Spartanburg County Council approved development agreements for three data center projects on second reading at a special meeting on Tuesday, November 3, moving a group of investments totaling roughly $5.5 billion closer to final approval, according to WYFF. The votes followed a public hearing that drew residents and speakers both supporting and opposing data center development in the county, and the agreements are expected to return to council for a third and final reading on November 16.
The agreements set out the terms under which the companies can continue developing their facilities, including job targets, community benefit commitments and requirements related to noise and lighting. The county says each company has submitted plans to address noise and lighting, and that those plans indicate noise levels after construction would remain below a 10-decibel increase.
The largest is Valara, a 457 MW campus at 4000 South Pine Street, developed by NorthMark and covered by an agreement with Numara LLC and Valara Holdings LLC. It carries an expected investment of about $2.8 billion and a target of 27 full-time jobs, and the agreement would run for 10 years. Council passed it on a 3-2 vote.
The second agreement involves AIB CLT1 LLC and a data center at 389 Tyger River Industrial Drive in Moore. According to county documents, the company has operated a data center at the property for about four years, and the agreement would let it replace its container-style setup with a permanent standalone building. The upgraded facility would have 50 MW of IT capacity, an expected investment of about $1.2 billion and a target of 28 full-time jobs. The company committed $12.6 million in community benefits, and the agreement would last 12 years.
The third agreement is with 300 Jones Road Associates LLC for a proposed 65 MW data center, with an expected investment of about $1.5 billion and a target of 25 full-time jobs. The company committed $9 million in community benefits over a five-year agreement. Both the AIB and Jones Road agreements passed on 4-1 votes.
Together, the AIB and Jones Road commitments total at least $21.6 million toward community projects over their agreement terms, which the county says could support items such as road improvements and affordable housing. The job figures in the agreements are targets rather than binding requirements.
Supporters at the hearing pointed to the investment and the jobs. Christopher Kirby said the projects create a direct path for Spartanburg students and residents to benefit from high-tech jobs coming into the county, and that the companies bring a significant tax base that helps fund schools, roads, public safety and hospitals without creating the same demand for services.
The hearing also included questions. Some speakers noted that portions of the documents available to the public, including legal descriptions and site master plans, were still blank, and asked council to wait until the agreements were complete. County planning staff said the blank sections will be filled in before the third and final reading. Other speakers asked why the meeting was scheduled for the afternoon of Election Day.
Council members explained their votes. Councilman Monier Abusaft, who voted against the Valara agreement along with Councilman Grant DeShields, cited a lack of trust in NorthMark and said earlier promises on environmental protections and community investment had not been met. Councilwoman Jessica Coker, who voted against the AIB and Jones Road agreements, said she supports companies giving back voluntarily but does not believe the county should require community benefit payments in a development agreement.
For the data center industry, the votes show how quickly large-scale digital infrastructure is taking shape in secondary markets. A 457 MW campus, an upgrade from containers to a permanent 50 MW facility and a new 65 MW project together add meaningful capacity to the Southeast, and the way the county combined job targets, noise limits and community benefit payments gives other counties a model to study as final approval approaches.
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