Talbot County landowners prevail in legal data center dispute
A Superior Court judge declared Talbot County’s data center zoning amendment void after landowners and WCR LLC challenged the county’s adoption process. The ruling prevents the county from authorizing or processing data center applications under the amendment until it follows required notice, hearing and planning procedures.
Judge John T. Martin of the Superior Court of Talbot County, Georgia, entered a consent final judgment declaring void a zoning text amendment adopted by the Talbot County Board of Commissioners on July 6, 2026. The amendment would have allowed data centers and hyperscale data centers in agricultural and forestry zoning districts, including campuses of at least 100 acres with buildings up to 75 feet tall and on-site backup power.
The judgment followed a challenge by Talbot County landowners Ronnie Wilson, Aaron Bridwell III, Penny Bridwell, Eric Williamson and WCR LLC. The county acknowledged that it failed to comply with Georgia zoning procedures, notice and public-hearing requirements, and its own ordinance. The court restored the prior zoning rules and permanently barred the county from implementing the amendment or accepting data center applications under it.
The plaintiffs cited concerns about groundwater and well-water supplies, rural character and property values. The county may seek to authorize data centers in the future, but would first have to complete the required legal and planning process, including review by the Talbot County Planning Commission. A related challenge to a data center overlay ordinance in neighboring Muscogee County remains pending.