We’ve seen people come under the threat of losing their water or electricity supply because of AI data centers; now, in Georgia, hundreds of families are poised to lose their homes. This new development comes as part of the ongoing Project Sail, a data center construction project in Coweta County that now requires a stronger energy grid and 830 acres of land. It just so happens that families live on this would-be grid expansion.
TikTok user Ansley’s garden recently went viral after posting her anti-data-center video on the platform, which details Project Sail’s effects for Coweta County. In the clip, Ansley talks about how “Georgia Power is going to expand these [power] lines to support power to the data centers.” The woman adds, “What they’re doing to homeowners is taking their homes… being taken by force by Georgia Power… it’s called eminent domain, and they will take it.”
X news account, Wall Street Apes also explained that Georgia Power’s grid expansion for Project Sail will affect “330 private properties” or possibly more than 300 families. Granted, they’re not exactly being evicted outright, Georgia Power is allegedly willing to “negotiate purchases and easements and use eminent domain.”
Eminent domain, for the record, is the legal power of governments to seize private property for public use, even without the owner’s consent. However, as per the Fifth Amendment, the owner needs to be paid fair market value for their property through negotiations or appraisals. Any owner who refuses will undergo condemnation, and the government will simply seize the property, but will still give compensation.
Who’s to Blame?
A similar predicament is also happening in other states, namely Utah and Wyoming. Project Sail in Georgia, however, is poised to affect not just 300 families, but a total of around 2,000 homes, particularly those who live within a 1.25-mile radius of the 830-acre site. It’s no secret that data centers have overwhelming negative effects to its surrounding areas, such as noise, pollution, power grid strain, and water shortage.
Hence, people in the TikTok user’s comment section are pointing fingers; apart from the data center and the Georgia government, they’re also blaming the president. “You can thank Donald trump,” says one TikTok commenter, alluding to the government’s push for accelerating federal permits for data center construction.
Other commenters are advising Ansley to take legal action against Georgia Power, “SUE. My family did and the settlement was $12 million.” The massive cost of data centers in many aspects, apart from just monetary, has also raised questions on whether they’re really worth it or not. “All this so that someone can ask ChatGPT what they should have for lunch,” rants one commenter.
