Key points:
• The DeKalb County Board of Commissioners deferred a much-anticipated data center resolution during its Jan. 27 meeting.
• The commission did not consider amendments that would restrict distance and size of data centers.
• Commissioners will review data center regulations in May.
DeKalb residents wanting answers about data center regulations in the county will have to wait until May for the next move.
The DeKalb County Board of Commissioners voted unanimously to defer a resolution establishing a definition, regulatory guidelines, and development standards for data centers until May once there could be more guidelines set by the state legislature.
The legislature is considering several bills on data centers, including a one-year moratorium on the centers until further studies and regulations can be put in place. DeKalb County District 3 Commissioner Nicole Massiah originally made a motion to defer a commission vote until 45 days, but later said the decision should wait until after the end of the legislative session.
“I’m sure that some of the constituents that are here now, and others, are lobbying their representatives to let them know what they want, when and how,” Massiah said in front of a packed room at the Shirley A. Trussell building. “I believe that we need to make sure that we are not moving too hastily, and that we’re doing as much as we can do to protect and incorporate what’s happening overall.”
Regulation delays
Super 6 District Commissioner Ted Terry originally planned to present a substitute motion that added amendments to the staff’s proposal during the Jan. 27 meeting. Those amendments would have called for data centers to be capped at 500,000 square feet or less, given 100 percent renewable energy incentives, and require a special land use permit (SLUP) for all data center permit applications. Commission policy would not allow a substitute motion beyond the one presented by Massiah, so those amendments will not be considered when the resolution returns in May.
Although Terry voted to defer as his colleagues did, he said he felt his fellow commissioners were “playing games” by delaying the regulation discussion, noting that the resolution would be placed back on the agenda about a week before the Democratic primaries.
“Basically, it’s trying to run out the clock, so that voters don’t know where individuals who might be up for election this year stand on probably one of the most crucial decisions DeKalb County will make, at least this year or maybe in future years,” Terry told Rough Draft Atlanta.
Without the text amendment, the scale of data centers and locations throughout DeKalb County will have little discretion, Terry said. In December, the commission voted to issue a moratorium on all data centers until late June, and that could be extended if a statewide moratorium is issued.
Related stories:
•Outrage over surge of data centers in Georgia inspires wave of bipartisan bills
•DeKalb County extends data center moratorium amid public health concerns
Gina Mangham, a DeKalb County resident and advocate for the “No Data Centers” movement, agreed with the amendments that Terry proposed, and encouraged commissioners to lead rather than follow the state’s legislators. She was one of many residents that offered public comment about concerns regarding the health and environmental impact of “hyper-scale data centers.” Before the vote for deferral was decided, Mangham shared her frustrations with what she described as a lack of care from some of the BOC.
“We’re being forced to accept toxic, industrial fortresses that threaten our health, environment, property values, and overall quality of life,” Mangham said. “How is this any different from Oscarville, which is now Lake Lanier, or Linnentown, which is now the University of Georgia, where power brokers destroy thriving black communities under the guise of serving the public good? Have we learned nothing?”
The commissioners will review the staff-recommended resolution on data center regulations during its May 12 meeting.