Ordinance would allow data centers in Adair Park, Historic West End
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A proposal to allow data centers to open in some neighborhoods on Atlanta's Westside is drawing scrutiny from residents and historic preservation advocates.
Why it matters: Data centers are the backbone of our digital lives and make possible every social media post and Amazon purchase — and they're being built in metro Atlanta at a record clip, Thomas previously reported.
- However, the buildings employ relatively few workers and are popping up in neighborhoods where space for people is at a premium.
The latest: The ordinance, introduced by Councilman Antonio Lewis last month, would amend the city's code to allow data centers in the Adair Park neighborhood and the Historic West End district.
- It follows the Atlanta City Council's ban on data centers along the Beltline and within a half-mile of a MARTA transit station.
What they're saying: Pouya Dianat, president of Adair Park Today, the neighborhood association, told Axios that residents worry that data centers don't contribute to the "vitality of this neighborhood" and that the ordinance doesn't impose any stipulations on how they could be neatly woven into urban areas.
- "If someone wants to do this thoughtfully, we would consider it as a neighborhood, but giving them blanket permission to do this would yield the cheapest outcome, which is absolutely not something we want," he said.
- David Mitchell, executive director of the Atlanta Preservation Center, told Axios his organization "remains deeply concerned that these data centers are going to be used to erase the physical fabric of these neighborhoods."
Yes, but: Lewis, who represents Adair Park, told Axios the city is in the feedback-gathering stage of the process.
- "The goal is to make sure that the public discourse … is actually happening, and I think that's where we are right now," he said.
- He added that there is some property near the Mall West End that he believes isn't a good fit for residential or commercial use.
Zoom out: Politicians and communities around the country are opposing data centers due to issues ranging from aesthetics and noise to national security and housing costs, Axios' Asher Price and Mimi Montgomery report.
Context: Data center construction activity in metro Atlanta increased 76% from August 2023 to August 2024, according to real estate research firm CBRE.
- Demand will fuel new centers and expansions thanks to growing development of energy-hungry AI.
What we're watching: Councilman Jason Dozier, who sponsored the ban on data centers near the Beltline and MARTA stops and whose district is adjacent to Adair Park, said he opposes the ordinance because "every data center that you build is [an] office building or an apartment building or restaurant that you're not building."
- "There's concerns that as we start carving things out piecemeal, then it gets us back to what we're trying to avoid, which is a proliferation of a land-use type that doesn't have any value from the standpoint of engaging with communities," he said.
What's next: The ordinance will be vetted and debated by the Neighborhood Planning Units it would affect.
- It will then be taken up by the Zoning Review Board and the council's zoning committee before advancing to the full council.