Port Wentworth residents seek pause on data centers
Residents of Port Wentworth, Georgia, are actively petitioning the city council for a 180-day moratorium on data center development. This effort follows a prior city council decision to approve data centers as an allowable use in zoning ordinances, despite some initial opposition. Community organizers are working to gather thousands of signatures to prompt a re-evaluation of the ordinance, citing concerns over property values, water usage, and local flooding.
Residents of Port Wentworth, Georgia, led by Patrick Donovan, are collecting signatures for a petition demanding a 180-day moratorium on data center development. This grassroots effort aims to compel the Port Wentworth City Council to re-examine existing zoning ordinances that now permit data centers, which were approved in December 2025.
The city council, including then-Mayor Gary North and councilmembers, voted 4-1 to add data centers as an allowable use after a fast-tracked process, despite a recommendation for denial from Donovan, who also serves on the Planning & Zoning Commission. Current Mayor Tracy Saunders indicated that the city was not looking into further changes, prompting residents to launch this petition.
While City Manager Steve Davis has suggested data centers could bring benefits like lower property taxes, residents like Donovan and environmental advocate Jeff Beauvais argue that potential costs, such as impacts on property values, increased water usage, and exacerbation of existing flooding issues, outweigh these benefits. Donovan, a real estate professional, specifically worries about the depreciation of home values in neighborhoods like Rice Hope if data centers are built nearby. Residents are actively organizing to gather between 2,000 and 5,000 signatures to present to the council, emphasizing their determination to have their concerns addressed.