MARIETTA, GA — Another data center could be coming to metro Atlanta after the Marietta Planning Commission voted 4-3 in favor of rezoning 10 acres of land for the project.
The proposal calls for a data center to be built at an existing self-storage facility along Delk Road near Interstate 75. The site is also identified as being on Powers Ferry Place.
The developer’s attorney, Parks Huff, told the commission the facility is needed and that the location is ideal.
“This is a 12 mega-watt data computing center, and the purpose and the need is critical because latency is a real problem,” Huff said.
Huff also said, “Some of the same factors of why this is a good site for our use is the fact that its close to the infrastructure for not only utility power, but also cables, and internet, and that connectivity.”
Some residents asked that the project be canceled or paused while additional studies are conducted.
“I request that there be a moratorium on this and other data centers in Marietta until we know more about data centers here,” resident Susan Clark said.
Marietta resident Joel Becker also voiced opposition to the proposal.
“I thought Marietta was a well-run city. I thought there was nothing going wrong in this city, but this changes that. This is throwing some massive wrong thing into our city, and the voters know that, and the voters will go to the polls with that,” Becker said.
The planning commission approved the proposal in a 4-3 vote and will recommend it to the Marietta City Council, which is expected to consider the matter at its meeting on July 8.
Data center development has been a topic of discussion across metro Atlanta in recent months. Several communities have placed moratoriums on data center development to allow for further study and public input, with concerns centered on power and water usage, traffic, environmental impacts and noise.
WSB Radio’s Jordan D. Brown contributed to this story.