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Augusta committee debates data‑center ordinance, public outreach and whether to recommend a moratorium extension
Summary
Planning staff asked for $68,003.68 to finish a comprehensive zoning rewrite and presented a draft data‑center ordinance. Residents and civic groups urged more public town halls and said the planning commission recommended a 60‑day moratorium; the committee voted to forward a moratorium‑extension recommendation to the full commission (procedural timing and length debated).
The public services committee heard a detailed presentation from the planning and development department requesting an additional not‑to‑exceed $68,003.68 to complete a comprehensive zoning ordinance update, including two extra public engagement workshops, an official zoning map and a future‑land‑use map.
Director Cameron told commissioners the current ordinance dates to 1963 and that consultants had been hired to modernize the code. Staff reported that earlier outreach had engaged stakeholders but not the full commission or general public, so the department proposed additional meetings and a website survey to broaden input. The timeline presented aimed for adoption near November–December, but staff said the schedule could be adjusted to allow more public engagement.
Public commenters pressed for deeper, earlier engagement. Zakiyah Mabry criticized the sequencing and said town‑hall style meetings (after hours, with back‑and‑forth Q&A) — led by city staff rather than consultants — were what residents had requested. Gayla Kesey, co‑president of the League of Women Voters of the CSRA, urged the committee to follow the planning commission’s recommendation: do not advance the data‑center ordinance to adoption now and extend the moratorium while holding additional public meetings, including evening sessions so more residents can attend.
Commissioners debated how long to recommend extending the moratorium ahead of the full commission. Some favored a 30‑day extension to August 18 to align with scheduling; others pushed for 60 days, citing technical questions about buffers, noise, decommissioning bonds and infrastructure impacts that they said require more public hearings and technical review. Several commissioners emphasized the value of a site visit — staff noted a data‑center tour scheduled for Aug. 3 — and asked staff to post the materials shown at the meeting publicly.
Procedurally, the committee voted to forward a recommendation to the full commission to extend the moratorium (the committee record reflects a recommendation/forwarding action; the final duration and legal language will be set by the full commission). Director Cameron said staff stands ready to return with either a zoning‑only version or a comprehensive package (zoning plus emergency management, utilities, fire and other technical provisions) if the commission prefers.
The committee also approved routine consent items and licensing actions while reserving the larger ordinance question for the full commission to resolve after further public engagement and any recommended moratorium period.
