NASSAU COUNTY, Fla. — Could a hyperscale data center be coming to Nassau County?
A company called NextNRG has announced plans are in the works, but local officials haven’t seen any evidence of it.
If you search “Nassau data center” on Facebook, you’ll find several posts made within the past few days.
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Even a change.org petition that’s already gotten more than 400 signatures opposing plans for a potential hyperscale data center in the county.
Residents like Adam Kirsopp are taking note and asking questions about how the enormous water and electric usage the facilities are known for could impact their pocketbooks.
“You know, they make enough money on their own that they shouldn’t have to rely on increasing costs for the residents in the area,” said Kirsopp.
NextNRG announced it had secured a long-term lease on 1,600 acres near the Jacksonville International Airport in Nassau County back in September.
The company said 400 of those acres would be used for a hyperscale data center.
Despite concerns from local community members, Nassau County Commission Chair Alyson McCullough (R-District 4) said there’s been no contact between the company and the county.
“I do not get notified as a governing body of private partner lease entities,” said McCullough.
She explained if the company were to move forward with development plans within county that’s when the government would get involved.
“Every business that comes into Nassau County is required to go through the development review committee process. We have a comprehensive plan, we have our zoning laws,” said McCullough.
Any future data center will likely be subject to new restrictions in a bill currently awaiting the Governor’s signature.
It would levy tariffs on data centers to offset their utility usage and prevent rate increases from being passed onto other customers.
McCullough said locally, new policies may be on the table as well, especially when it comes to ratepayer protections.
“I’m a ratepayer. This directly affects me. I have Okefenoke Electric. How unfair is it that my big goes up for a center?” said McCullough.
For residents like Kirsopp, those state protections would give some peace of mind, but the devil will likely be in the details of the project.
“It’s great for the community when it comes to jobs and opportunities and things like that, but don’t push it off onto residents that you’re gonna see our costs go up because that’s the last thing anybody in this country wants to see, rising costs of anything,” said Krisopp.
Action News Jax reached out to NextNRG for comment on this story, requesting information about the exact site of the proposed data center and project timelines.
We haven’t heard back.
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