[{"_1":2,"_98":-5,"_99":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,74,86],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":56,"_68":69,"_70":56,"_71":72,"_73":72},"mediaId",5982224,"mediaKeyId","5775404-edc5e02d48e3c6728034c832f29023f8","parentId",5775404,"title","Residents urge transparency, board appointments after county leaves regional library system","audioSeconds",173,"startMs",4292974,"endMs",4466000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=5775404-edc5e02d48e3c6728034c832f29023f8&start=4292&end=4466","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5775404-edc5e02d48e3c6728034c832f29023f8/thumbnail_4292974.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/5982224/Columbia-County/Georgia/Residents-urge-transparency-board-appointments-after-county-leaves-regional-library-system","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/5982224-8d68dee9f22e9ac23d869c36bd02dd0c/orig.mp4?Expires=1771145057&Signature=fYqCDvhnXWPFNj7hSnR0CdxAGqyzboBPWyaI76~JWj5Oa~kwpoRKDmGSN82IDpWBnbaV3YeLj-W6NgJEcO3VS85Mqow89VauaXhIHzeB4M2knR8YeTcVUXlublCAUSwdrcUQEA3s4WxBX8UaQMnfBU~MZIuGL3XPCCTgw4DGgLJDfMB~HvlSWTF9tEjLsva~R3iR9QQByXIUFNXTmmzrhDWT-D31mFgC0Z56mALZEpmZCugTQL24T~TfdyYaB5zEbBk4SgQnOBY2YTwmly2eO0zwYXF~38KbsQv9ZOF68UnLi6BOTJHzj0plPjvheTFVfQfxrsmJ15Ul5BIYL723vQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Columbia County, Georgia","date","2025-09-17T00:00:00Z","article","Several residents urged the Columbia County Board of Commissioners on Sept. 6 to restore transparency and appoint members to a new regional library board after the county withdrew from the Greater Clarks Hill Regional Library System in May.

Karen Parham, of 3421 Hilltop Trail, said the county dissolved its county-level advisory board and created an empty regional board with no members, leaving a transition period with “no public library meetings and no chance for citizens to see or weigh in on these new policies.” She said staff have stopped emailing about library business for fear of open records requests and that staff departures and cuts to teen programming have followed.

Parham and other speakers criticized library policy changes the county adopted on Sept. 3, 2024, described in public comments as “age-appropriate guidelines” that moved certain titles to adult collections and that they view as vague and overbroad. Parham told commissioners that a handful of placement decisions did not appear to follow the adopted guidelines.

Speakers argued that undermining library access reduces regional visits that support county sales tax revenue and public programming. Howard Johnson and another resident noted regional-library partnerships attracted nonresidents who use Columbia County library services and then patronize local businesses, supporting sales-tax receipts.

Residents asked the commission to appoint members to the Columbia County Regional Library Board, hold regular public meetings during the transition, and make policy discussions open and visible. Commission staff and commissioners did not announce a timeline for board appointments at the meeting.

Speakers said they were not framing the issue along party lines and urged the commission to restore trust by placing library policy decisions in public view.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Columbia County | Board of Commissioners Meeting (September 16th)","oneSentenceSummary","Residents told commissioners to restore openness and appoint a Columbia County regional library board after the county withdrew from the Greater Clarks Hill Regional Library System, citing lost staff, reduced programming and opaque policy changes.","taxTitle","taxId",12804,"location","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":75,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":76,"_41":77,"_43":78,"_45":79,"_47":80,"_49":81,"_51":82,"_53":83,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":84,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":85,"_67":56,"_68":69,"_70":56,"_71":72,"_73":72},5982229,"Commissioners say county lacks water capacity for proposed Appling data center; developer to fund upgrades, commission declines to reverse rezoning",506,2924920,3431000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5775404-edc5e02d48e3c6728034c832f29023f8&start=2924&end=3431","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5775404-edc5e02d48e3c6728034c832f29023f8/thumbnail_2924920.jpg","/articles/5982229/Columbia-County/Georgia/Commissioners-say-county-lacks-water-capacity-for-proposed-Appling-data-center-developer-to-fund-upgrades-commission-declines-to-reverse-rezoning","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/5982229-f941a6922156a045588fafa0eac93a2b/orig.mp4?Expires=1771145057&Signature=g-ogubdJADkYJWbkmGCFHLXdM1CnOHHUi34eTDHKIN3ga2r-3OjzlgiE40b-5k1JkRJacc35fmyo8XZqvXg3co4HQL2O7M~qUESYQkW~eY4J2C3hox2lkI3A64EndXc8DIgdEJg3ycTxCuoyOT1kR8I5JqpEAqPyF8VE4RMdFWnbEIOr9JidCATyyhOlsH01P3tY-PqXPkot~cKRq5W~uCr94K~yKlbqO2l6hfnfGaYHslKG~X-i9aYi5khAsPCwfBTSax0C5AuhgcGv7ZnSVDbKcTlSdUlOGBkki-RANOsBCdV8PbjJfueqEB4~VFMcEOnyri1EqzORgb344Dm6ZA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Columbia County commissioners on Sept. 6 told residents the county’s water system does not have the capacity to serve a proposed large data center in the Appling area and that the developer would be responsible for building needed water facilities. The commission also said it will not reverse an earlier rezoning approval but directed staff to draft a standalone data-center zoning classification for future applications.

In a recorded response to public questions, the chairman said the county “does not have that capacity” to supply an estimated peak water demand of about 6,000,000 gallons per day for the site, and stated an estimated cost to build the needed water system of roughly $80,000,000, which the county would require the developer to pay. The chairman said the development details are not finalized and that any work “will be done in accordance with the principles of low impact development as described by the Georgia stormwater management manual.”

Residents spoke at the meeting to urge more transparency and more public review. Alan Wyatt, of 2189 Morris Callaway Road, urged commissioners to reverse the rezoning for the Appling site, saying the timeline and secrecy around land purchases left residents without adequate opportunity to weigh in. “A compressed schedule from initial filings to approval left no room for education, for debate, or for alternatives,” Wyatt said.

Commission staff addressed other questions on record: stormwater design will follow Georgia standards and is required to ensure post-development runoff does not exceed pre-development flows; existing vegetation is the county’s preferred 500-foot buffer in this instance because it provides screening; backup power strategies and generator/battery details have not been finalized but would have to comply with applicable regulations; and groundwater production wells will not be permitted by the county for this project.

On tax treatment, staff told the audience that data centers in Georgia may access state sales-and-use tax exemptions for qualifying equipment if they meet investment and job thresholds, but said the county has no plan to provide sales-tax relief beyond what state law allows. Property taxes and ad valorem assessments on real and tangible personal property would apply unless preempted by state law. On revenue, the chairman stated an estimate on the record that the project could generate on the order of $500,000,000 in tax value, and described the county general fund at about $100,000,000 with roughly $20,000,000 coming from homestead property taxes.

The commission also said it had directed staff to draft a standalone zoning classification for data centers to clarify permitted uses, buffers and development standards going forward. No reversal of the prior rezoning was recommended in the public remarks, though residents asked the board to reopen the decision and hold a longer public review.

Public commenters urged additional safeguards, including stronger transparency around land sale terms and nondisclosure agreements that limited public information, detailed stormwater and water-use studies, and clearer commitments on power and cooling technology. The commission said staff would incorporate best practices from other jurisdictions in the new data-center zoning language.","Commissioners answered public questions about water, stormwater, buffers and taxes for a proposed 8-million-square-foot data center site, saying county infrastructure does not currently support projected peak water use and that a developer would be responsible for roughly $80 million in water works.",{"_33":87,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":88,"_41":89,"_43":90,"_45":91,"_47":92,"_49":93,"_51":94,"_53":95,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":96,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":97,"_67":56,"_68":69,"_70":56,"_71":72,"_73":72},5982234,"Commissioners reject rezoning for proposed solar farm across from Patriot's Park",1297,1545900,2843000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5775404-edc5e02d48e3c6728034c832f29023f8&start=1545&end=2843","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5775404-edc5e02d48e3c6728034c832f29023f8/thumbnail_1545900.jpg","/articles/5982234/Columbia-County/Georgia/Commissioners-reject-rezoning-for-proposed-solar-farm-across-from-Patriots-Park","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/5982234-15d5846a2396da10207f714563f98eaf/orig.mp4?Expires=1771145057&Signature=SXfeLuAGm~90laelvaQtOfAUeZTNp3v85-hFapCMIj8Ds9mSg--3pWKr2AfXV-fBHIAqUmBvaTenwoYiImLWh9wtQoTt4IgyADqNjj8bSpWr4T5UffooiDrx27YIbN72c6djfsx7twVM4qwvNAmK6CkiruJGEE~1B1QrqN3WQ-THjrtU2LIU32yeOQurJV~3aZFlTwFkaLIY7sIBSmQOGM3L3-iJCUj1Frvr~vvwQMFrQfTv8FLhTuOyUPR8tGPlVYeTk1G6FOUwt0zT2HVN9jhstR~-o7TFpf9Pjqjhce8G4b5vhmWm9rxoDppmxYb2uocvXAIb7sK3iT0XxQ8vZw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The Columbia County Board of Commissioners on Sept. 6 voted to disapprove a request to rezone two parcels on Columbia Road from PUD to S1 for a proposed solar farm across from Patriot's Park. The motion to disapprove carried after a public hearing that included testimony from a project representative and multiple residents who opposed the location.

Residents said the parcel's topography and proximity to homes and Patriot's Park make it an unsuitable site. Joanne Murdoch, a resident of 1547 Swent Road, told commissioners she was “here about location only” and said the project “does not meet the characteristics for the area in your own comprehensive plan.” Brenda Heidman, of 104 Hot Springs Court, raised safety and environmental concerns, citing reports that hail damage to panels in other states released “toxic chemicals such as lead, cadmium, and more” into soil and warning that a nearby creek could carry contaminants off site.

The project's proponent, Warren Critco, said the proposal complies with the county's solar ordinance and described design measures intended to mitigate community concerns, including moving arrays farther from the road, a 20-foot vegetative buffer expected to grow to about 5 feet tall initially, nonreflective matte panels, on-site erosion controls and staged clearing to limit runoff. Critco also said key components would be sourced outside China and that Georgia Power had issued a request for proposals that identified the location as suitable for new generation. “We feel that we've met all the guidelines of the solar ordinance,” he told the commission.

Commission discussion focused on compatibility with the county's comprehensive plan and neighborhood character. A commissioner moved to disapprove rezoning of Tax Map 061, parcels 2140 and 2141; another seconded. The motion passed by voice vote; commissioners did not record a roll-call tally in the public transcript excerpt.

The county planning staff materials noted the applicant had previously said portions of the land were difficult to develop because of topography and waterways; the applicant proposed a vegetative buffer and fencing and offered to place salt-and-pepper shrubbery to reduce visibility from the road. The Planning Commission had considered the application on Sept. 4 and forwarded a report with recommended conditions; that report was referenced on the record during the hearing.

No formal follow-up action was recorded at the meeting. Opponents urged commissioners to deny approval because of the site's proximity to homes and Patriot's Park, and proponents offered mitigation measures and said the project would generate tax revenue over the site's lifespan.

The disapproval ends this application as presented; applicants may pursue other parcels or reapply with revised plans.","The Columbia County Board of Commissioners voted to disapprove a request to rezone land on Columbia Road for a solar farm after a public hearing that included developer assurances and neighborhood safety and environmental concerns.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Residents urge transparency, board appointments after county leaves regional library system

Commissioners say county lacks water capacity for proposed Appling data center; developer to fund upgrades, commission declines to reverse rezoning

Commissioners reject rezoning for proposed solar farm across from Patriot's Park