City council votes to delay ordinance addressing data center

The Columbus City Council recently voted without discussion to delay the first reading of an ordinance to create a Technology Overlay District, which would set guidelines for a proposed data center. City attorney Clifton Fay confirmed that Councilor Toyia Tucker and others requested the 45-day delay to allow for further study of best practices in regulating data centers. This timing means the controversial ordinance likely won't be voted on until after the May 19th election, impacting the mayor and several council seats. Despite the council's delay, public sentiment remained fervent. Greg Foster, a supporter of the data center, directly confronted the "Stop Hyperscale Data Centers in Muscogee County group," accusing them of dishonesty and selfishness and arguing that the project area on McKee Road is already industrial. Conversely, numerous citizens expressed strong opposition, with Sophia Rother, an environmental science major, advocating for the zoning overlay to be put to a public referendum. Another citizen, Jessica Warchal, was escorted out for refusing to provide her name and address.