Approved data center plans have neighbors on high alert

A data center project planned for Atlanta's Blandtown neighborhood at 1611 Ellsworth Industrial Boulevard has generated concerns among local residents. New York City-based developer Youngwoo & Associates received approval in November to convert a decades-old warehouse into a data center on a 17-acre site. This approval occurred just hours before the Atlanta City Council enacted a ban on new data center construction within the Beltline Overlay District and near MARTA stations, effectively grandfathering in Youngwoo's project. While the Atlanta Department of City Planning approved the plans with conditions, the Beltline Design Review Committee has voted against supporting the proposed use. Neighbors in communities west of Midtown expressed that a data center is an inappropriate fit for their vibrant and growing area, which recently gained a connection to the Atlanta Beltline. Adding to the project's complexity, Elizabeth Hollister, executive director of the Upper Westside Improvement District, stated that the Upper Westside Overlay requires that data centers cannot exceed 50 percent of a project's total floor area. This condition mandates Youngwoo & Associates to concurrently develop other mixed uses alongside the data center, with the data center unable to be occupied until these additional uses receive valid occupancy permits. The current timeline or specific plans for these complementary developments remain undisclosed, as inquiries to the developer and city officials went unanswered.