Effingham County delays vote on OpenAI data center site plan

The stalled site plan

The Effingham County Board of Commissioners voted unanimously on Tuesday night to delay a decision on the site plan for Project Camellia. This project is a proposed data center campus for OpenAI that would span approximately 1,347 acres at the Savannah Gateway Industrial Hub. The delay moves the scheduled vote to November 17, giving officials more time to review the proposal.

The site plan is extensive, featuring six data center buildings, a warehouse, an operations building, and two electrical substations. It also includes cooling infrastructure, electrical yards, and about 1,600 parking spaces. Despite the scale of the project, the current preliminary plan lacks several specific details that local leaders find necessary for approval.

District 2 Commissioner Roger Burdette led the motion to table the vote after a long discussion with the project representative. He noted that the presentation provided by Octans GA LLC lacked the clarity needed to move forward. Burdette stated that he cannot stand behind the plan without clear approval on specific infrastructure elements like noise mitigation.

Disputes over noise and safety

A primary point of contention during the meeting involved the construction of a 20-foot dirt berm along Hodgeville Road. This berm is intended to shield nearby high-density residential neighborhoods from the noise generated by the data center operations. While OpenAI had previously discussed this feature, the written site plan did not contain a formal commitment to build it.

The representative for Octans GA LLC, Rich Modliszewski, initially struggled to confirm the existence of the berm during the hearing. After a brief recess, he returned and promised the 20-foot berm would be included. However, this late confirmation did not satisfy Commissioner Burdette, who felt the presentation lacked the technical depth required for such a large project.

The board also raised questions regarding water and sewer services, wetland impacts, and the use of generators. While OpenAI previously committed to using battery storage for backup power, Modliszewski clarified that generators would only be used for life safety and security systems. He noted that many engineering questions would need to be settled during a later development plan application.

Community pushback and protests

The commission chamber was filled to capacity with residents who expressed significant opposition to the project. Many attendees wore stickers indicating their support for a "No Data Center" initiative. Members of the Protect Effingham Alliance even organized a silent protest during the meeting to signal their disapproval of the proposed development.

Co-founders of the Protect Effingham Alliance, Alexis Lane and Anna Lee HeidtHarris, expressed appreciation for the delay but remained critical of the developer's approach. They argued that OpenAI seemed more focused on meeting the bare minimum requirements of the zoning ordinance than on honoring verbal commitments. Lane specifically pointed to the increased height of the proposed buildings, which now reach 42 feet, as a point of concern.

Local resident Jerri Howell is leading a petition drive that has already gathered more than 1,500 signatures. This initiative seeks to amend the Effingham County Code of Ordinances to redefine data centers and prohibit them from all zoning districts. Howell suggested that even a potential moratorium might be too little, too late, given the scale of the hyperscale facility already under consideration.

What comes next for the project

The county board is scheduled to discuss a potential data center moratorium at its next meeting. A moratorium would temporarily pause the issuance of permits for such facilities while the county evaluates its long-term impact. This move follows the growing trend of local governments seeking to slow the pace of rapid industrial expansion in rural areas.

For OpenAI and Octans GA LLC, the next step involves providing more comprehensive engineering data to the board. They will need to address the specific concerns regarding noise mitigation, environmental impacts, and infrastructure capacity. The goal is to provide the county with the assurance that the project will not negatively affect the surrounding community.

The November 17 meeting will serve as a critical checkpoint for the project's progress. If the developers can provide clear, written commitments and detailed engineering plans, the board may move toward a final vote. If the concerns remain unaddressed, the project could face further delays or more significant regulatory hurdles from the county.