When I walked through Weston Gardens in southeast Fort Worth recently, I felt like I had stepped into a secret, mythical land. There’s a serenity here that’s hard to find in the city, and you can see why so many people choose to have their weddings on this site. The gardens were constructed by C.B. Whitehead, the first female landscape architect in Texas. Recognized as a historic site, the gardens have been a part of this community for nearly 100 years, which makes it even more appalling to know that Black Mountain’s $10 billion 450-acre hyperscale data center will be built just 300 feet away.
“The proposed data center will drastically change the delicate balance of our ecosystem,” said Sue Weston, owner of Weston Gardens.
At Fort Worth City Council’s most recent meeting, dozens of public speakers rose up to speak out against the plan, begging officials to enforce a temporary suspension while creating tight regulations about what can and shouldn’t be built.
Lydia Faith, member of Fort Worth Environmental Coalition of Communities (FWECC), said, “AI is moving faster than the evidence and the evaluations. What we knew months ago is already outdated, and we must keep up to protect our communities.”
Julie Waters, founder of Texans United against Data Centers, said, “Listen to the cries of your people who have come before you, meeting after meeting, asking for a moratorium.”
This meeting was the first of two state-mandated gatherings to develop a moratorium on development. The next is on Jan 5.
Courtesy Weston Gardens
This data center will not only impact Southeast Fort Worth but also nearby Everman and Forest Hill. With generations of families here, homes will inevitably be surrounded.
“The City of Fort Worth is absolutely cruel for putting this data center that sandwiches a community right in the middle of it all,” said Letitia Wilbourn, co-chair of FWECC.
In early July, five councilmembers released a joint public statement proposing a temporary moratorium at the next city council meeting. They acknowledged resident concerns about data centers, saying, “These facilities raise legitimate questions regarding land use compatibility, water and energy consumption, noise, infrastructure demands, and their long-term impact on surrounding neighborhoods.”
City Council voted unanimously on Aug 11 to initiate the process. Since Black Mountain obtained zoning approvals in 2025, the moratorium will not apply to its southeast Fort Worth campus because it’s protected under Chapter 245 vested rights. City Council also created the Data Center and Infrastructure Commission (DCIC), a task force of experts to help address community concerns and issues on data centers.
Texas Rep. Vikki Goodwin and Jon Rosenthal, two Democrats recently elected lieutenant governor and railroad commissioner respectively, spoke at this public hearing. Goodwin said she hoped council would “strongly consider voting in favor of the moratorium.”
Rosenthal raised concerns about water consumption from data-center cooling and multi-stage compression gas turbines, adding that he “would like to see all of us working together. This is something we can navigate with intelligent, considerate governance.”
Two weeks later, another public hearing was held to discuss Black Mountain’s amended site plan. Rhett Bennett, CEO of Black Mountain, proposed multiple amendments, including reducing the number of buildings from 18 to four, increasing the building’s heights from 55 to 70 feet, adding more green space buffers, and increasing property-line setbacks from 80 to 300 feet. Bennett believes Black Mountain’s new layout is “a great site plan” that is “most appropriate for the neighborhood.”
He added that “it’s important that we get this right.”
City Council voted 7-4 to approve the amendments and construction for Phase 1, which spans 187 acres. Construction on Phase 1 hasn’t officially begun, and site plan approvals and flood studies are still needed for the remaining 450-acre campus.
To be fully approved, city council had to host two public hearings, including Tuesday’s and on Jan 5, plus a supermajority vote sometime in February. Like the most recent one, the Jan 5 meeting welcomes public input. Following the recent 2026 midterm election results, many newly elected officials have pledged a statewide moratorium on data centers in the upcoming 90th Texas Legislature session.
Still, Weston encourages us to keep showing up and getting involved. “It’s an ongoing thing, and we just have to keep fighting for the environment.”
To sign Weston Garden’s petition, visit change.org/p/stop-the-data-center-next-to-our-historic-gardens-for-all-supporters-sign-petition-below.
