Candidate Q&A: DeKalb County Commission District 7

Three candidates vying for the DeKalb County Commission District 7 seat—incumbent LaDena Bolton, Jacqueline Adams, and Oneka Willabus—are making their stances clear on the contentious issue of data center development. The discussion is framed by a proposed facility in Ellenwood and the ongoing efforts to draft new zoning and land use regulations for such projects. Jacqueline Adams advocates for responsible, strategic development, cautioning against unchecked expansion that could burden communities without clear benefits. She insists the current draft ordinance needs strengthening to ensure robust community protections, infrastructure accountability, and meaningful public input, particularly for areas like Ellenwood. Adams stresses that any approved data centers must deliver tangible benefits such as local hiring and workforce development, with developers, not taxpayers, responsible for infrastructure demands. Commissioner LaDena Bolton, a proponent of community protection, highlighted her role in enacting the initial moratorium on data center development and subsequently voting to extend it four separate times. She underscored that these actions were crucial to shield residents, especially in South DeKalb, from unregulated, campus-sized data centers and their potential noise, environmental, and land-use impacts. Bolton views the current draft ordinance as a starting point but believes it must be enhanced to include strong, enforceable standards, ensuring data centers align with long-term planning goals and do not compromise residential quality of life. Oneka Willabus also acknowledges the contentious nature of data centers, noting the Ellenwood proposal and the ongoing regulatory drafting. While not detailing specific policies as extensively as her opponents, her platform for "smart growth and investment" aligns with the broader sentiment among candidates that any development, including data centers, must be carefully considered, thoughtfully planned, and genuinely beneficial to the existing residents of DeKalb County.