By Miles Layton

CAMDEN, N.C. — “Please let Camden County remain Camden County.”

That plea from Katie Canning, who said she grew up in Camden County and now lives in Elizabeth City, set the tone for a packed Camden County Board of Commissioners meeting Monday night, where residents turned out in force to weigh in on a proposed moratorium on data centers and cryptocurrency mining operations.

During the meeting’s public comment period, Canning urged commissioners to weigh long-term growth decisions carefully — a comment not tied specifically to the data center item but reflecting concerns raised throughout the evening about development pressures — GREAT SPEECH! 

Canning, who said it was her first Camden County meeting, opened by noting her ties to the community. “Camden County will always be my home. I grew up here. I attended Camden County schools. My parents still live here. My family has deep roots in this county.” She said the county’s churches and people had supported her family “through some of the hardest moments of our lives” with her son Carter.

“That’s what makes Camden County so special,” she said. “Community isn’t just something we talk about here, it’s something that we live.”

She recalled her grandmother, who lived to be 109 and was honored during the county’s history festival as one of its oldest residents, saying her grandmother “loved the simple way of life Camden offered, and that’s the Camden I want to protect.” Canning also described watching Sheriff Joe Jones help her mother at a county festival years ago. “Without hesitation, he sat down beside us and helped,” she said. “That simple act showed me what leadership looks like. Our leaders weren’t strangers; they were our neighbors.”

Canning said she is “not against responsible growth” but asked the board to consider what could be lost. 

“I’m asking that every decision made today and going forward considers not only what Camden County can become, but also what we risk losing along the way,” she said. “Growth should improve the lives of the people who already call Camden County home while thoughtfully welcoming those who choose to make it their home in the future.”

She pointed to the widening of Highway 343 near her parents’ home as an example of development done right, saying the bypass rerouted summer beach traffic away from their community and “gave peace back” to the area. But she said other changes have been harder to watch. 

“I see the new school being built, new housing developments going up, trees being cleared to make room for growth, and I’ll be honest, that’s hard to see,” she said. “But I also see the farmland. I see the Camden bears, deer and other wildlife. I still see neighbors waving to one another. I still see the yellow crop duster flying over the fields.”

She closed by posing a series of questions to the board. “Can we grow without losing our farmland? Can we protect the wildlife and rural beauty that makes Camden unique? Can we preserve the close-knit community that defined Camden for generations?” she asked. “Camden County doesn’t have to become another city to be successful. Its greatest strength is that it’s already Camden.”

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Zimmerman calls for bike trail repairs

During general public comment, cyclist Pamela Zimmerman, who said she lives in South Mills, asked the board to pursue state grant funding to repave the South Mills bike trail, which she said is badly deteriorated. “The South Mills bike trail is in sad shape,” Zimmerman said, pointing commissioners to the Complete Trails grant program, with an application deadline of Oct. 8. “Money is available to resurface that trail. It needs it.”

Zimmerman said she personally counted more than 100 cracks along the trail. “I counted one hundred and nineteen greater than two-inch… cracks in the pavement in three miles,” she said, adding that the damage poses a real safety hazard. “It’s dangerous. I have run on there and tripped and fallen and broken a shoulder.” She noted the trail is used by more than just cyclists. “There’s women out there with their strollers, kids on little bikes, and adults on bikes,” she said. “To make it safer, I would recommend repaving.”

Editor’s NOTE: Pamela Zimmerman is right — thanks. OMG! I went biking there – bump, bump, bump – I’ll not do that again. 

Other business

Before the moratorium hearing, Sarah Hill, Camden County TDA, along with Rachel Bryant, Camden County Public Library and Marcia Berry, Camden County Extension Office, presented the results of the 2026 “Capture Camden” Photo Contest, sponsored by Towne Bank, Friends of the Camden County Library and Camden County 4-H.

Bobbie Lombe, Trillium Health Resources’ northern regional vice president, gave the board’s annual update on Medicaid-funded behavioral health services in the county, reporting that 163 Camden residents received mental health services last year, along with dozens more for substance use and developmental disabilities.

During the agenda-related public comment period, residents Frank Eason and Sherry Kinnaston urged the board to keep the county’s Seniors’ Health Insurance Information Program (SHIP) counselor local rather than shifting the service to a neighboring county, saying many seniors lack transportation to travel for one-on-one help with Medicare and prescription plans.

In old business, Public Works Director Chas Sawyer gave an update on the county’s separate subdivision-related moratorium, saying the county is still awaiting two state permits — from the Division of Water Infrastructure and the Public Water Supply Section — tied to a stream-model study for a wastewater project, with a state review that could otherwise take up to 24 months.

Several residents also thanked the Camden County Sheriff’s Office for a recent traffic enforcement push, with resident Frank Eason saying deputies’ visibility on county roads was welcome even though it drew some complaints online.

Commissioners adopt five-month data center moratorium

Lest we forget, Commissioners approved a five-month version — shorter than the 12-month moratorium originally advertised — after County Manager Erin Burke said staff could move faster than planned to formally prohibit the uses in county zoning code. The moratorium blocks new applications for data centers, data processing facilities and crypto mining operations through Jan. 3, 2027, or until the county adopts formal language addressing them, whichever comes first. County Attorney Lauren Arizaga-Womble said the uses aren’t currently defined anywhere in county code, calling it “a gray area” that leaves the county legally exposed. Chair Jason Banks polled the board, which favored the shorter timeline, and commissioners voted unanimously to adopt Ordinance 2026-08-01 as presented.

More than a dozen residents spoke, roughly split between support for the pause and outright opposition to data centers. Some, including Darryl Wickens, Samantha Nadj and Dana Smith, cited concerns over water and electricity use, noise, and pending litigation elsewhere. Others, including Robert Wright, Virginia Albertson and Francisco Salmeron, argued the risks were manageable through zoning, with Wright saying he’d “much rather have multiple data centers than a thousand townhouses.” A third group, including Martin Hare and Jerry Legaux, backed a moratorium but wanted the full 12 months to gather data first.