Douglas County GA Votes 4-1 to Block EdgeConneX's 700-Acre Data Center Campus — Second Denial in Seven Months

Douglas County, GA commissioners voted 4-1 on July 7, 2026 to deny a rezoning request for a 700-acre, 4.4 million-square-foot data-center campus near Villa Rica, along I-20/Liberty Road roughly 30 miles west of Atlanta. Developer East Village Dothan LLC (a subsidiary of EdgeConneX) would have built five buildings on the site; this is the second time in seven months commissioners have rejected a large-scale data center on this same property. Residents brought props and audio clips to the public hearing; even the dissenting commissioner, who voted yes, cited the community’s need for tax revenue rather than disputing residents’ infrastructure concerns.

This lands the same week as DeKalb County’s moratorium extension (2026-07-07–dekalb-county-ga-extends-data-center-moratorium-march-2027), together describing a pattern of Georgia counties along the I-20 corridor systematically blocking hyperscale buildout despite heavy industry pressure to exploit the Atlanta metro’s existing fiber and power infrastructure.