🚨 Neighbor Talking Points: Myth vs. Fact
Use this quick guide when distributing flyers to confidently answer questions from neighbors or counter pushback from pro-development voices.
❌ MYTH: “Data centers bring in massive tax revenue that lowers our property taxes.”
- FACT: The financial benefits are highly exaggerated for local residents [1]. Data centers require massive public infrastructure upgrades (roads, high-voltage power lines, water lines) that taxpayers often subsidize up front. Because they employ very few people once built, they do not stimulate the local economy the way traditional businesses do. Any minor tax gains are offset by the drop in residential property values for homes trapped next to industrial zones.
❌ MYTH: “The county says there are no active data center applications, so we don’t need to worry yet.”
- FACT: Waiting for an application means it is already too late [1]. Once a developer submits a formal plan under the current “Technology Park Overlay” rules, they gain vested property rights. This makes it legally much harder for the county to stop them. We must demand a moratorium right now to freeze the rules before developers submit their paperwork.
❌ MYTH: “The noise won’t be that bad; it’s just computers.”
- FACT: The noise is an industrial, 24/7 low-frequency hum [3]. The issue isn’t the computers; it is the massive, building-sized cooling towers and backup diesel generators required to keep them from overheating. In other Georgia and Virginia communities, this relentless, low-frequency buzzing has prevented residents from sleeping, enjoying their yards, or opening their windows.
❌ MYTH: “Data centers don’t pollute the air or water.”
- FACT: They place an unprecedented strain on local resources [1, 2]. A single large data center can consume millions of gallons of water per day for cooling, which can deplete local aquifers and drive up water rates for residents. Additionally, they rely on massive arrays of industrial diesel backup generators. When tested or used during power strains, these generators emit significant amounts of localized air pollution.
❌ MYTH: “Zoning laws will protect our residential borders.”
- FACT: The “Overlay District” text amendment bypassed standard protections. Because the county passed this as a broad “overlay text amendment” rather than a traditional property-by-property rezoning, nearby homeowners in Grandview, Legacy Park, and Turnberry were never sent certified notification letters. The rules were quietly changed behind the scenes, which is why we are demanding an immediate rewrite of the Unified Development Ordinance (UDO).