$6B data center planned for Jefferson Davis, one of the poorest counties in the country

By Katherine Lin | Originally published by Mississippi Today

A $6 billion data center is being planned for Jefferson Davis County. 

The developer, Eagle Rock Partners, hosted an informational meeting on Tuesday to talk with people about their concerns and answer questions about the project, which is called the Big Woods Technology Park. Construction could begin as early as 2027.

“Get informed. Get answers – straight from the people who know,” read a flyer for the meeting in Bassfield.

READ MORE: Your questions about Mississippi data centers, answered

Eagle Rock Partners told Mississippi Today that the company is in the design stage and is working on submissions. It is proposing a three-building complex that will be around 2 million square feet and said it will not request abatements or incentives. The company expects the project to create 200 permanent jobs and over 1,000 temporary construction jobs.

“Eagle Rock looks forward to creating new opportunities in Jefferson Davis County and creating resources for them to continue the ‘Mississippi miracle’ for their community,” the company said. 

Gary Russell Bass, director of the Jefferson Davis County Economic Development Association, said residents can go to a website the developer has set up to find answers about the project. Bass said he wants the project to be transparent to the public and be a model for how to develop a data center well. 

The website for the Big Woods Technology Park says the data center would use a closed loop cooling system to consume minimal water and use natural gas generation located on site that will need to be approved by the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality before operation.

The site is on private property, and Jefferson Davis County does not have zoning, which means that the developer has more leeway to build what it wants. 

WDAM reported that some residents expressed concerns at Tuesday’s meeting over water usage, utility rate hikes, noise and opportunities for community feedback. 

Bass said that he did not seek out a data center, rather the developer approached him. When he first met with the developers, he said he shared many of residents’ apprehensions but, through conversations and due diligence, many of his concerns about water usage and electricity were addressed. 

He said the project is in an isolated part of the county, away from homes and that the Board of Supervisors is working on agreements between the county and the developer to make sure residents will have the best possible outcomes. 

Jefferson Davis is one of the poorest counties in the country with a population of about 11,000 that has declined in recent years. Bass said the jobs, investment and expected tax revenue from the data center “could completely transform this county.” 

Eagle Rock Partners is developing data centers in Georgia and South Carolina, and recently it canceled plans to build one in Illinois. The Southern Environmental Law Center is suing over the South Carolina data center. 

There are seven data center campuses under construction in Mississippi. Collectively, they represent over $55 billion of investment in the state. 

Local officials in other counties have said data centers present an opportunity to boost tax bases and make infrastructure upgrades. Amazon is expected to pay millions of dollars in taxes each year to the Canton Public School District that could go towards repairing buildings or raising teacher salaries. Compass Data Centers has partnered with Meridian Community College on a workforce development program.

However, many data centers have faced stiff community opposition in Mississippi and across the country over water, electricity rate hikes, environmental impact and concerns about artificial intelligence. In Southaven, Elon Musk’s SpacexAI has resulted in multiple lawsuits over the company’s use of mobile gas turbines. Residents can hear the turbines day and night and worry that the turbines are hurting the area’s air quality. 

This article was originally published by Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.

Source: Original Article