DeKalb board upholds denial of Shadowbox data center bid
The DeKalb County Zoning Board of Appeals upheld a staff decision denying Shadowbox Studios' bid to build a 1 million-square-foot data center, citing the county's moratorium on new data center development. Shadowbox Studios has filed a lawsuit against DeKalb County, arguing the moratorium is invalid and that they have a vested right to build. The proposed project would require 651 megawatts of electrical power.
The DeKalb County Zoning Board of Appeals has upheld a staff decision to deny Shadowbox Studios' application to build a 1 million-square-foot data center on 155 acres in south DeKalb County. The board's decision on September 9 confirmed a June 12 administrative ruling that rejected the land-use change, citing the county's existing moratorium on new data center development.
Shadowbox Studios, which aims to construct the facility at 3600 International Park Drive adjacent to its current studio campus, has subsequently sued DeKalb County in superior court. The lawsuit alleges that the county's moratorium, first approved in July last year and since extended three times (most recently through March 30, 2027), is invalid.
Attorney Simon Bloom, representing Shadowbox, argued that the county had provided three written confirmations that a data center could be built on the property. He contended that roughly $30 million spent developing the site based on these assurances established a vested right for the studio to proceed. Bloom also claimed the county failed to follow state zoning laws by not advertising its plans to pause data center development, thereby violating due process.
The proposed data center project would require 651 megawatts of electrical power. Residents, including Jennifer Baugh, countered that county commissioners' meetings and agendas, which included the moratorium resolution, were public. The moratorium was enacted because the county's zoning code lacked specific provisions for data centers.