Peachtree City Leaders Deny Data Center Claims Amid Recall Talk

Peachtree City officials say no data center proposal is before the city, pushing back on claims circulating online as a newly approved annexation study moves forward.

The dispute began after the City Council voted unanimously on Feb. 12 to commission an annexation study — a planning tool leaders say is intended to evaluate boundaries, traffic, zoning, and tax implications as the city approaches buildout.

Former City Council candidate James Clifton has publicly argued that the vote, combined with recent land activity outside city limits, signals an effort to bring a data center to Peachtree City. City officials and the Fayette County Development Authority (FCDA) say that is not the case.

What has actually happened

On Feb. 12, the Peachtree City Council approved an annexation study. No annexation application has been submitted, no zoning amendment permitting data centers has been introduced, and no vote on a data center has occurred.

Mayor Kim Learnard said the study is the first of its kind in 12 years and is meant to provide updated data.

“In our meeting February 12, City Council voted unanimously to conduct an Annexation Study,” Learnard wrote in a Feb. 18 email response to Clifton. She cited three reasons: the city is largely built out after 66 years, it has not conducted such a study in more than a decade, and leaders need updated information on boundaries, traffic, zoning, and service delivery.

Learnard also referenced a cost-of-services study conducted with the Georgia Tech Center for Economic Development Research showing residential areas receive $1.04 in services for every tax dollar paid, while industrial properties receive $0.76 in services per tax dollar.

“Council members would like to expand our industrial base, thereby providing tax relief for residential property owners,” she wrote.

Council Member Clint Holland said he has supported annexation since first running for office in 2022.

“We have no more large industrial tracts in Peachtree City,” Holland wrote in response to questions. “If we want to expand our industrial base of attracting light industrial companies, we need to expand outside of our current city limits.”

Holland said the consultant’s study is expected to take approximately 16 weeks and will evaluate zoning, tax implications, traffic, and relationships with Fayette County.

“To be clear, what is posted online about data centers for Peachtree City is not true,” Holland wrote. “As of today, no data center company has approached the city to discuss placing a data center in Peachtree City.”

What officials say about data centers

Peachtree City’s current zoning does not allow data centers.

“Peachtree City does not currently have any property that would accommodate a data center or zoning for a data center,” said FCDA President Niki Vanderslice. She added that any zoning change would require public hearings.

“The FCDA is not pursuing attraction of any additional data centers to Fayette County. Period,” Vanderslice said. “We are offering no incentives for data centers.”

Clifton’s argument

Clifton has pointed to a series of events he believes are connected: the annexation study vote, a Jan. 29–30 council retreat that included an FCDA presentation, and the Feb. 11 purchase of approximately 1,100 acres southwest of Lake McIntosh near the airport by Brent Scarbrough & Company, Inc. Clifton has pointed to the company’s previous site work at the QTS data center project in Fayetteville as part of his reasoning. The Citizen has been told that Scarbrough’s activity at the QTS site was limited to site grading.

“This is circumstantial evidence, and it is very clear to me what is happening,” Clifton wrote in response to questions from The Citizen. “I have been practicing real estate law for almost 20 years and know a government annexation plan when I see one.”

Clifton also circulated a document titled “Data Center Annexation: A Primer,” outlining Georgia annexation law and arguing that “the ONLY way to stop the process is to put public pressure on the city councils prior to the annexation vote.”

In a Feb. 17 email to Learnard and other council members, Clifton asked whether they would vote to annex property with zoning that allows a data center “should the results of the study show” such zoning to be most beneficial from a tax perspective. He also asked whether they would support extending TDK Boulevard or another road to access annexed property.

Learnard’s Feb. 18 response outlined the purpose of the annexation study and the city’s interest in expanding its industrial tax base but did not indicate that a data center proposal is pending.

Clifton has said he is not opposed to data centers generally but is against locating them in Peachtree City or Fayette County.

Recall discussion before a vote

Clifton has also referenced Georgia’s recall statute, O.C.G.A. § 21-4-1 et seq., in response to questions about possible recall efforts.

In a recent Facebook comment, Clifton wrote, “I want to get each council member on the record for each of these items first. Then we need to set up a recall petition website.”

When asked on what grounds he would pursue recall, Clifton cited the statute but did not identify specific actions taken by council members.

Under Georgia law, recall petitions must allege statutory grounds related to conduct in office. At this time, the only formal action taken by the Peachtree City Council related to the issue is the unanimous approval of an annexation study — not an annexation ordinance, zoning change, or infrastructure extension.

What happens next

The annexation study is expected to take approximately four months to complete. Any annexation proposal, zoning change, or infrastructure extension would require separate public hearings and a vote at a public meeting. None of these steps have occurred.