) 703-2020.

2
Now on your side

Thank the Town of Rural Hall

On June 22 the Town Council adopted Resolution 912, withdrawing its opposition and supporting Project Iron Spur. A short thank-you, plus a note encouraging them to keep working toward the voluntary annexation agreement, helps hold that momentum. The buttons below open the message you built in Step 1, addressed to the Town. Read it over and send.

Open email to the Town ↗ Copied

Goes to: Mayor Terry Bennett and Council (mayor@ruralhall.com, manager@ruralhall.com, aring@ruralhall.com, mwoodcock@ruralhall.com, mlane@ruralhall.com, nhorn@ruralhall.com).

3
Optional

Email the planning staff contact

If you want the staff record to reflect that residents support continued work on this plan, send a short, polite note to the responsible planner, Rory Howard.

Open email to planning staff ↗

Goes to: Rory Howard, planning staff (roryh@cityofws.org).

4
Add your name

Sign the petition in support

A neighbor started a petition on Change.org so the Board can see how many residents stand behind this project. Adding your name takes just a few seconds.

Sign the petition on Change.org ↗

Do this too, if you can

An individual email to the Commissioners (Step 1 above) carries more weight than a signature. The petition shows breadth; your own email shows a real local voice. Both together are strongest.

Be in the room

Meeting dates and how to speak.

There are two meetings where the public can speak between now and the decision, June 25 and July 30. You do not have to speak to make a difference, but if you want to, here is exactly how.

THURSDAY, JUNE 25, 2026 · 2:00 PM

Come show support before the vote

This is an open public meeting with a three-minute public comment period, and you are welcome to speak. Because the formal rezoning hearing is set for July 30, comment specifically on Iron Spur may be limited at this earlier meeting, so turnout matters as much as words. A room full of supporters is its own message.

THURSDAY, JULY 30, 2026 · 6:00 PM

The public hearing and the vote

This is the formal hearing where anyone can speak on Petition F-1669, and the day the Board decides. Speaking time is limited, so arrive early. Even if you do not speak, a full room of supporters carries weight. This is the one to be in the room for.

HOW TO SPEAK · TWO WAYS

Public comment

In person: complete a speaker card and hand it to the Clerk to the Board before the meeting begins. By phone: call (336) 422-1200 on the day of the meeting to be placed in line. The county lists a 1:45 PM call-in for afternoon meetings, so for the July 30 evening meeting, confirm the time on the posted agenda. Keep it to three minutes, and lead with your name and where you live.

WHERE

Forsyth County Government Center

201 North Chestnut Street, Winston-Salem. The June 25 meeting is at 2:00 PM; the July 30 meeting is in the evening at 6:00 PM. Agendas are posted the Wednesday before each meeting, so it is worth a quick check to confirm Iron Spur is on the agenda before you go.

Questions about dates, speaking, or anything else? Reach the project team below.

The case in plain terms

Reasons you can use: pick what speaks to you.

Put any of these in your own words. One or two that genuinely matter to you are more persuasive than a long list. The numbers come from the project's own analysis and public studies.

See it for yourself

There is a working example about an hour away

Apple's data center in Maiden, North Carolina is the largest taxpayer in Catawba County. Local officials there credit it with lower taxes for residents and a new fire station, in a town about the size of Rural Hall, and it employs people without flooding the schools. Drive out to Startown Road in Maiden, 28650, and see for yourself how a facility of this scale fits next to a small town.

Get directions ↗

Leave the technical specifics (power consumption, water numbers, generator and permit details) to the project team. They have verified data. If you are asked something you are not sure about, point the question to the team rather than estimating.

Read for yourself

Worth reading before you decide.

A few pieces that look honestly at what data centers actually mean for a community, the grid, and the tax base.

The Wall Street Journal

The teachers getting $50,000 bonuses thanks to a massive Meta data center

A Louisiana parish used data center revenue to pay teacher bonuses of up to about $50,000. A concrete look at what it can do for a rural community.

Read ↗
The Atlantic

The data-center panic is overblown

Weighs the claims that data centers guzzle water and strain grids, and finds the alarm overstated.

Read (gift link) ↗
Charlotte Business Journal

Inside Duke Energy's plan to control costs amid surging demand

How Duke Energy intends to meet Carolina power demand while protecting existing ratepayers.

Read ↗
National Taxpayers Union Suggested

Taxpayers can be victors, not victims, in the AI revolution

How data center revenue let places like Loudoun County cut residential taxes.

Read ↗
Questions?

Talk to the project team.

We are glad to answer anything, in person or by phone. Reach out anytime.

Michael Foess, PE, PMP

Montrose LLC
📧 michael@themontroseteam.com
☎ 704-828-6096 (o)

Aaron Sloan

Entitlement Manager · Montrose LLC
📧 asloan@themontroseteam.com
☎ 704-828-6096 (o)
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