THOMASVILLE, Ala. — No significant movement has occurred on a potential data center project, Thomasville Mayor Sheldon Day told the city council on Monday. A power supply study remains underway, with completion expected by January at the earliest.
Many Thomasville residents are opposed to the data center, citing its impacts on citizens and infrastructure.
‘Project Burn’
Day also announced progress on what officials are calling “Project Burn,” a confidential economic development project involving a prospective wood products company.
The Clarke County Commission approved a letter of intent with the company, which is considering multiple sites, including a county-owned site and locations in Thomasville’s industrial park.
The project is expected to represent an investment of more than $100 million and could create more than 100 jobs, Day said.
“We have been working to land this project for six to eight months,” Day said. “We have made significant progress and we are excited to partner with the county in the hope we can turn the letter of intent into a great $100 million and 100 job project for our city and our county.”
Day said representatives associated with the project were in the area last week.
Why Wood Products, and Why Here
Clarke County sits in the heart of Alabama’s timber belt, and forest products have been the county’s industrial backbone for generations. A wood products manufacturer siting there is drawing on an established fiber supply, an existing logging and trucking workforce and rail and highway access built around that industry.
The project designation — a code name and a letter of intent rather than a public announcement — is standard practice in competitive site selection. Companies evaluating multiple locations typically require confidentiality until incentives are settled and a site is chosen, and local officials operate under those terms or lose the opportunity to a jurisdiction that will.
A letter of intent is not a commitment to build. It signals that the company is engaged enough to negotiate, and that a site decision is approaching.
Two Projects, Two Reactions
The contrast between the two projects on the council’s agenda is instructive. A $100 million wood products plant creating 100 jobs is being pursued actively by both the city and the county. A data center, which would likely represent a comparable or larger capital investment, faces organized local opposition.
The difference generally comes down to jobs per dollar invested and demand on local utilities. Manufacturing plants employ substantial permanent workforces. Data centers are capital-intensive and employ comparatively few people once operational, while drawing heavily on electricity and, in some designs, water. That equation is what the power supply study now underway is effectively measuring.
Other Council Business
In other business at the meeting, the council:
- Approved changing the name of a portion of a street between Tallahatta Springs Road and McFadden Park to Byrd Drive. The section had previously been known as Byrd Road but was changed when the 911 system was implemented.
- Received an update on enforcement of the city’s new nuisance ordinance. Approximately 15 letters have been sent to property owners regarding properties officials said need attention.
- Heard Day report that Bullard Automotive has officially taken ownership of the former Chevrolet and GMC dealership. The company is preparing to expand its inventory and operations and plans to hold a grand reopening Oct. 15.
- Heard Day report the city is talking with a housing developer that has built thousands of housing units in other parts of Alabama.
- Heard Day report that renovations to the Thomasville movie theater are continuing in hopes it will open this fall.
Water Board
In the water board meeting, the board:
- Heard that crews recently removed an old, leaking two-inch water tap near Pineview Baptist Church and repaired broken sprinkler equipment at the lagoon spray field. The department also completed new bores and service taps along Bashi Road and repaired a leak involving an old six-inch cast-iron water main near Old Highway 5 and Wilson Avenue.
- Heard that contractors are beginning to install a larger water line near the former location of a local business to improve pressure in the area, particularly as development continues near the hospital, and that crews are cleaning sediment basins at the water treatment plant.
- Said approximately $5 million in grant funds, with no local match required, have been secured for water system improvements.
A $5 million grant with no local match is a significant result for a municipal water system of Thomasville’s size. Match requirements are frequently the obstacle that keeps small systems from pursuing available funding, since the local share must come from rates or reserves.
Budget Work Session
A joint water board and city council work session is scheduled for Sept. 22 at 5 p.m. to focus on the city’s budget.