Opposition to proposed Jones County data center continues to grow

Upcoming hearings will allow the applicants and residents to make their voices heard.

GRAY, Georgia (41NBC/WMGT) – Those against the development of a new data center in Jones County are teaming up to make their voices heard.

Eagle Rock Partners LLC, the developer behind the data center coming to Twiggs County, and Thomas and Hutton Engineering submitted the application on Sept. 25, asking that 634 acres of land, roughly 3 miles southwest of the intersection of Highways 49 and 18, be rezoned to commercial status, making way for the data center.

Alexandria Lefholz and her husband own a farm in the county. One of the reasons she’s against the 634-acre development is the potential resource consumption, which she says will impact neighboring farms, homes, chicken houses and other small businesses.

“All of those things require lots of water, energy, clean air, and green space to function and to the best of their ability,” Lefholz said. 

That’s why Lefholz crafted a petition. If it receives signatures from 20% of the county’s population, it will override a potential rezone and leave the final decision to voters in a special election. Lefholz and other community members will gather for an informational meeting on Oct. 15 to spread awareness about the overall impact of data centers before county commissioners vote.

“I just love to see neighbors looking out for neighbors, and that’s what this entire movement has been about,” Lefholz said. 

Dustin Riley started the Facebook group “No Data Centers in Jones County”, which, as of Friday afternoon, had more than 1,500 members. Riley says the data center would strip the county of some of its rural magic. While the data center application promises to bring hundreds of jobs, Riley says its embrace of artificial intelligence will do the opposite in the long run.

“The internet was invented to make communication between humans faster and easier,” Riley said. “The automobile was built to replace the horse and buggy so that we could get around faster and easier. These A.I. programs are explicitly being built to replace humans and remove as many of us from the workplace as possible.”

Many residents found out about the proposal on social media and say it’s all happened too fast.

“The fact that it’s just ‘Bam!’ and popped up is what’s really rubbed a lot of people the wrong way,” Riley said. 

Upcoming hearings will allow the applicants and residents to make their voices heard. The Jones County Planning and Zoning Commission hearing will take place on Oct. 20 at 6 p.m. at the Jones County Government Center. The Jones County Board of Commissioners will vote on the rezone application after a public hearing on Nov. 4, also at the Jones County Government Center. Jason Rizner, Jones County Administrator, says the Planning and Zoning Commission will make a recommendation to the Board of Commissioners based off the legality of the rezone proposal and community feedback. er

Advocates say officials have been receptive to feedback thus far, and they hope it continues.

“It’s a short list of promised maybes and a long list of for sure cons,” Lefholz said. “And I hope that they are listening to all the negatives.”