A group of Upatoi-area landowners went to court Monday to stop a new Columbus zoning law that would allow a massive data center to be built next to their homes and farms.
What’s happening: The suit, filed in Muscogee County Superior Court, names the City of Columbus, Mayor B.H. “Skip” Henderson III, and all 10 members of Columbus City Council. It targets Ordinance No. 26-034, the Technology Overlay District law the council passed June 16 and Henderson signed June 18. The ordinance allows large-scale data centers — on sites of 75 acres or more — to be built on land currently zoned for farming and rural residential use, including the largest estate-lot classifications in the city.
Who filed: The plaintiffs are Keep It Rural LLC, a landowner group based in Muscogee County, and eight individual property owners who live near the proposed data center site: Stacie Mailey, Debbie Jackson, Charles McClure, Jeremy Gibson, Jordan Kempson, Robert Landi, Wayne Gasser, and Debra Jarzomkowski. Each says they own land that abuts or sits close to the site and that they spoke out against the ordinance at public meetings.
The project behind the law: The suit says the ordinance was written specifically to enable “Project Ruby,” an approximately 900-acre data center development planned for the Upatoi area. Columbus already has land zoned for heavy industrial use elsewhere in the county. The plaintiffs say Project Ruby is not proposed for any of that land.
What the plaintiffs allege: The lawsuit lays out seven legal claims:
- The council amended the ordinance after the public hearing — changing setbacks, noise rules, and energy generation policy — then adopted the new version without holding a new public hearing, violating Georgia’s Zoning Procedures Law.
- The council violated its own zoning rules by skipping a required first reading on the amended text.
- Plaintiffs were denied their constitutional right to meaningful notice and a real chance to be heard before the government changed the rules affecting their property.
- The ordinance is an arbitrary use of zoning power because it puts industrial-scale development on residential and agricultural land when industrial-zoned land already exists elsewhere in the county.
- A review committee convened at the council’s request met five times behind closed doors in April and May, violating Georgia’s Open Meetings Act, which requires government bodies and their committees to meet in public.
- The ordinance unlawfully hands key decisions to private development agreements rather than setting firm public standards.
- The ordinance amounts to spot zoning — writing a rule aimed at one specific project rather than setting general land-use policy.
The closed committee: The suit describes a review group assembled at the council’s request and hosted by the Columbus Chamber of Commerce. The group included representatives of Georgia Power and the local water utility. It met five times without public comment and produced a document called the “Unofficial Data Center Overlay Ordinance Review,” which the suit says the council used as its main information source for passing the ordinance. At least one plaintiff filed a complaint about those meetings with the Georgia Attorney General.
What happened at the public meetings: At the June 2 first reading, at least three members of the public were removed from the meeting. No pro-data center speakers were removed. At the June 9 continued session, the power company and water utility gave presentations in support of the project. The Columbus Water Works representative said he was contacted in July 2025 by the Project Ruby group about siting a data center and was told to keep it confidential. Plaintiffs’ experts were not given a comparable opportunity to present.
The generator issue: The final ordinance bans diesel backup generators. The plaintiffs say that makes it more likely a data center built under the ordinance would instead construct onsite natural gas generation or alternative energy facilities — potentially including small modular nuclear reactors — creating risks that were never publicly discussed before the vote.
The council vote: Six council members voted yes: Gary Allen, John Anker, Travis Chambers, Charmaine Crabb, Glenn Davis, and Walker Garrett. Simi Barnes and JoAnne Cogle voted no. Bruce Huff and Toyia Tucker were absent.
What this means for you: If a judge does not block the ordinance, it takes effect June 28. Any landowner in the Upatoi area whose property is zoned for rural residential or agricultural use could have a data center campus built next door under the new rules, subject to a separate rezoning application process.
The path forward: The plaintiffs are asking the court for a temporary restraining order to block the ordinance from taking effect while the case proceeds. If the court does not void the ordinance outright, the plaintiffs are asking that the matter be sent back to the council to redo the process in compliance with state law.
The first amendment is the part of the Constitution that lets you say what you want, worship how you want, print what you want in a newspaper, television show, radio broadcast, or website, gather with your friends, and tell the government when it’s being ridiculous.
Buy the Book on Amazon →
B.T. Clark is an award-winning journalist and the Publisher of The Georgia Sun. He has 25 years of experience in journalism and served as Managing Editor of Neighbor Newspapers in metro Atlanta for 15 years and Digital Director at Times-Journal Inc. for 8 years. His work has appeared in several newspapers throughout the state including Neighbor Newspapers, The Cherokee Tribune and The Marietta Daily Journal. He is a Georgia native and a fifth-generation Georgian.
- B.T. Clark
- B.T. Clark
- B.T. Clark
- B.T. Clark
