Members of the DeSoto County Board of Supervisors say the SpaceXAI buyout offers made to Southaven homeowners near the company’s power plant are too low, and some want the county to formally ask the company to pay more. Supervisor Ray Denison led the push. He called the current offers “half-hearted” and said families need enough money to actually relocate. The DeSoto Times-Tribune reported the discussion on Thursday, Nov. 5.
The debate is the latest local government reaction to SpaceXAI’s rapid data center expansion along the Stateline Road corridor. It comes days after residents told reporters that the offers they had received would not cover the cost of a comparable home elsewhere in DeSoto County.
What the SpaceXAI buyout offers look like
According to the Times-Tribune, SpaceXAI wants to buy more than 400 homes near the former Duke Energy power plant site on Stanton Road. Many of them are in Colonial Hills, one of Southaven’s oldest neighborhoods. Residents say representatives of MZX Tech LLC, described as a SpaceXAI subsidiary, are offering 110 percent of a home’s appraised value.
Appraised values in the area reportedly range from about $170,000 to $225,000.
Denison said some homeowners have been offered roughly $175,000 to $240,000.
The Times-Tribune cited a Zillow median home value in Southaven of about $273,000, with DeSoto County prices commonly between $299,000 and $385,000.
The neighborhoods involved sit inside the area of a proposed class-action lawsuit filed by a handful of residents. They claim noise from the plant has lowered property values and disrupted daily life. That area runs north to Stateline Road West, east to U.S. Highway 51, south to Nail Road, and west to a line about one mile west of Horn Lake Road.
Supervisors split on how far to push
Denison said 110 percent “is not sufficient” and that offers should be closer to the $300,000 range. He argued that a company building a project valued at about $45 billion can afford more, even double the appraised value if that is what families need to move. He also noted that about 7,500 workers are building the data centers, adding traffic on Stateline Road and Highway 51. Residents have asked him how the project benefits them, and he said he could not answer that question.
Supervisor Robert Foster said he would personally accept a 110 percent offer. He described the data centers as a national security matter tied to the race with China to build the largest AI supercomputer. Still, Foster said he supports sending a letter, telling the board, “All we can do is ask – nicely.”
Supervisor Mark Gardner, a real estate broker, said he could see both sides. He said paying 200 percent of appraised value for a 60-year-old house would be a poor investment for any buyer. He pointed to a 1980s noise-abatement buyout by the Memphis-Shelby County Airport Authority in North Greenbrook, where owners received appraised value plus $20,000.
Proposed letter, tax district and moratorium
Denison proposed that the county, along with the City of Southaven, send SpaceXAI a letter explaining residents’ situation and asking for higher offers. He also floated two longer-term ideas:
A special tax district to help revitalize the Stateline Road corridor.
A moratorium on new data centers until the county develops a list of best practices for where they should be located.
The Times-Tribune report did not describe a formal vote on the letter or the other proposals, and it did not include a response from SpaceXAI. “I want to make sure they are made whole,” Denison said.
DeSoto County News will follow whether the board formally approves a letter and how the company responds.
