She has 22 family graves on property down the road from proposed Columbus data center

Debbie Jackson, a Muscogee County homeowner, is voicing strong opposition to the proposed $5.18 billion "Project Ruby" hyperscale data center, developed by Habitat Real Estate Partners, slated for a 900-acre site less than two miles from her property in northeast Muscogee County. Jackson's property includes a family cemetery with 22 graves, including her late husband, and dozens of additional unmarked graves she believes could belong to slaves or Native Americans. She is deeply concerned about the protection of these historic burial sites if the data center proceeds. Jackson also expressed fears about her personal safety and health, referencing "thermal runaway" risks associated with data centers and potential impacts on her property's well water, which she fears could be contaminated if the city forces her to connect to municipal water due to the development. She is additionally concerned about continuous noise from generators, light pollution, the removal of trees, and a decrease in her property value. Following a March 4 meeting, the Columbus Planning Advisory Commission (PAC) discussed Project Ruby, and on March 18, it voted 5-1 to recommend a technology overlay district ordinance to the Columbus Council. This ordinance would increase the proposed buffer zone for Project Ruby from 75 feet to 500 feet. However, Jackson believes this buffer is still inadequate to address her concerns. Jackson, who has lived on her 15.22-acre property since 1993, and whose family has owned the land since the mid-1800s, is now contemplating selling her home, though she is tied by an $800 monthly mortgage until 2044. Her son, Bradley, who inherited an additional 200 acres nearby, is also reconsidering building a home on the property due to the data center proposal.