A proposed data center project valued at more than $11 billion could come to Columbia County, bringing even more high-tech investment and tax dollars to the Augusta area.
A filing by the county with the Georgia Department of Community Affairs offers details about White Oak Technology Park, a proposed tech campus that would border White Oak Business Park, on Appling-Harlem Highway north of Harlem.
Trammell Crow Co., a subsidiary of commercial real estate giant CBRE, has submitted plans to be the tech park’s first tenant. It proposed nearly 8.1 million square feet of buildings, of which 8.004 million would comprise the data center, according to the filing.
Cheney Eldridge, executive director of the Economic Development Authority of Columbia County, confirmed Trammell Crow’s plan Wednesday but declined to comment further on the evolving proposal.
The county placed the project’s “estimated value at build-out” at $11.6 billion, and is expected to collect more than $118 million annually in estimated local tax revenue, the filing stated.
To put the tax amount into perspective, Columbia County’s general fund budget in fiscal year 2024-25 is $100,644,268.
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The project’s initial phase could last more than two years, with the overall project being completed in about 10 years, the filing showed.
Columbia County recently submitted a “Development of Regional Impact,” or DRI, statement to the Georgia DCA. Georgia classifies DRIs as “large-scale developments that are likely to have regional effects beyond the local government jurisdiction in which they are located,” according to the DCA.
Local governments eyeing large development opportunities are obligated to submit DRI information for state review under the Georgia Planning Act of 1989.
The county described its envisioned tech park in the filing:
“White Oak Technology Park is proposed to attract and accommodate world-class technology businesses and data center development. Proposed uses include data centers; research and development facilities; cybersecurity providers; digital infrastructure and advanced technology companies; and other uses associated with data centers and technology facilities.”
This article originally appeared on Augusta Chronicle: Tech-park data center valued at $11 billion could come to Augusta area
