ALBANY, Ga. (WALB) — The city of Albany is hosting a series of town hall meetings to gather public input on a proposed data center in Albany, a project that has sparked debate throughout the community. The first meeting is Tuesday, July 7, at 6 p.m., but leaders and community members are already making their opinions known.

Albany’s District 6 Commissioner Anthony Jones said he believes these meetings are a great way for the public to get informed.

“There’s not enough information gathered to make an informed decision on data centers, and I’m glad we are having these town hall discussions because this is going to enlighten all of us in Albany and Dougherty County about these data centers,” Jones said.

Data centers have brought both benefits and concerns to communities across the country. In Loudoun County, Virginia, officials say they have generated hundreds of millions of dollars in tax revenue because of a data center there. But in Sand Springs, Oklahoma, some residents fear impacts to water and power demand.

Those concerns are also being voiced here in Albany.

“I’m a part of the Albany Citizens Coalition, and I know for us, the last thing we want is another data center here,” Miranda Mathis said. “Increasing our utilities bills, increasing sound pollution and giving us more issues than it is giving us benefits. We don’t want that.”

Others also voiced their concerns through WALB’s Facebook comment section. Many commenters said they worry about the impact on the Flint River.

“There is no benefit to Albany having a data center. Nothing good will come out of it. Flint River will suffer tremendously. Ironically it will decrease jobs long term.”

Khara Boender, the Director of State Policy for the Data Center Coalition, said data centers do benefit communities and drive technology infrastructure.

“Everything from our Zoom and FaceTime calls that we have to the financial transactions that we complete online, to e-commerce, online learning, telehealth—all of that is powered by the underlying infrastructure that is provided by a data center.”

Other town hall meetings will be held throughout the month of July to discuss issues like water and sound, pollution and zoning issues with the potential data center.

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