Planning Commission - Regular Meeting

I got to run somewhere.

You want me to read it, OK?

Listen, I'm going to do what you tell me to do. I'm not telling. I'm asking. I got to run upstairs and get something.

Reading the beautiful statement.

All is well.

Good.

I do the roll call.

I don't even know what it looked like. Yes. So you still got to do roll call.

Yeah, but everybody's here, right? No. Oh, they made it.

Good afternoon, everyone. The time is 3.05, so we're going to give everyone a couple of minutes to settle in. And we'll start momentarily. We appreciate everybody attending this July Planning Commission meeting. Hope that your Independence Day was enjoyable and safe. And again, we'll give the commissioners a second to get to their respective seats and we will begin momentarily. Do I need to get the ribbon on both of these? All right, good afternoon once again, and thank you all for being here. We will call this July Planning Commission meeting to order at 3.08, and we'll start by reading the opening statement. The Augusta, Georgia Planning Commission is a recommended body. The final decision on all zoning matters coming before it will be made by the Augusta Commission on Thursday, July 21st at 2 p.m. in the Augusta Commission Chambers at the Municipal Building. The Planning Commission makes the final decision on all variances, including subdivision regulations. A handout describing the zoning procedures by which these cases are decided is available upon request. These procedures also require that any applicant for a rezoning action or any opponent to an application for rezoning action who has made contributions aggregating $250 or more to a local government official within two years of the rezoning application to file a disclosure report with the governing authority. The disclosure report must be filed within 10 calendar days of filing the application and at least 10 calendar days prior to today's hearing. A minimum of 10 minutes shall be afforded for the presentation of data, evidence, and opinions on each side of a rezoning petition or special exception. If more than 10 minutes is afforded to one side, then an equal amount of time should be afforded to the other side. The commission encourages participation in this hearing, and there is no restriction on who may address the commission within the allotted time. But the commission asks that public comments be brief, on subject, and non-repetitive, and directed to the commission, not to any individual or group. Okay, all commissioners are present today with the exception of Commissioner Owens. He is absent this afternoon. All right, commissioners, can I get approval of the June 1st minutes? All right, it's been moved and seconded to approve the June 1st, 2026 meeting minutes. All in favor? Aye. Any opposed? Aye. All right, now we will, referring to our agenda, we do have one postponement that is item Z-26-9. So that particular item has been postponed to the August meeting. Now we'll take the remainder of the agenda from top to bottom.

Rachel Martin, planner with Planning and Development. Our first case today is number five, Z2610, a petition by Hull Barrett, PC, on behalf of PSH Augusta Downtown, LLC, requesting a rezoning from Zones HI Heavy Industrial and LI Light Industrial to Zone B2 General Business to develop an extended stay hotel affecting properties containing approximately 2.3 acres located at 1310 and 1310A Walker Street. Tax map numbers 046-2-087-00-0 and 046-2-086-00-0. These are in District 1. Commissioner Jordan Johnson's district. We will also be taking in companion to this item special exception 26-10 which is also affecting property at 1310 and 1310A Walker Street. And I will present the case now. The application involves two parcels of land that are separated by railroad tracks located at 1310 and 1310A Walker Street and total approximately 2.3 acres in size. The petitioner seeks to rezone the properties from H.I. Heavy Industrial and L.I. Light Industrial to B2, which is general business, to construct an extended stay hotel. The main parcel, 1310 Walker Street, was most recently used as a concrete manufacturing facility. Although the facility is no longer operational, the business license has not been closed and remains active. A special exception application SE-26-10 is submitted concurrently along with this rezoning request. Extended stay hotels are permitted by special exception in the B2 General Business Zone. The concept plan submitted with the rezoning application features the following. a five-story extended stay hotel, 125 guest rooms with kitchens or kitchenettes, 133 parking spaces split between 1310 and 131A, I'm sorry, 1310A Walker Street. There will be a lawn game area and a patio, and there will also be onsite dining facilities. AS WELL AS AN INDOOR FITNESS AS WELL AS AN INDOOR FITNESS AREA, GUEST LAUNDRY AND AREA, GUEST LAUNDRY AND STREET YARDS ALONG 13th STREET STREET YARDS ALONG 13th STREET AND WALKER STREET. AND WALKER STREET. THERE WILL ALSO BE ONE INCLOSED THERE WILL ALSO BE ONE INCLOSED DUMPSTER. DUMPSTER. ACCORDING TO THE 2023 ACCORDING TO THE 2023 COMPREHENSIVE PLAN, THE COMPREHENSIVE PLAN, THE PROPERTY IS LOCATED WITHIN THE PROPERTY IS LOCATED WITHIN THE OLD AUGUSTA CHARACTER AREA. OLD AUGUSTA CHARACTER AREA. THE FINDINGS ARE AS FOLLOWS. THE FINDINGS ARE AS FOLLOWS. EXTENDED STAY HOT On Tuesday, December 19, 2006, the Augusta Commission approved zoning case Z-06-127, a request to rezone the property from light industrial to heavy industrial, subject to the following conditions. The only use of the property shall be a concrete plant or the uses permitted in the LI light industrial zone. If the property ceases to be used for a concrete plant for two years or more, the zoning shall revert to LI or light industrial. On Tuesday, April 19, 2022, the Augusta Commission approved special exception case SE-22-04, a request to establish an extended stay hotel subject to the following conditions. Both of the tracks must be combined for the proposed development of a hotel. The development shall substantially conform to the concept plan filed with this application. Any outdoor storage shall be limited to enclosed buildings or screening with a six-foot privacy fence or masonry wall. The projects shall comply with all developmental aspects and regulations and standards set forth by the City of Augusta, Georgia at the time of development. The main property, located at 1310 Walker Street, has an open code enforcement case, CEIP-205-0003508, citing multiple violations. There are 11 violations in total. One point. 108.1, there is equipment in such a state of disrepair that causes an immediate danger to the occupants and structure. 108.1.1, building is vacant and open to the public. 108.1.1, building has been maintained in violation of the building code of Augusta, Georgia. 301.2, owner is not maintaining the structure. 301.2, owner is not maintaining the exterior of the property. 301.3, vacant structure is not being maintained in a clean, secure and sanitary condition. 108.1, condition of the structure constitutes an endangerment to public health, safety as a result of unsanitary or unsafe conditions. THE BUILDING IS DELAPIDATED AND THE BUILDING IS DELAPIDATED AND DETERIORATED CAUSING BUILDING TO DETERIORATED CAUSING BUILDING TO BE UNSAFE. 108.1, structure is unfit for commercial, industrial, or business use and not in compliance with applicable codes. 302.1, owner or occupant is not maintaining the premises in a clean, safe, and sanitary condition. 302.1, owner or occupant is not maintaining exterior of property in a clean, safe, and sanitary condition. The development will include entrances along 13th Street and Walker Street. There is an additional smaller parking lot entrance on Walker Street after the railroad tracks. SECTION 4-2 OF THE ZONING ORDINANCE REQUIRES A MINIMUM OF ONE PARKING SPACE FOR EACH ROOM PLUS ONE SPACE FOR EACH TWO EMPLOYEES PLUS ADDITIONAL SPACES AS REQUIRED FOR OTHER FUNCTIONS SUCH AS BAR, RESTAURANT, ET CETERA. The conceptual plan proposes a total of 133 off-street parking spaces. The proposed concept plan delineates a dining area but does not specify if it would be open to the public. Additionally, there is no mention of the number of staff needed to run the proposed extended stay. If 133 off-street parking spaces are not sufficient, this will be addressed at the time of site plan submission and the project may require a parking variance. The concept plan depicts 10-foot front setbacks along 13th Street and Walker Street where 40-foot would be required. The applicant has submitted variances to the Board of Zoning Appeals and will be heard at the July 20th meeting. 1310A Walker Street is part of the Downtown Historic District, but 1310 Walker Street is not. These parcels are both being utilized in this project. Therefore, the applicant has submitted a certificate of appropriateness to the Historic Preservation Commission. The COA application will be heard at the next HPC meeting on July 23rd. According to the FEMA flood insurance rate maps, the properties are not located within a special flood hazard area. And according to the GIS, Augusta-Richmond County GIS, rather, there are no wetlands located on the properties. The nearest public transit stops are located approximately 380 feet away at the entrance of the River Ridge Apartments on 13th Street and at the intersection of 13th Street and Independence Drive. According to Georgia Department of Transportation, Walker Street is classified as a local road and 13th Street is classified as a principal arterial road. According to the preliminary traffic impact worksheet, traffic engineering has determined that a traffic study is not necessary for the proposed development. Adjacent zoning districts to the north are zoned LI, light industrial, and R3C, multifamily residential. Properties to the east are zoned LI, light industrial. Properties to the south and west are zoned B2, general business, and light industrial. The proposed change in zoning to B2 would be consistent with the 2023 comprehensive plan, and at the time of completion of this report, staff has received a support inquiry regarding the petition as advertised. We do not have any engineering or utility comments at this time, and that concludes staff's presentation on both Z2610 and SE2610. Thank you.

thank you just so the record can reflect Commissioner Michael Owens has joined us all right is the petitioner present all right sir if you could come forward give us your name and your county of residence

Hi, my name's Darren Meadows. I'm a resident of McDuffie County, but I'm a partner in the Hulbert Law Firm located here in Augusta at 801 Broad Street. I submitted the application before you on behalf of my clients, PSH Augusta Downtown LLC, seeking to rezone this tract of approximately 2.3 acres to B2 zoning and the grant of a special exception so my client can develop this property for an extended stay hotel. This property is currently zoned HI and LI and was previously the location of a concrete mixing plant. My client is an affiliate of Peach State Hospitality Group, which currently has 12 upscale hotels in operation in Georgia, with three in the Augusta market, and another plan for Washington Road at I-20 once this project is completed. For those of you who served on this commission for a number of years, this proposal looks familiar. This property was previously approved for a special exception for hotel extended stay in May of 2022. After that approval, the parcels were joined as was required in the prior zoning restriction agreement. However, the development was unfortunately delayed by some other factors. First, it was discovered that a portion of the property believed to be owned by the party to sell to my client was actually owned by the city of Augusta. My client negotiated with the city to obtain that property, and the deed from the city was signed on September 4th, 2024. As y'all will probably remember, shortly after that, Hurricane Helene hit the area and brought all development efforts to a stop. My client's now eager to move forward with the development as originally approved. Due to some changes in interpretation since the prior application, we were told that we needed to request both rezoning to B2 and the special exception this time around. My client intends to construct a residence in by Marriott, an upscale hotel brand. The special exception for extended stay is required because each room or suite will have kitchen facilities. This location is deemed desirable for this type of hotel development because of the proximity to Walton Rehab Hospital and the downtown medical district in general, Augusta National during Masters Week, of course, and the Savannah River and downtown area for tourist accommodations. With the Andy Jordan Bicycle Warehouse right next door, this Marriott will be a popular choice during the growing number of biking events, including the annual Ironman and the Pace Line Cancer Fundraiser. In addition to the temporary construction work, this hotel will employ approximately 24 employees, around 10 being on site during a typical shift. There would be typically three management-level employees with salaries in the $60,000 to $70,000 range. Other employees will be hourly in areas of on-staff maintenance and housekeeping. We will also contract with local vendors for landscape, HVAC, parking lot, and building maintenance beyond the scope of the on-site personnel. The initial investment for hotel construction will be approximately $27 million, which we hope to begin expending immediately upon obtaining the various approvals from the city. I do want to address the allegations of code enforcement violations and environmental concerns that were listed in the staff report that you all saw. The code enforcement notice was received recently, shortly after I made the initial contact with planning regarding our need to have the prior approvals reissued. The cited code sections relate to the site being deemed uninhabitable and unmaintained, and that's because it is uninhabited and it's not being maintained. My clients have cut the grass and they fixed the locks that were broken by trespassers, and they have a pending appointment with code enforcement later this month, but we submit there will be no need to make any other repairs because the intent is to demolish everything that is currently on this site and begin immediately getting the approvals to proceed with development of the $27 million hotel. With regard to the proposed environmental sampling condition, which was not read in the report, so I don't know if that's still on the table, It was just a matter of communication. Nobody ever asked if we had any information about environmental conditions, which we do. My client did a phase one and phase two environmental site assessment prior to purchasing the property. And in fact, even though there was nothing detected above any Georgia EPD regulatory criteria, the consultant recommended my client enroll the property in the Georgia Brownfield program with EPD, which they have done. We did not object to sharing that due diligence information with the city and I did forward the phase two and brownfield documentation this morning. Again, the pre-purchase due diligence did not identify any conditions exceeding any criteria under Georgia EPD codes or regs. We have complied in all respects with the existing laws enforced by EPD and will continue to do so throughout the demolition and construction periods as all parties conducting such activities are required to do in the state of Georgia. We don't wish to have any confrontation with the city about these issues, but we do respectfully object to the imposition of the conditions relating to environmental investigations as we have already addressed those concerns with our proper due diligence and with the Georgia EPD brownfield application. My client's ready, willing, and able to spend $27 million in the next few months to eliminate all traces of an old, ugly industrial remnant along this primary travel corridor and replace it with a new upscale Marriott hotel, which will not only improve the area aesthetically, but will offer much-needed accommodations to families of those undergoing treatment at nearby medical facilities. and those wishing to enjoy all that Augusta has to offer. Just as my clients of the three existing hotels in Augusta already do, this facility will generate substantial tax revenue for the city and can hopefully start doing so by the end of this year with your approval. Any questions, I'll be glad to address.

Thank you, sir. Commissioners, do you have any questions of the petitioner? All right, Commissioner Cooks.

The environmental impact information, you said that was presented to staff. When did that happen?

I forwarded it to them this morning.

Okay.

Additional questions or comments from commissioners? All right. Is there anyone in the audience who wants to, well, let me do this. Anybody in the audience oppose this petition? All right. Anybody in support of this petition? All right, sir, do you want us to just note your support or would you like to come forward and speak? I'd like to say a couple words. Okay. If you would just come forward and give us your name, your county of residence, and your comments.

My name is Dennis Skelly. I live in Columbia County. I am the president CEO of Georgia Rehabilitation Institute. About 40 years ago, GRI built Walton Rehabilitation Hospital. We were the founders, the developers, and the operators for 30-some years, and then we sold it to Corporation Health South. We acquired many pieces of property on 13th Street. RECENTLY, WELL, I SHOULDN'T SAY RECENTLY BUT A FEW YEARS BACK, RECENTLY, WELL, I SHOULDN'T SAY RECENTLY BUT A FEW YEARS BACK, WE SOLD AN OLD WAREHOUSE TO WE SOLD AN OLD WAREHOUSE TO THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION, THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION, RICHMOND COUNTY DEPARTMENT OF RICHMOND COUNTY DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION WHERE DAVIDSON HIGH EDUCATION WHERE DAVIDSON HIGH SCHOOL WAS EXPANDED AND WE SCHOOL WAS EXPANDED AND WE OWNED CURRENTLY PROPERTY AT 523, OWNED CURRENTLY PROPERTY AT 523, 521, AND 519, 13th STREET. 521, AND 519, 13th STREET. YOU MIGHT RECOGNIZE THE Andy Jordan's bicycle shop. There's a mural on the side of it that addresses everyone who lives in Augusta. It says, Augusta, love where you live. Has anybody seen it? Yay, good. I go back a little bit with history as 30 years ago, we recognized that that particular area on 13th Street was transitioning from light and heavy industry to healthcare. You've got a vascular surgery center across the street. You've got Walton Rehabilitation Hospital. Paul DeCamp, George Paddy, and I worked diligently on the canal trail right there at the 13th and Independence Drive. That's a funny story, Independence Drive. It wasn't always Independence Drive. The DAR actually supported that request to change the name to Independence Drive. Anyways, make long story short, this is a wonderful application. I couldn't be happier to lend my support for you to approve the request. It's all in keeping with the improvements made on 13th Street, which is now a beautiful thoroughfare through Augusta, from North Augusta all the way down to the downtown medical center. So I would highly encourage you to consider the petition and vote favorably for this request.

Thank you. Thank you. All right. Staff recommendations. If we could hear the recommendations on the rezoning first.

So basically because these are companion items related to the same development requests on the same properties we have the same recommendation for both and so We were presented quite a bit of information this morning that we haven't fully been able to read the details of. So our recommendation is still sort of the same as planning and development. Staff recommends denial of the rezoning petition. to be two due to the potential concern of environmental history of the site. However, if it is the pleasure of the commission to approve this request, staff recommends the following conditions, and there are eight of those. Staff must, sorry, applicant must provide results of the soil and groundwater testing. Number two, if contamination exists, applicant must provide a remediation plan to redevelop the site. Number three, approval shall be contingent upon granting of the necessary variances from the border zoning appeals, including relief from the requirements for a minimum 40-foot front setback on Walker Street and a minimum 40-foot setback on 13th Street. Number four, obtain historic preservation commission HPC approval and subsequent issuance of a certificate of appropriateness, COA, may be required prior to commencement of any exterior changes to the parcel located at 1310A Walker Street. Number five, comply with applicable development regulations. And standards set forth in Section 22-2D of the Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance of Augusta, Georgia. Number six, comply with all applicable lighting regulations and standards. Seven, the development must comply with all aspects of the Augusta tree ordinance. And finally, number eight, the development shall comply with all development standards and regulations set forth by Augusta, Georgia as amended at the time of development.

And that concludes that. To the petitioner, if there is a motion to approve, do you accept those recommendations?

As I stated earlier, we oppose the first two conditions for a couple reasons. One, we've already demonstrated that we've done our environmental due diligence. We've submitted that to the Georgia Environmental Protection Division, which actually has recognizable standards of what is contamination and what is not. And the very generic statement that's been made in this condition, it doesn't say by what standards we are to conduct any type of investigation. It just uses the word contamination. Contamination is not defined in the ordinances of the city of Augusta at all. So these conditions are just creating confusion and problems where there should be none. We've done appropriate environmental due diligence. There's not actually a requirement in any existing city ordinance for environmental due diligence, but we did it, which is industry standard, and we completed it. Had it been requested of us weeks ago, we could have provided it, but nobody requested it. I didn't know that it was a concern of anyone with city staff until I saw the staff report late last week. literally after I had already gone home for the holiday weekend, and so I provided those reports this morning. But as I've said, our reports show there is no substantive contamination. I provided those reports, including the excerpt, but to be brutally honest, the consultant trying to make more money off of my client recommended that they apply for a brownfield approval with Georgia EPD even though there's no contamination there and they've done that. So we've submitted to the jurisdiction of the Georgia Environmental Regulatory Body and anything that might be found throughout this development process will be under their jurisdiction and oversight. So these additional two conditions are unnecessary and overkill and we would accept all the other conditions, but those first two we would ask you to strike.

Okay. So understanding that you received a lot of information recently with the petitioner's comments, is there, does this alter your approval recommendations?

I believe with all due respect, I don't believe the staff has had enough time to go through, comb through all the information that was presented early this morning. So based on our investigation of the site and our due diligence, this is our findings, but then the commission has the ability to make their own decisions based on the information presented. Okay, so basically your approval recommendations remain.

All right. Commissioner Cooks.

I recommend approval minus the two conditions that were issued under the staff recommendation.

All right. Well, it has been moved and seconded to approve this petition striking the first two conditions. All right. Amber, could you do a roll call? Yes, please.

All right, so that is approval from Cooks and Clark for Z2609, excluding conditions one and two. Rocha?

And the special exception.

Oh, and a 10?

Yes, ma'am.

No, we're voting one time. We're doing one first, then we come back and do the second one.

We're going to take two separate votes.

Okay, so Commissioner Owens, how do you vote?

Yes.

Yes? You say yes? Yes. Commissioner Cooks?

Yes.

Commissioner Spencer?

Yes.

Commissioner Smith? Yes. Commissioner Clark? Yes. Commissioner Prince? Yes. Commissioner O'Neill? Yes. Commissioner Davis?

Yes.

Commissioner Malice? Yes. Commissioner Laracy? Yes. And Commissioner McKnight? Yes. All right. So, that's special. Well, Z2609. Z2609 has been approved with staff recommendations. Okay. All right. Want to do another roll call for the second one?

Yes, let's do a roll call for the special exception. They can do all in favor. Okay, so we need a motion first. Move to approve, Mr. Chairman. All right, it has been moved and seconded to approve the special exception. All in favor? Aye. All right, any opposed? All right. So both the rezoning and the special exception will be moved forward to the full commission with approval recommendation. Aye. On July 21st. All right. Thank you. All right. Let's continue.

Rachel Martin, once again, with Planning and Development. I will be presenting SE2610, an application by Civita REM Georgia 1 LLC on behalf of MGJHI LLC. requesting a special exception per Section 26-1H of the Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance to establish a personal care home with four clients at property located at 3120 Blackmont Court, Hepzibah, Georgia, 30815. The petition concerns a 0.62 acre property located within the Fairwoods subdivision and is currently zoned R1A, one family residential. The site currently features a one story, 1,696 square foot residence constructed in 1994. The applicant is requesting approval of a special exception to operate a family personal care home providing care to four clients. The applicant will not reside in the residence. Instead, the facility will be operated by 24-hour on-site staff. The property is located within the South Augusta character area, and the applicant meets all requirements of Section 28-F-3B for home design requirements for personal care homes. The applicant proposes establishing a personal care home to serve four clients with two staff members assigned per shift. The residence includes four bedrooms and two bathrooms as well as a living room, kitchen, office space, and laundry room. No additions are proposed at this time. There are no other licensed family personal care homes located within 1,200 feet of the subject property. The backyard is currently enclosed by a six-foot wooden privacy fence. According to GDOT, Blackburn Court is classified as a local road. Public transit service is not available in the vicinity of the subject property. Public water and sanitary sewer services are available to the site. According to the FEMA flood insurance rates maps, this property is not located within a special flood hazard area. According to the Augusta Richmond County GIS map layer, there are no wetlands present on the property, and the proposed use is compatible with surrounding land uses and is consistent with the 2023 comprehensive plan. As of the completion of this report, staff has not received any notifications of opposition to the petition as advertised, and we did not receive any engineering or utility comments at this time. And that concludes staff's presentation. Thank you.

Thank you. Commissioner Doug Prince has recused himself from participating in this particular petition. All right, is the applicant present? All right, ma'am, you can come forward and give us your name, your county of residence, and any additional details on your project.

Good afternoon. My name is Michelle Coleman. I'm the area director for Savita. We operate several homes in the Augusta area, and we're asking for support in opening up the special project for people with developmental disabilities. We have a proven track record of ensuring that people are protected, that people are served well in the community, and we ask for your support.

Thank you. I want to thank your county of residence.

My personal county of residence? Yes. My personal county of residence is Gwinnett County.

Okay. Petitioners, I mean, I'm sorry, commissioners, do you have any questions for the petitioner? All right, seeing none, anybody in the audience oppose this particular project? Yeah, if you could just raise your hands first and let us get a count. of the individuals in opposition. All right, and then if you would like to voice your objection, if you would just come and line up over here at this particular podium. All right, ladies, if you could just give us your name, your county of residence, and then if you could just make your comments brief, two, three minutes, we would greatly appreciate it.

Good afternoon. My name is Octavia Collins. I am the president of the Richmond County Neighborhood Association Alliance, and I reside in Richmond County.

Good afternoon, my name is Teresa Ivey. I'm a resident of Augusta, Georgia in Richmond County. Good afternoon, commissioners. Thank you all for taking the time to hear us today. I stand before you, not just a resident, but a daughter, and also someone speaking on behalf of my family, whose life and legacy and future will be directly affected by this proposed business development in our community. My parents purchased this property at 3118 Blackman Court back in August of 1995. At that time, my family was a young family looking for more than just a house. They were looking for a place to build a life and a legacy. My father was among the first residents to purchase a home here because of the proximity to the military installation where he served our country and because it allowed my mother to remain close to her job as a state nurse at the Gracewood State Hospital. To some, this property may simply look like another house in a predominantly black and brown community. However, to my family, it represents something far greater. It represents sacrifice, hard work, perseverance, and a promise of generational wealth. For more than 30 years, this home has been a foundation of our family story. It was the first major investment my parents made as a young married couple. It became the place where they raised three children. one rambunctious daughter. Within these walls, we learned the values of integrity, respect, education, and service to our community. Those same values has been passed down to my parents' grandchildren and great-grandchildren. This home has been more than a place to live. It has been a launching pad for our generations. My father dedicated over 20 years of service in protecting this country and this nation as a soldier in the United States Army. My mother dedicated over 30 years for patient care as a nurse at Gracewood State Hospital. Together they have spent a lifetime investing in this community, not only through their service, but also through their presence, their leadership, and their commitment to being good neighbors. And they didn't invest just their hearts here, they invested their resources. Over three decades, they have poured their money, energy into maintaining and approving this properly, believing that their investment would secure a better future for their children and generations to come. This is why this issue matters so deeply to us. What concerns us is not simply the arrival of a new business, it is the broader pattern we continue to see where developments that may have negatively impact property values and quality of life are often proposed in community like ours. Communities that are made of hardworking black and brown families who have spent decades building wealth, stability, and opportunity. The message that this sends is troubling. It suggests that investments we have made, the sacrifices we have endured, and the legacy we have built are somehow worthless, and that those in more affluent and predominantly white neighborhoods deserve better. Our community deserves better. We deserve the same consideration, the same protections, and the same respect afforded to any neighborhood. Today, I'm not speaking for my parents. I'm speaking for every family in that Fairwood community. that has worked tirelessly to achieve the American dream. I am speaking for the grandparents who purchased homes with hopes of leaving something behind for their children. I am speaking for parents striving to create opportunities for the next generation. And I am speaking for children and grandchildren who stand to inherit the consequences of decisions being made today. This is more about than a piece of property. It's about preserving a legacy. It's about protecting the value that generations have worked to create. And it's about ensuring that community continues to be a place where families can thrive for years to come. In closing, I ask that you consider the real people behind these homes. Consider the decades of sacrifices, service, and investment represented here. Consider those families' futures that may be impacted by this decision. I respectfully urge you to reject any proposal that will undermine the well-being, property values, and generational wealth of the families who have helped build this community. Thank you for your time, your consideration, and the opportunity to be heard.

Thank you for your comments.

Once again, I'm standing here on behalf of these neighborhoods. This is a residential area, not a business area. The special exception is why? Because you want to put a business into a residential area. As I've stated in the past, I do empathize with people that have disabilities or that need a place with someone to take care of them other than a nursing home. But at the end of the day, the neighbors do not want a personal care home in their neighborhoods. I'm not sure if anyone spoke with the neighbors from the business that's trying to open up this personal care home. I spoke with a couple of neighbors and they actually thought that was a for sale sign in the yard. because I actually rode by and I saw the sign. So on behalf of the neighborhood, as well as other neighborhoods, we urge you to not approve the request for the special exception for this personal care home. Once again, we come back to the fact that it is in a residential area. If we keep allowing these special exceptions, we'll have special care homes and all other type of businesses throughout Richmond County, as well as other counties. So take into consideration where you live. Do you want it next door to you? Ms. Ivey's address is actually next door to the facility that they want to put there. So once again, I encourage you to do what I would consider is right and deny that request for that special exception. Thank you.

Thank you. And for the record, what was your name and your county residence, ma'am?

My name is Octavia Holloway Collins. I live in Richmond County. I'm the president of the Richmond County Neighborhood Association Alliance.

Thank you so very much. Anybody in the audience who supports this petition? In support? Okay.

They misunderstood you.

Okay. All right. Well, thank you for that. Commissioners, any final questions or comments? Question for staff.

Okay. Commissioner Cooks. Is signage or operating signage allowed on these types of projects?

Commissioner, no, sir. Thank you.

All right. Staff recommendations.

All right, so staff recommendation is based on meeting the criteria of section 26-1 of the ordinance. And prior to today or prior to this meeting, we were not aware that there were individuals opposed to this request. Planning and development staff recommends approval with the special exception. to establish a family personal care home with the following conditions, and there are a total of four. The first is that the home shall be limited to a maximum of four clients under full supervision. Any lived-in staff members will be included in the total occupancy count. And so with the special use permitting process, it allows for a max of three. So with this request, are asking for one additional client. The second condition is that a successful code enforcement inspection is required prior to the issuance of a business license. Condition number three, that the applicant must obtain a City of Augusta business license and maintain... valid license with the state of Georgia. Proof of compliance with the minimum requirements per section 290-2-5-18 of the state must be submitted along with our annual inspection reports. Number four, that the home shall be staffed and operated in accordance with the regulations of the State Department of Community Health governing family personal care homes. And then finally, number five, no signage shall be permitted on the property. And that concludes staff's recommendation.

All right, Commissioners, you've heard staff recommendations. Chair will entertain a motion.

Motion to deny.

I'd like to offer a substitute motion. All right, Commissioner Cooks.

Move to approve, Mr. Chairman, with conditions.

Second.

All right, there's a substitute motion to, it's been moved and seconded to approve this petition with the conditions. Can we do a roll call?

All right, we are voting on the substitute motion to approve with staff recommendations by Cooks and Owens.

Commissioner O'Neill, how do you vote on the substitute motion to approve? Deny. You said, I didn't hear you.

Deny.

Okay.

Commissioner Davis?

Deny.

Commissioner Malice?

Deny.

Commissioner Laracy? Deny. Commissioner McKnight?

Approve.

Commissioner Cooks? Approve. Commissioner Spencer? Commissioner Owens?

Approved.

Commissioner Smith? Denied. And Commissioner Clark? Approved. All right. So the substitute motion to approve the staff recommendations has failed.

Well, I don't approve.

How does it work? As a denial.

So it has been approved.

For the denial.

Am I saying that right? It has been denied the approval.

Yeah, we have to do another one. Say it again. We still have to do the other one.

Okay. All right. So it reverts back to the main motion. All right. So the main motion is to deny and it's been moved and seconded. All right. Let's do a roll call vote for the denial.

All right. So this is a vote to deny special exception 2611. Commissioner O'Neill. This is to approve the denial. Yes. We'll just say yes to deny. Okay. Commissioner Prince, no, you were accused. Commissioner Davis.

Yes to deny.

Commissioner Malice.

Yes to deny.

Commissioner Laracy. Yes to deny. Commissioner McKnight.

No.

Commissioner Cooks. No. Commissioner Spencer.

Yes.

Commissioner Owens. No. Commissioner Smith.

Yes to deny.

And Commissioner Clark.

No.

All right, so special exception 2611 has been denied.

All right. All right. So that that will move to the full commission with a denial recommendation. Thank you. Thank you all.

They got to work.

All right, everyone, we have one final item. So you are more than welcome to stay with us. But if you would like to exit, please do so now. And as quietly as you could, we would appreciate it. all righty okay we'll move to our final item turn it over to director cameron

Good afternoon, Honorable Planning Commissioners. Thank you so much for allowing us to present to you today. The Planning and Development Department was given a directive from the Augusta Commission to develop a comprehensive data center ordinance that establishes a transparent and predictable regulatory framework for the future data center development while protecting the community's long-term interests and quality of life. A key feature of the ordinance is special exception review process that promotes transparency, accountability, and public participation. Proposed facilities would undergo an individualized review to evaluate their compatibility with surrounding land uses, infrastructure capacity, environmental consideration, and consisted with the Augusta long range planning objectives. This ordinance establishes comprehensive standards of the following. On pages three and four, you will find appropriate zoning districts and the site suitability. Pages 10, 11, you would find appropriate setbacks, enhanced buffering from residential neighborhoods and sensitive land uses. And I would note that this is the modified version. In the original version, you had some other language, but this is the modified version based on General Counsel's recommendations that you have in your packet. You will also find standards for noise, lighting, landscaping, and architectural design. assessment and traffic circulations on pages 11 and 12. You would find standards for utility infrastructure and emergency service coordination on page 12. Keeping in mind that this comprehensive piece of work combines not only zoning Compliance review, it entails fire, engineering, board of health, utilities. So you will have that comprehensive group and you'll find all of that in this tool. Also, you have stormwater management and environmental protection on pages five, six, nine, 10 and 16. And then you will find the ongoing operational performance and compliance on pages six and pages nine. Now, a 26 page document, of course, I've only highlighted those appropriate things. And the reason why they were highlighted is because those are some of the basic things that zoning compliance will look at and will make decisions with the other departments. This ordinance was developed through extensive research into industry trends, best practices from our peer communities, careful evaluation of our existing land use patterns and infrastructure. It reflects the community's commitment to manage emerging technologies through proactive planning rather than reactive regulations. It supports Augusta's broader economic development strategies by creating a regulatory environment that is both business friendly and community focused. By establishing clear standards and a predictable review process, Augusta demonstrates that it is prepared to accommodate innovative industries while maintaining high expectations for development, quality and public accountability. residents, property owners, and prospective developers are encouraged to review the ordinance. We have a place where you can actually, we have sheets that you can scan the QR code that will take you directly to the site where you can put your reviews, your comments, and that information will come back to the department. And we will share that information, of course, with our commission. Mr. Chairman, if you would like for me to go further, I can. Other than that, I will obtain questions at this time.

Yes. So just to reiterate what the director said, we're going to open up for some brief public comments. But but, you know, this is a draft. Nothing is finalized. And there'll be two additional meetings. This one, there's a public service committee meeting on July 14th at 1. Then, of course, the Augusta Commission on the 21st at 2. So you'll have several opportunities to provide your feedback. And if you didn't get a sheet from back there, there's a QR code. So if you have some very passionate comments that goes beyond a few minutes, I just encourage you to get one of the sheets, scan the QR code and put your comments there so that staff can review them. But beyond that, we'll just open it up for some comments from the commissioners first, and then we'll have some comments from the audience if you so choose to express them here. All right, Commissioner Cook.

First question is, Do we meet the definition of public hearing within our commission meeting? I believe we don't. In my experience of being on this commission, our public hearings have always been separate from the meeting. And I think this is rushed and we need to convince the commissioners this needs more work. Just my comments. Thank you, Commissioner Spencer.

We received information today on this, but before we were told just to gather information for ourselves. And as I mentioned earlier, I did, and I just wanted to make it part of the record, just as a point of view that I think that we need to slow this down just a little bit. So for the record, I used firstharvardeducation.com. They wrote a whole article and they looked at centers that were already in use. I apologize, can you use the microphone please? Thank you. Regarding electricity, they found that the data centers needed about, used about 10 to 15% of the total nationwide electricity. We were told that it will bring jobs to the area. And what they found that it did not really had an increase in the area, except for during the construction phase lasting about one to two years. After that, the data centers, when they're up and running, they employ somewhere between 20 to 50 staff members. regarding the tax revenues that we're constantly hearing that they're providing. According to the Harvard study, very little, mainly because the tax breaks were given to these companies to come in there. The Harvard article also noted that last year, Virginia and Georgia had given up more than a billion dollars in revenues as a result of the tax breaks. The last thing they talked about was the cost of living. Living near a data center, the electricity bills will definitely go up for the residents. And then, going a little bit further, looking at what Congress had to say, members of Congress are proposing that we slow down with the data center. Steve Bannon is arguing that Tech, I don't have my glasses on, so please excuse me. That tech elite who are investing billions in the AI infrastructure for these data centers are being built out of control. And the May 2026 Gallup poll shows that 70% of Americans opposes the construction of an AI data center in their community. And I'm not saying whether data centers are good or bad, I'm just saying that just being pushed at us so quickly, I'm just concerned that maybe we need to have a step back, listen to more what our public is saying, our community is saying, and be given this information where they can digest and maybe see your point of view or the county's point of view on why it's a good thing for our area.

And I'm sorry, Commissioner Spencer, you said that you just received that information today from us? Okay. The zoning, the proposed ordinance. Oh, that was information just, that was, that's just a sheet that I gave so that you can know what I was going to bring.

Excuse me. In our previous meeting, our virtual meeting, we were told to ask questions that we would be talking about data centers, ask questions and kind of find out information for ourselves. That's the information I perceive was given to us last Wednesday.

But your recommendation for your commissioner is going to be?

That I can't support it right now because I don't have enough information. Thank you.

All right. Thank you, Commissioner Spence. Additional comments or questions from commissioners? Okay, I see Commissioner McKnight. If you would just tap your thing so I can put you in the queue. Commissioner McKnight, Commissioner Clark, and then Commissioner Smith.

I think it needs to be said that the staff has had a time crunch to get this back to the commission, the full commission. But I think there are some things that we can put in here to make sure that we are not, let's say, don't make a mistake. Because there are data centers out there that have been great successes, and there are data centers that have been not successful. And I'm talking about to the community. And the whole intent of this is to make sure that ours meet the needs of Richmond County and their citizens. So I do believe with what Deborah is saying here and all the commissions through our previous one that this has to be done within the time crunch that the full commission asked the staff to do it. But we need to put some safeguards in there that we can update this to make sure that we don't have a bad one. And I think one of the And you keyed in on this at the beginning, is that each data center needs to be reviewed to make sure, let me put my glasses on. you know, that it meets the best usage for Richmond County and its residents. And that needs to be some strong words that are in there. And I think that that's putting a lot on the staff also, because this technology is changing so fast. I'm reading about everything that these guys, because energy's a problem. I think they've gotten through the water problem. And there's so much income that comes into the community. It's such a hurry to get this thing through because you want to see those dollars coming into the community because there's so many things that we can use them for. But I think we ought to put some things in there where we ask some professionals to review these things to make sure they're meeting our best needs. And there's a lot of consultants out there. that can help us to make sure that we make this successful. And that's the two big things I want to make sure is that we address the new technology in the future. Because I've seen these ordinances. They get thrown back in the back, and nobody even thinks about them until there's a problem. But this thing we have to review on a continuous basis. I don't want anybody bringing one of those proton energy makers in my backyard, you know, or to make sure it's safe. So, okay, that's my two points to my commission.

Thank you, sir. Thank you, Commissioner Clark.

Yeah, Commissioner Clark. But that's not.

Okay, so my first question is what engineering controls such as sound waves, subterranean equipment placement will be initiated to ensure that the noise drops to about 50 to 55 DPAs? And the reason why I'm asking that is because the noise that a data center will send off is going to be 24 hours a day. And so I know that you have it set up so we can share our questions. And I hope that the entire community chimes in and they share their questions. I'm just putting this out here for us to have as well. Also, Erin Brockovich, she is an economic activist. She talked about how data centers are having an impact on farmers. And we have a lot of farms in this area. And so it's supposed to be... she's, there's some type of correlation between the data centers and how that's impacting farm water and the animals, the livestock. And so as we're putting in our questions, then I wanna have that question shared as well. Let me see. Now, I do want to have it noted that there are some cities that are doing data centers. Like in the state of Georgia, there's an article that says the data center panic is over. And this is from the state of Virginia in Landon County, Virginia. In this particular location, They have a large number of data centers. They said that $1.3 billion is received in revenue. 16 fire stations were created and 32 schools were produced because of the data center. So I'm not bringing just the cons, but also the pros. But I think the biggest concern for everyone is making sure that the city and the people in the city are feeling protected. On the flip side, we've talked about water bills and water pressure. Brownouts and well water specifically. The data center is pulling water from the well in rural areas. How can we make sure that the people in the community are protected from things like that? Thank you.

All right, thank you, Commissioner Clark. Commissioner Smith.

Chair or Director, I understand you're under a great deal of pressure, and I just want to commend you and your staff, but I do have just one question. In one of the slides that you all brought up, it talked about a three-year review process. And it talked about punitive actions that would be taken, corrective actions. Can you talk about those two things? Because that's what I think the community wants to know is what are we going to do to ensure that safety is being followed? How often are we going to look at that? And if we do find something that's wrong, how are we going to deal with it?

Yes, sir. Great question. And Commissioner, you already have great departments already in place. You have fire. One of the things that fire is life safety. You have your building official that makes sure that the building is structurally sound. You have code enforcement. You have your marshals and sheriffs. I was about to say police. But you will still have those individuals, those professionals that will ensure that this facility is run. And so to your point on page 12, it talks about after the third anniversary of the facility being in operation is when the first... full compliance will take place. We will go in and that's that staff, that's your zoning, your fire, your engineer, your utilities will go in just to ensure that the facility is still operating correctly. Now that of course that would be an agreement. And so as you see that initially set up when we would, the initial began and will be the review committee that Commissioner McKnight talked about. So, you know, at the very onset, you will have a group of professionals that will ensure that the community's vision is first and foremost. So after that after that third year anniversary, then you will start seeing they will start having a a follow-up every year and a half. So just to ensure that the compliance is still happening. Now, with that being said, data centers today, you really don't have to make them be in compliance. Most of them that Commissioner Clark was talking about, they are providing information to the community anyways. Now planning and development as it stands now, we're the hub for all of our other reviewers. So that information is probably going to be housed in planning and development. And of course that information will be available to the public at any time during open records.

And my only response to that is that please, the people that vote in this community and the people that live here in this community and the people that send their kids to school here, let them have a place at the table.

Absolutely, absolutely.

That's the only thing I ask is that y'all have a place, that the people that are in this room have a place at the table and have a view and a voice.

Yes, sir. So that is one of the key features of what this ordinance will do. It will allow special exception. So that first team that will come together, listen to the conceptual plan, will accept that application, but it will be brought to this commission first. We will also send out notices or they will send out notices to the surrounding community. Now in this modified version, you'll see 300 feet, but I believe commissioner Cook said he would like to, I'm not really sure if it was commissioner. Okay, said that he would like to see, I think you said 700 or 1,000 feet. So those are some recommendations that you could take to the commission. But those are the type of things that this commission as well as your constituents can have a vote. They will be informed. And that is one of the key features is to ensure that the public participate in this decision.

Thank you, Commissioner Smith. Okay, some additional comments. All right, Commissioner Davis and then Commissioner O'Neill.

And the director I do feel like you've done a great job But I do feel like some of the things that you just mentioned as far as the buffer one of the things I would like to see is a natural buffer of at least 250 feet Also, I think the buffer should be more than 500 feet. I would say between 750 to a thousand I'd also like to do the mailing notice of at least 500 feet as opposed to 300 feet. As far as the decibel level, I would like to see at least, I'm going to say, is that 65 now as a recommendation? Yes, sir, 65. I would like to see if we could get 55.

So we have, so it's 65, and then if there's complaints, there would be an additional six, so they would take it, they would lower the noise by taking it higher. If you go lower, then.

Right, so then, okay.

Yes, sir, so on the page, on page 11, it talks about the DBA. And on the one, it talks about 65, and then if you look at two when testing, and if there's any issue, it adjusts by five decibels.

Okay, I would just like it to be a little bit less initially.

Okay.

I think the recommendation should be stricter from the beginning. And also, those are my main concerns. Also, noise standards. Maybe say we could require acoustic barriers around the generators. And one other thing that I would like the Commission, you know, maybe to see if we could do is, I know that you want public input, so I would like to see if we could have a town hall meeting after hours as opposed to during hours. I think because I just think there's a whole lot more people that would like to have a discussion about this. You know, so I would like to, I just feel like we should not rush this. Those are my comments.

Yes, sir. And Commissioner, so, So the Augusta commissioners wanted to put recommendations in place. As you are aware, we are updating the zoning ordinance that has a data center regulations in it, but they wanted to pause for 45, 49 days to put something in place. And that was the reason for the whole, you know, the moratorium is to put something in place, bring it before, you know, because there's, I believe Augusta, I believe there's two meetings, but they wanted to have three meetings. So they wanted it to come before the planning commission. You know, it would be discussed probably at the committee meeting and then at the commission meeting would be a decision to adopt. So they wanted to put something in place for the community to protect the community.

Right. I'm aware of that. And my thing is I agree with that. My thing is that I just feel like the community needs a time that is not during working hours. And I would hope that our commission would not mind extending this at most 30 more days.

Right. and do know that we do plan to take the recommendation to have additional public meetings for the zoning update.

Okay, I wasn't aware of that, thank you.

And we will propose those town hall meetings after hours.

All right, thank you. Thank you, sir.

All right, Commissioner O'Neill.

Thank you, Chair. Like everyone said, I believe we're being rushed to push this forward. We were given this information just before our country turning 250 years of age and asked to put our notes together over the weekend to be prepared for here today. I feel a little certain kind of way about that, but... I like the language I'm seeing as far as having appropriate zoning districts. And the reason why I say that, because everything I've rushed to get some type of competency, what I'm about to say, is saying that the data centers, you can hear these things up to two miles away. I'm more concerned with the power usage. If somebody's coming to your area, more than likely to see there's opportunity because something is cheap. i.e. cheap electrical power or compared to where else they're looking. So with the zoning districts, if we're gonna pursue that a little bit more, I think in saying where these things can be and that they're more than two miles away from a residential community to prevent the power load that they're going to use getting over to the power nodes at the communities, because the communities will see a power increase, bill-wise, of 30 or 40%, if we allow them to get that close. And I think that's reasonable, if you want to come do business in our area, whatever reasons bring you here, because we know that the buildup is where the influence will come into our community, building the structure. But after that, there's no one in there, a couple people, so I'm not really looking at this as an employment opportunity. But sure, we need to be technologically inclined to be able to handle AI, work with NSA, whatever resources that we have that are coming here in the first place. But we do not need to shift that capital improvement cost to the public and tell them that this is a benefit to them when their power bill's gonna go up. Because in my business, I see people every day struggling to pay just grocery bills. And we're about to add this to their load. So no, just like we say adult entertainment can be We can say where this is going to be. We will know that this is not going to necessarily impact the residential community as greatly as it will if we allow these things to be anywhere near. And Commissioner Davis, you said it. You said it right, 1,500 feet. But it needs to be a couple miles now. And if you're asking me to make a decision right now, that's the way I'm going to go. We've invested the power with the commissioners to... Make the call. We need a little bit more time to get this right towards your point. Asking me to do this and be prepared over a holiday weekend was a little bit rough. And I don't want to make the call here that's going to put pressure on our senior citizens or my young families or anybody else in this community. When I know these people who have these businesses that are making money off of us, I'm going to be quiet now.

All right, thank you, Commissioner O'Neill.

May I just add a comment?

Absolutely.

I just wanted to say thank you so much, Commissioner. I appreciate the passion. Again, the reason why we brought this to the commissioners is because we have split zoning on one parcel. That means that any resident, not any, but some residents are in jeopardy of having any chemical plant right next to them. And that's the reason why we are proposing to put it in, is it going in the industrial corridors? We're putting it in the industrial district. We are... updating the zoning ordinance, we're cleaning up some of those parcel that has split parcels on them, excuse me, split zoning on them. And these are the dangers that we have found and we are trying to ensure that our residential areas are secured from not just data centers but any chemical plant. And right now, that's not happening. So your planning department, I just want you guys to know that I inherited some very intelligent, smart individuals. Your planners are master level urban planners. I don't know if you guys knew that. But you have people in your department with legal degrees, legal study degrees. We are the professionals that guard this community. And as we update our zoning ordinance to modernize things, you're gonna see a big difference. But what's been happening is that we've been operating with a ordinance that's probably older than everyone that's sitting up here. And so with that being said, we wanna make sure that you're protected because looking at your zoning ordinance right now, what we've seen is agricultural and light industrial is on the same parcel. That's jeopardizing a farmland. So when we bring that into the highest and best use, we can separate the two. to ensure that our residential stays where it is and then make our industrial corridors and our industrial plants where they are. And I'm not saying that a data center is a chemical plant. I'm saying that it has a lot of technology. As a matter of fact, I know I'm smiling, but if you have smartphones, smart cars, smart homes, smart everything. We have created data centers. We have done that because we want life better, faster, all that. And so I just wanted you to know what we're working on to make sure that we are following the vision of the community.

I just want to give you a little bit more time. So once I hear what they have to say, I'm still gonna stand to give you all more time and to delay this action and give it to the commissioners and let them handle where they need to handle it in their purview.

All right, thank you, Commissioner O'Neill. All right, commissioners, let's give our final comments so we can give some time to the public to give us their comments. Commissioner Cook.

I'd just like to reiterate that I don't believe we're meeting the definition of public hearing when it comes to this issue from a legal perspective, even though I'm not a lawyer, I'm an armchair lawyer. I wish we would consider evaluating that in this process so that we can make sure the public has a true public comment, period. Thank you.

OK, yeah, that's a good comment. So can we defer to legal to see if this is this the appropriate time to allow the public to comment or should we be advocating for a separate public meeting?

We need to let the public speak.

Okay, all right. Okay, so is there anyone in the audience who would like to give some brief comments? If so, if you could just approach the podium in an orderly fashion. Because of the number of individuals, if you could just be considerate, keep your comments brief to about two or three minutes. When you approach the podium, if you would give us your name and your county of residence.

And just because, I'm sorry, just because this is probably going to take a moment, if you all could sit on the front row, that way everybody doesn't have to stand up and then just go in order of the seat. The front row probably would be easier if we were all on one row.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Good afternoon, Angela Backus, Richmond County. I agree with a lot of you up here. I think it's premature at this time to put forth a draft ordinance regarding data centers. Enough data and information has not been collected and evaluated to make a responsible assessment. How will the placement of these data centers affect human life with the constant noise and vibration? And I was thinking about it while sitting in the audience, that's one thing I realized during the hurricane when our power went out, how quiet your house was. And those are just little appliances. Imagine a ginormous one right in your neighborhood. What about animals, wildlife, and plants? A lot of conversation has been focused on how much money data centers could bring into our community, but what about the money we may lose? If surrounding properties lose value, we lose tax dollars. If potential buyers don't want to purchase here, that's money lost too. What about the cost of upgraded power lines that I believe are handed down to our community rather than paid for by the business owner? Another big concern is the feeling that this process is being rushed and limited public input. It's a little reminiscent for me of the Renovatio Solutions project on Dixon Airline Road three years ago, where planning and development accidentally placed a tiny rezoning sign on the wrong road, and our community was told it was too late. The zoning couldn't be reversed. The first portion of the QTS project was rezoned during this same time period, and there are similar concerns with that. So not only do I believe that this moratorium should be extended at this time, I believe a recommendation to include any parts of the QTS project that have not already been fully approved by our commission be included in that. This will protect not only our community, but also real estate agents from potential litigation for failure to disclose. Because if our community was supposed to be aware of this project because of a tiny sign placed on a busy road, then by that same logic, real estate agents should have been, they should have been informed as well and informed potential buyers. It will protect the potential loss of wetlands, which QTS has proposed purchasing in Alabama as a replacement. What does that do for us in Augusta? How does it affect the aqueduct during its initial filling? We don't have answers to these questions yet. And so again, not only do I think that the moratorium needs to be extended on all data centers, but I think it does need to include those parts of the project that QTS has not had fully approved yet. And I'm not sure how it could be fully approved, all sections of it, because they still have not received approval from the Army Corps of Engineers. They still, as far as I know, they mentioned it at the town hall in February. They have not received approval from the city of Grovetown or Columbia County for their parts. And my understanding, that's where the water reservoir goes. So if those pieces aren't approved, then how can we have approved the entire project? So again, just to wrap it up, I would hope that you all would put forth not only a request for an extension on the moratorium, but also to include all parts of the QTS data center that has not fully been approved. Thank you.

Chairman Pooser. Thank you. Yes. All right, sir. If you give us your name and your county of residence. Hold on one second.

This is a public hearing about the data ordinance, not about QTS. So please refrain from speaking about QTS. Please talk about what you saw in the ordinance you would like to change or about how you're upset, but please refrain from speaking about specific projects that are not on the agenda.

All right, thank you for that clarification. All right, sir, you may continue.

Well, greetings, everyone. My name is Dr. Lawrence L. Freeman, Jr., and I reside at 534 Laney Walker Boulevard, Augusta, Georgia. Now, my thoughts on it is I think we should rethink it about the data center because I do have proof in my phone that my uh colleague and manager he's with um you know he he does um cyber security so he sent me the videos about how data centers work you talking about augusta they came you know we came to survive a flood but tell my data centers you talk about um okay we got savannah river we got Lake Armstead and surrounding lakes. And we all know that's power and that's water. And they flood, they feed off it. But at my phone I have whether it was a river or a lake, And all that data center did was just suck it dry. And then it sink holes in a woman's yard. And then you talk about we got our elderlies, we got our babies, we got the cook. And it was water coming out, rust, dirt inside the faucet. So I think y'all need to rethink this. Yeah, we knew it was going to bring money, but rethink it because we ain't going to be able to handle it.

All right. Thank you, sir. All right, next.

Good afternoon. My name is Gayla Kesey. I am co-president of the League of Women Voters of the CSRA. And we've been following this since we learned about the ordinance revision process. My comments about the proposed data center ordinance itself, not about any individual project, First, thanks to the staff for the considerable work that's gone into this draft. You were put on a timeline that should not have happened. Attorney Plunkett said you could get this done in 49 days. He didn't have to work with it. You should have gotten an extension and we definitely think you need to because you were put under an extraordinary amount of time to get this done and y'all can't even get a chance to look at it because it was, we didn't see this thing until Thursday before holiday how do we that means I had to go through it over the holiday all right the next thing is after reviewing that ordinance and listening today to both the pre-meeting and this discussion We believe it's being advanced and we agree it's being advanced way too fast before several important issues are fully resolved. Commissioners themselves raised buffer distances, notification issues, infrastructure funding and water use issues today. We respectfully recommend this ordinance not move forward with final approval from this board. until reflects further input on these issues. And I want to be precise about those buffers. Since several numbers are in play, as drafted, the ordinance requires a 500-foot buffer from residential property reducible to 300 feet if the developer builds a berm. But public notice is only required within 300 feet. That means residents, the ordinance itself says need protection, would never receive notice of the hearing. because as we noticed, documented data center noise complaints in other communities extend well over one mile. We recommend raising the buffer to 1500 feet. with notice extended to at least one mile and community information meetings held before the hearing, any hearing. We offer four additional recommendations. First, require a decommissioning bond equal to 125% of an independent third party restoration estimate posted before construction begins. As drafted, the restoration obligation, if a facility is abandoned, falls to whatever entity holds the permit at that time, which may be worth nothing. Without a funded bond, taxpayers will bear that risk and not the industry. Second, REQUIRE A PUBLIC COMMUNITY BENEFIT AGREEMENT AS A CONDITION OF APPROVAL. COMMISSIONERS TODAY ASKED DIRECTLY WHERE PROJECTED REVENUE FROM A PROJECT ACTUALLY GOES. RIGHT NOW THE ORDINANCE DOESN'T ANSWER THAT. Third, close the transparency gap. The ordinance should prohibit Augusta officials from signing non-disclosure agreements related to these projects and require applicants to disclose true ownership, not shell companies. Data center projects often arrive under code names. The public should know who's actually asking for the approval. Fourth, apply these standards to existing approvals going forward. We've been told that QTS is grandfathered, but there are things going forward on that project. As drafted, the ordinance is silence on projects already approved under prior rules, any future expansion or modification of an existing facility should be required to meet the same noise, water, and financial assurance standards that apply to new applicants. We also note that today staff indicated noise, travel, utilities, and water standards are each reviewed by separate departments, engineering, utilities, public health. we ask that each department's written findings on these specific ordinance be entered into the public record before final adoption so residents and commissioners can confirm these standards are actually reviewed not simply assumed we also raise a concern about the public comment process The online comment form is a plain text box with no character guidance, no ability to attach supporting documents. For an ordinance this technical, residents deserve a process that lets them engage with the substance, not just react to an unmarked box. Finally, we encourage a dedicated public forum which we have been calling for since February and nothing has happened. Before final adoption by anyone and a scheduled review every two to three years or less so Augusta can keep pace at this technology evolves. These recommendations are not exhaustive. Staff mentioned today that several redlined language would be helpful evaluating changes to this ordinance. The league has prepared a written analysis and it includes exactly that. Proposed language for these points, including a 60 decibel daytime and a 50 decibel nighttime noise limit with an additional low frequency standard and a requirement that backup generators meet the tier four emission standards. I don't have copies of that with me, but I am happy to provide them if you want them. Our goal isn't to delay progress. It's to ensure Augusta adopts an ordinance that's clear, durable, transparent, and capable of protecting both our community and our future investment. We have the opportunity to be a leader in the state and in the nation on how we put our ordinance together. I challenge you. Let's do that.

All right. Thank you so much. All right. So if you give us your name and your county of residence.

My name is Richard Jones, Richmond County, Augusta, Georgia. I come before y'all and I want to ask every one of y'all, have you or are you aware of the United Nations report on data centers? Just show of hands.

But I don't, commissioners, I don't see any. So you can continue, sir.

Okay. What you guys need to do is look at that report from the United Nations. And the professor's name who did the study on data centers is Craven Madani. If you need me to spell it out for you, I can. So you can write it down. I have read it. And it does not give a good report on data centers globally or in the United States. A comment that Ms. Clark made about how it affects livestock. I've seen two interviews with farmers in Wisconsin and in Texas said that not only it affects their livestock, their utility bills went up 30%. Okay, now in reference to the water, our water treatment plant is already having trouble dealing with E. coli in the Savannah River, to process that. So the runoff from Dallas Center's air condition, where is it going? To the water processing treatment plant. Are they ready, able, capable to deal with that? Is my question. Georgia currently has 219 data centers. I got the map of the United States where they all at, right here. Savannah, the great city of Savannah said, no, I think you might wanna take a look at the lead from them and contact them on why they disapprove data centers in Savannah. The environment report, on the United Nations report. I suggest that the general public look at it and read it, and also all of the commissioners here on this panel, because it'll go along with what the lady said down there about what Harvard University study has said. Read the United Nations report on data centers, okay? And I think it will inform you more of the hazardous of the environment, the noise, and that my suggestion, no more data centers in Augusta. Thank you.

Thank you, sir. Anyone else? All right. May you come forward and give us your name and your county of residence.

Lillian Christopher, Richmond County, right next door to the data center. I bought a brand new house out in Haines Station in 2022. And they're still building houses, even more expensive, called the luxury division. And I want to know how can you all issue permits to have houses built there and issue permits to have a data center built in their backyards? I just don't understand that. And then on the other side, which may be Columbia County or Grove Town, they have New Columbia County they have new houses being built out there too right now just like in Haines station Nobody's doing anything nobody's telling these people what they're getting themselves into and I matter of fact I put something up the other day and excellent Beasley if they want to buy my house back you know, because they're welcome to do it. Because if I bought this house in 22 and those people had permits in 22 also, somebody knew something about the other person. And as far as this water thing, this other meeting that they had where the people went to the other week, they want to convince people that they use some kind of a system where the water is used over and over and over. My daughter is a policy analyst in another big city. But anyway, that water can only be used so many times. And then where is all this water going to come from to fill these things up to be used over and over? And then when they get ready to release it, it's the kind of water they don't even want in the rivers. So they're not telling the truth about all this kind of stuff. But to put people in houses, let people buy houses right here. And when the wind blows, all this red dust comes over where we live at and everything. And we hear these tractors and things clinking, clinking, clinking all day long over there where they are working on that thing. And then they say, oh, well, it's not going to be that loud and all this other kind of stuff. That's not true. I've watched videos and things over and over again with people standing out in their yards. And they said, this is 24 hours a day. And you're talking about if they use generators and stuff, What's running the generators? Some kind of diesel fuel or something, right? They don't run off air, and that's going to be pollution. We're going to smell all that stuff when the wind comes and everything else. I don't want to live there. And I don't think it's fair that the builders were given permits to build and then given permits to have that thing built right in our backyards. It's not fair. Somebody should have to answer for that. Like I said, they can buy my house back. They certainly can. Thank you.

Thank you for your comments. All right. Anyone else? All right, sir. If you come forward, give us your name and your county of residence. My name is Donald McNair.

I'm a lifelong resident of Augusta, Richmond County. I stand before you asking, maybe real brief, asking that you consider this. It's going to affect all of us. If you've got kids, grandkids, it's definitely going to affect your future. with the water, utilities going up, everything. They say, oh, it's gonna be 60 people maintaining it, and it's gonna be all of this, it's gonna give all this revenue to the city. Well, you gotta do your homework, folks. You gotta really do your homework. And also, people that are for it, you gotta look at what you're reading. you know, what's it gonna do to us? Like everybody else says, it's gonna affect our future. It's gonna affect your grandkids, kids, everybody's future. So just think about this. Thank you. Thank you.

All right, anybody additional? All right, if you'll give us your name and your county of residence. Patricia Jeter, and I live in Richmond County.

My question is why is it so important for data centers to be built right in the center of residential spaces? I mean, that creates health hazards. You're impacting the fresh water, the wetlands. Why not just put these data centers somewhere out away from residential spaces?

Yeah, that's what we're doing here today. There's a zoning, a proposed zoning ordinance to make sure we can locally regulate data centers. So that's exactly what this meeting is about.

And my second question is, what type of safeguards are you all putting in place that will protect communities that are around these data, you know, before they come? Are safeguards in place to prevent data centers from negatively impacting neighborhoods?

Yeah, so I believe that the proposed ordinance, if you want it, if you request it, it could be provided to you and some of that information may be in the proposed ordinance.

Thirdly, Richmond County, I know they're talking, I and Augusta, Georgia, as a whole, do you all have a limit on how many of these facilities you're going to allow to come? Because Augusta is rich in wetlands, and that's why they like it. our area because the water resources, but that's not good for us. We need those wetlands. So is there a limit on how many data centers will be allowed to come and take up camp in Augusta?

I don't believe we made it to that point in the discussion, but I'm certain that staff will take that into consideration. Thank you. Thank you. All right, anyone? Anyone else? All right, ma'am, if you give us your name and your county residence.

Good evening. My name is Vicki Banks, and I live in Richmond County. It's a lot to take in with this data center. SITUATION. TAKE YOUR TIME, PLEASE. BE THOUGHTFUL. WHATEVER YOU ALL DECIDE TO DO. GIVE IT SOME SERIOUS CONSIDERATION. I GOT A RELATIVE THAT I'M TALKING TO FREQUENTLY AND DOING MY OWN HOMEWORK, ATTENDING MEETINGS, GETTING AS MUCH INFORMATION AS I CAN CONCERNED IN THIS SUBJECT. DATA CENTERS. KEEP THIS IN MIND. THEY ARE DRIVEN BY A LOT OF VARIABLES. Main burial being a power source, electricity. Whether they tie into a power company of some sort, solar panels, Electricity is going to be a driving factor, along with other variables. Just keep that in mind. And it's going to affect the environment down the road. And we don't know to what degree it's going to affect infrastructure, among other things. So just give us some careful thought, please. Don't rush through this. Thank you. Thank you.

All right. Mr. Chairman, Commissioner Cooks, Commissioner O'Neill, are you making a recommendation or a motion that we can act upon?

Yes, sir, I definitely will, but I thought we were following Chair's protocol.

Yeah, Chair's not ready to entertain a motion. Former Commissioner Hassan.

Good evening, Ben Hassan, 3529 Monte Carlo Drive, Richmond County. First, thank you very much for your comments today. Was in a little bit of the pre-meeting around this conversation. I think many of you are all on the correct page in terms of postponing this as of right now because of what happened on June the 2nd. June the 2nd, many people who spoke before the commission, where they was asking for a moratorium for a year to kind of take the opportunity to look at this thoroughly. And what ended up happening at the end of the day, they kicked the ball to you all to say, well, and I think to the directors, Contribution into her that she knows she could be able to have a but she believes you have a policy in place up to about 45 days and extended to 49 days, but that was not the request that's what they could that's what the Commission opted to do and so as a right now, this is not considered But at the same time they were saying what's gonna be public hearings three public meetings. This is considered to be none of those and You know, this is a meeting here by the Planning Commission that happens to be public. This is not a public meeting. This is not a public hearing. And those are the things that should happen because this is one of the most monumental things that have been quite some time and that we're still learning about when we're talking about people's light bill or water bill. I mean, our water bill went up by 3%, you all know that, from last year. And that's because of what you're having at Messner Water Plants and other things for poor oversight. And now we're talking about now 30%, 25% of a water bill increase. We're talking about a county that's 25 to 30% poverty level. So what are we gonna do in terms of not looking at this thing thoroughly? I would encourage you not even to put 30 days on until you are satisfied at the end of the day. You all have become the first line of defense for this county. You are the first line of defense. I think all of your concerns are valid. but there are more unanswered questions than there are answers to real questions. Who's gonna assume these electrical bills? Who's gonna assume this increase in water bill? Who's gonna, the quality of life? All of us old enough to know all money's not good money. All money's not good money. so that you can get to a place that you are comfortable with. And like I say, the director's only doing her job. I think she's a true asset to this county. But at the same time, you all are the first line of defense at this time. And I think that the things that you all say about postponing this for additional information, I think is the appropriate thing to do. And I hope and pray that you all have the fortitude to do just that. Thank you very much for your time.

All right. Thank you, sir. So we have had some robust dialogue about this. AND I BELIEVE THAT THE STAFF REQUIRES SOME ACTION ON THIS ITEM. AND SO IN THE INTEREST OF TIME, I'M GOING TO JUST ASK IF I'D LIKE TO CLOSE THE PUBLIC COMMENTS AND and take some action from the commission. But before we do that, I do appreciate the cooperation and the participation from the public. It is your feedback that shapes Augusta's future. And so I just encourage and remind you to continue to participate on your way out. Once this is concluded, please do pick up that sheet in the back, scan the QR code, and offer up your feedback. like it was stated before it is it is necessary um for um augusta to move forward so so again i thank you and um commissioners we have heard from the staff and from the public and so i'll um commissioner davis and then i'll go to the staff i have one question for the administrator

I know you mentioned that there are going to be some public forums. Do you have those dates as of yet?

So for the amendment to this ordinance?

Yes.

So there's going to be at the Augusta committee meeting and then also the Augusta commission meeting. No. So the 14th and the 21st.

I thought you said there were going to be some...

So that's for the, so we have two things going on. That's the update to the zoning ordinance that is going on simultaneously while we were directed to put this together. Again, that's happening, but the commissioners wanted something in place to safeguard so that no counter industrial plant can go next to residential. So they were trying to safeguard that.

that is what this is but to your point that is the update of the zoning ordinance and you'll be hearing more about that madam director um how do i say this in short presenting public information at a standing meeting is not a public hearing I would like the record to show that. And I recommend that this planning commission object to that process and offer a true public hearing on this issue.

Chair. Is that a motion, Commissioner Cook? So that was just for the record for information. That is a motion. Yes, sir. All right. Could you restate your motion?

I would like to move that the planning commission not support standing meetings for the planning process as public hearings on this issue. And that we recommend to the commission to delay this process to have true public comment on specific data center issues only as public hearing for this process.

Can I add to that, that one of those are after hours? Yes, after hours. Thank you. I second that.

All right, so simplified, I believe the motion is to delay taking action on this proposed amendment until there are some public meetings organized so that the public can have the opportunity to express their feedback appropriately.

Mr. Chair, would there be a timeframe to put that on so that there's a trigger for us to look at the revised document based on that information so that we know how to proceed going forward?

I'll defer to the staff. So it seems like the desire of this body is to postpone taking any action on this so that we can have some public meetings at a particular time and then it come back before the commission for some action. Appropriate timeline, 30 days? Director Cameron.

Mr. Chairman, if I may, I wanted to just give my recommendation and then I'll proceed. But I wanted to, my recommendation was for the proposed data center ordinance to be approved by the Planning Commission and sent forward to the Augusta Commission. I also want to say this document that you see is also reflected in the updated zoning ordinance. So you will have the opportunity to have those public meetings. I don't want to put information out yet because I haven't taken it to the commission. But understand this is information that's in the update that we put together, that they wanted to put something in place because we do have application. Well, we have applicants that want to come in and submit for data centers. So the commissioners wanted some requirements in place. We've looked at areas to put them in the industrial areas away from residential. As we were looking again, we saw that there are industrial sites right next to residential sites on the same parcel. So those public hearings will happen during the update, we just need to get that information. We had to put that on hold in order to get this document out within 45 days. So what you have before you is enough information to hold back and to provide you with information because remember, every application will come before this board as well as the public. And so what we're asking you to do is to move forward with this document to the commission and then allow us at the same time to have those meetings to make those changes that you want to see in that document.

Mr. Chairman. I'd like to say something. I think where we're going here is that this moratorium is going to end in 49 days, and we're not going to have anything. Absolutely. So what I think she's trying to say is that this is not the end all of this. This is going to get reviewed, and it's going to be debated and debated. But we have to get off of first base. And if we don't, we're going to be coming in here and we're going to get submissions from data centers without any guardrails at all in place.

Commissioner Locke, we are the guard. Yeah. Hold on. Let's suspend. Let's suspend. If this is not done, we will shut it down. If this gets beyond us, the commissioners will shut it down. All right, Commissioner O'Neill.

All right. So there is a motion and a second. on the floor to postpone any action until there are some public meetings identified to allow the public to offer their feedback. And so that's the motion, correct, Commissioner Cooks? Yes, sir. All right. Let's take a roll call vote.

Before we take the roll call vote, I just want to make sure I'm understanding. Whether we send a recommendation to the commission or not on a... Sorry, thank you. Whether we send a recommendation to the commission or not. whether we send a recommendation to the commission or not. They're voting on this in three weeks.

Well, like Commissioner McKnight said, they can lift the moratorium if they decide to, and you have no safeguard. As it stands now, data centers, of course, when they come in, we're going to place them where they, you know, appropriately. But you will not know it because as the current ordinance stands, that does not have any special exceptions unless they come for rezoning. And remember, one of the things that we just mentioned is that one parcel could have two different zonings on it. And so that's the reason why they put this in place temporarily while we're working on the zoning ordinance, updating that. But as it stands now, if an application comes in and that moratorium is lifted, and if they go into the right zoning, you will not know about it.

I'd like to revise my motion to include extending the moratorium.

All right, so for how long, Commissioner Cooks, I think we need to put a timeframe in there.

30 days?

Okay.

60 days, Mr. Chairman. 60 days.

Yes, sir.

All right, is there a second to that motion? Second. All right. Okay. So it has been moved and seconded to postpone any action on this proposed ordinance for 60 days. All right.

The moratorium that he's talking about 60 days, that would have to go before the commission. I know, but if you're not even addressing the You have not voted to up, down, or anything. So therefore, if you're just voting to postpone, then that's not going to the commission. So the moratorium would have to be a separate vote, and it would have to go separately to the commission for them to approve or disapprove. So that's not a given.

So let me ask you this. It seems like it's a lot of unreadiness from this commission and understanding that the memoratorium has come from the Augusta Commission and you are at the 40 some odd days. Is it more appropriate to move this forward with no recommendation to the Augusta Commission?

Yes, you can move it forward with no recommendation, and then you can state that you would advise for a 60-day moratorium if that's what you would prefer.

A 60-day moratorium? Right, but at least it would get- Recommend it to the commission so they can extend it?

Yes.

Okay.

Mr. Chairman, my fear is If we move this forward without public comment, the amendment to the ordinance will be in place. At post the 49 days, we will have no way to pull it back. We will have no way to control it. Yes sir, you can always amend your code. But the process with the code takes over 100 days to change.

So no, sir, so I will be bringing amendments before you guys, because there's gonna have to be amendment from the old code to this code. As it stands now, you have no safeguard for data centers. This gives you some safeguard. It's a start, and if you look at what is required, and we do have the line where the public can actually go and put information, comments about this particular piece of document. I would prefer that they would do that under the update in the zoning ordinance, because this draft is a piece of, it's a start. It's a start to safeguard the community. It can always be updated. When I bring an amendment before you guys, you guys will make a recommendation whether to approve it, defer it, take no action. It would go before the commission the very same way. So it shouldn't take 100 days. I don't know why it would take 100 days.

I've only been sitting on this commission for, A long time. I understand, sir. And the public comment process and going through the subcommittees of the commission, including the commission itself, regardless of the other business the commission has, has always taken 60 to 90 days at a minimum. Okay. Okay. So my concern is if we put this out there without flushing this out before it gets to the floor, we're in trouble. Our community's in trouble.

Well, do I understand that General Counsel saw this?

I'm not disagreeing with any of that. Okay. All I'm talking about is the politics of getting things done in Augusta-Richmond County delays the process for the public comment, which is why I argue that this meeting is not a public hearing. For this issue, we should have a separate meeting focused strictly on this change, period. No other agenda items, no public, we can have public comment and everything else about this issue specifically in a separate meeting.

Chair, we do have a motion and a second out there.

Yes, I'll get some clarification from legal about how we stated the motion.

Is there a recommended language I need to amend?

Yes, that's what I want. All right, so there is a motion and a second. We think we captured the spirit of your motion, which would be to postpone any action on the proposed zoning ordinance in recommending to the full commission, a extension of their memorandum for 60 days. All right. And is that in order, Attorney Pitts? Okay, all right, so it's been moved and seconded. All right, let's do a roll call vote.

All right, so we are doing a roll call vote on doing a postponement of any action to Augusta Commission, but also to send a recommendation of approving the moratorium for 60 days. Extended by 68. Sounds good. So Commissioner O'Neill, how do you vote?

Yes.

Commissioner Prince? Yes. Commissioner Davis? Yes. Commissioner Malice?

Yes.

Commissioner Laracy?

Yes.

Commissioner McKnight?

No.

Commissioner Cooks?

Yes.

Commissioner Spencer? Yes. Owens has left. Commissioner Smith? I abstain. All right. And Commissioner Clark?

all right so that uh approval has been what i said received it's been approved thank you guys my mind went somewhere else all right so that has been a program recommendation will go forward to the july 21st augusta commission all right and this could All right, that concludes all our agenda items. All right, anything from the legal session? Nothing for the legal session. All right, nothing for the, motion to adjourn. All right, thank you guys. Thank you everybody for participating.