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Data center campus · 648 and 650 Grassmere Park Dr., South Nashville, next to the Nashville Zoo, Davidson County, Tennessee

DC BLOX Nashville (Grassmere Park, next to the Nashville Zoo)

Paused by moratorium as of Oct. 29, 2026

A data center proposed beside the Nashville Zoo that drew a petition the zoo puts at more than 600,000 signatures, a county-wide permit pause, a condemnation vote and a federal lawsuit by the company, dismissed in October and since amended. Also known as: 648 Grassmere Park, Grassmere Business Park, Grassmere Commons.

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Power10MW reported · stated
Floor area69,200sq ft
Site23.5acres

Who is behind it

ProjectDC BLOX Nashville (Grassmere Park, next to the Nashville Zoo)Also: 648 Grassmere Park, Grassmere Business Park, Grassmere Commons
Developer and teamDC BLOX (through DCB Nashville, LLC)
End userNot found in the recordsNot yet named in any record or credited report we have found.

The record, newest first

  1. The federal docket lists an amended complaint and a motion for reconsideration filed this day, and an order on that motion dated Oct. 29. Their text was not available, so what they say and how the motion came out are not known here. The claims remain the company's allegations, with no finding on the merits. (U.S. District Court, Middle District of Tennessee (via CourtListener), Oct. 29, 2026)

  2. The company's project page, last changed on this date, described the project as being evaluated, with construction to begin on approval. (DC BLOX, Oct. 20, 2026)

  3. FOX 17 reported the zoo's challenge to the permits is expected before the Board of Zoning Appeals in December, with the vested-rights question deciding which zoning rules apply. (FOX 17 (WZTV), Oct. 8, 2026)

  4. U.S. District Judge Eli Richardson dismissed all nine counts and denied the injunction request as moot. Three counts could be refiled in an amended complaint within 21 days, an equal protection count was dismissed for failing to state a claim, and he declined to hear five state-law counts, dismissing them without prejudice. The opinion says the decisions have nothing to do with whether the data center is desirable; FOX 17 reports the judge did not rule that Metro was right to pause the permits or that the company lacks a right to build. (U.S. District Court, Middle District of Tennessee (via CourtListener), Oct. 6, 2026; U.S. District Court, Middle District of Tennessee (via CourtListener), Oct. 29, 2026; FOX 17 (WZTV), Oct. 7, 2026; Nashville Scene (first published by the Nashville Post), Oct. 7, 2026; WSMV, Oct. 7, 2026)

  5. The company sued Metro in federal court, alleging the moratorium unlawfully targeted a vested project; it asked for an order against the ordinances and for damages. These are the company's claims. (Nashville Banner (via NewsChannel 5), Aug. 12, 2026; WSMV, Aug. 12, 2026; U.S. District Court, Middle District of Tennessee (via CourtListener), Oct. 29, 2026)

  6. Metro Council approved the condemnation bill (BL2026-1489), which lets Metro negotiate a purchase or use eminent domain but does not require it; an appraisal must come first. (WSMV, Aug. 5, 2026; WSMV, Aug. 5, 2026; Sierra Club, Middle Tennessee Group, July 25, 2026; Nashville Scene (first published by the Nashville Post), Oct. 7, 2026)

  7. Metro Council passed data center zoning rules (BL2026-1391) and the permit pause (BL2026-1448) on third reading. (WSMV, July 21, 2026; Council Watch (The Pamphleteer), undated; Sierra Club, Middle Tennessee Group, July 25, 2026; Nashville Scene (first published by the Nashville Post), Oct. 7, 2026)

  8. A deed dated this day transferred the site to DCB Nashville, LLC for $23 million; it was recorded July 20. (FOX 17 (WZTV), July 21, 2026; Sierra Club, Middle Tennessee Group, July 25, 2026; WSMV, July 17, 2026)

  9. Metro filed an application to acquire 648 Grassmere Park. (WSMV, July 16, 2026)

  10. The mayor tied the land push to city offices and other operations that must move because of the airport's runway expansion. (FOX 17 (WZTV), July 12, 2026)

  11. Hundreds came to a council hearing. The company issued a list of commitments, including no on-site generation and a 65-decibel limit at the property line; Mayor O'Connell and the zoo's CEO each called its account inaccurate. (FOX 17 (WZTV), July 7, 2026; Office of Nashville Mayor Freddie O'Connell, July 7, 2026; FOX 17 (WZTV), July 8, 2026)

  12. The Nashville Post reported the sale of the site from MarketStreet Enterprises to DC BLOX was due to close, describing a facility of about 202,000 square feet and up to 50 MW with its own substation. (Nashville Scene (first published by the Nashville Post), July 6, 2026)

  13. The mayor's office said it would file legislation to condemn the land, saying Metro has a real need for it; the company's attorney said the project is vested. (WSMV, June 29, 2026; WSMV, June 30, 2026)

  14. The zoo's petition passed 500,000 signatures; permit filings described a single-story building of about 69,220 square feet and the demolition of two existing buildings. (WSMV (via WMC Action News 5), June 21, 2026)

  15. Metro Council gave first passage, 26-1, to a temporary pause on data center permits (BL2026-1448). (Council Watch (The Pamphleteer), undated)

Conflicts and open questions

  • No record was found of a state-court filing by the company, or of an appraisal, offer or condemnation filing by Metro.
  • The zoning appeal, filed by Councilmember Courtney Johnston and the zoo's lawyer, was first set for Aug. 20 (FOX 17, July) and is now expected in December (FOX 17, Oct. 8).
  • End of the pause: the council tracker's summary of the bill says Nov. 1, 2026, or when zoning rules take effect, but the bill was amended; the court's opinion, Nashville Scene, FOX 17 and the Sierra Club all give Dec. 1. The amended text was not read.
  • Ruling coverage differs: WSMV says three of nine claims were dismissed; the court's order dismisses all nine, three of them open to amendment. News stories ran Oct. 7; the order was signed and entered Oct. 6.
  • Value of the land: $23 million paid; WSMV reports an estimated market value of about $37.4 million and earlier an appraisal of more than $36 million.
  • Earlier owner: MarketStreet Enterprises in news reports; the court's opinion names MarketStreet Grassmere, LLC. Earlier user: Asurion, whose past use the company cites as a data center (complaint, via the court's opinion, WSMV and the Nashville Banner).
  • Environmental groups raised possible effects on the endangered Nashville crayfish (WSMV); that is their concern, not a finding.
  • Coordinates are approximate, from the reported address.

The full record

Status note
Building and grading permit applications are on hold under Metro's moratorium, set to end Dec. 1, 2026. A federal judge dismissed the company's first complaint on Oct. 6, with three counts open to amendment; the docket shows an amended complaint filed Oct. 27 and an order on a reconsideration motion Oct. 29, neither of them read. A zoning appeal is expected in December, and Metro holds authority to buy or condemn the land.
Power note
The company's project page now says 10 MW and one 69,200-square-foot building. Earlier reporting described up to 50 MW and about 202,000 square feet (Nashville Post, via Nashville Scene) and two buildings totaling 50 MW (WSMV). The company said in July that it might shrink the project. Range: 10 to 50 MW.
Evidence
Primary public records
Size class
Under 50 MW (outside main scope; kept for completeness)
Map position approximate, from the reported address or area. Updated Oct. 17, 2026.