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Planning commission recommends three large data-center rezonings after hours of public opposition
Summary
The Columbia County Planning Commission on Jan. 15 recommended approval of three rezoning requests to create large data-center campuses (Pumpkin Center, Byrd/Bird Farms and the Green Jacket/Watt Oak expansion) despite extended public comment raising health, noise, water and traffic concerns; staff attached conditions including sound studies and multi-year water/sewer projections.
The Columbia County Planning Commission voted Jan. 15 to recommend approval with conditions for three major rezoning requests that would allow data-center campuses on multiple parcels across the county.
Staff presented RZ26-01-01 (about 419 acres at Wrightsboro Road and Appling/Harlem Road, dubbed the Pumpkin Center or Greenpoint site), RZ26020102 (a roughly 944.27-acre Byrd/Bird Farms parcel) and RZ26-01-03 (a Green Jacket/Watt Oak expansion covering roughly 3,140 acres). The district sought for all three is the county’s new DC Data Center District, adopted in December 2025, which includes specific requirements for generators, buffers and sound testing. Staff recommended each rezoning be forwarded to the Columbia County Board of Commissioners with conditions for later…
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