Freestone County approves reinvestment zone for proposed Cyrus 1 data center

Freestone County Commissioners Court voted on Dec. 3 to create Reinvestment Zone No. 12, clearing the way for a proposed data center development by Freestone 1 LLC, an affiliate of Cyrus 1.

At a public hearing and subsequent action on the designation, county presenters described the project footprint at roughly 507 acres near the Calpine power plant and a staged development plan. The county’s presentation said the first stage of real‑property improvements would be a minimum of $600,000,000, with a pilot (payment in lieu of taxes) set at $850,000 per year for that first stage; presenters said total real property investment across all stages could exceed $2,000,000,000 and that tenant equipment (personal property) typically adds substantially to overall investment.

John Hayden of Cyrus 1, who spoke during the hearing, said tenants’ personal property can meaningfully increase project value: “We’re probably looking usually double that from the tenants that deploy their equipment inside that building.” County questioners focused on water and utility impacts; one commissioner asked, “Where’s the water coming from?” Presenters said domestic water use would be about 1,150 gallons per day and that the data center’s cooling system would be a closed‑loop design requiring a one‑time fill of roughly 20,000–30,000 gallons that is then recirculated.

On permits and timing, presenters said the project plans a well on the property but noted groundwater and well/septic approvals must go through the applicable groundwater district and county permitting processes. Regarding tax treatment, the presenters described a tiered approach: each construction stage would carry its own 10‑year abatement period and, when a stage leaves abatement, its value becomes fully taxable.

Commissioners raised a recurring issue with data centers—frequent replacement of servers and other tenant equipment—and how that turnover interacts with a 10‑year pilot tied to real property. Presenters responded that pilot terms will be negotiated with tenants and the county could account for expected equipment turnover either by increasing the initial pilot on a discounted basis or by adjusting the pilot when subsequent stages come online.

After questions and discussion, the court took action on item 10 and the presiding official announced the motion to create the reinvestment zone carried. The order to create Reinvestment Zone No. 12 was handed to the court, and commissioners directed staff to proceed with the negotiated terms and the permitting steps required to move the project forward.

Next steps include negotiated pilot terms with prospective tenants, groundwater/well permitting through the groundwater district and county processes, and follow‑up negotiation and documentation of personal‑property agreements with tenants. The court moved into executive session later in the meeting; no additional votes on the project were recorded in open session.