South Carolina meeting turns loud as CEO urges county to take an axe to data center pause

Calls to slow data center development set off a heated exchange at a packed county meeting in South Carolina this week.

What happened?

A proposed 12-month moratorium on data centers became the main point of conflict at a July 20 Spartanburg County Council meeting, with residents and local business figures taking opposing sides.

As tensions escalated, Spartanburg County councilmember Monier Abusaft told police, "Remove them on your own as they speak, because we have to gather information, and we can't do it when the mob is talking," WSPA News reported

Pacolet Milliken CEO William Crawford, who opposes the proposed pause, told the council, "I would suggest to you that the moratorium be surged with an axe." He added, "The harm from a one-year moratorium could last for years."

Lockhart Power Company president Bryan Stone also spoke in favor of data centers, saying some projects can actually support the electric system. "Some people assume data centers must weaken the electric grid, but that's not the case," Stone said.

However, despite Crawfor's and Stone's arguments in favor of data centers, county residents weren't just going to take their word for it. People who live near the South Pine Street project asked the county to slow the process, pointing to worries about "noise, contaminated soil, backup generators, air, emissions, traffic, electrical infrastructure, water use, emergency preparedness."

Council later passed the second reading of the moratorium, though construction on the nearly $3 billion project is still ongoing. Before the meeting, council members also had a closed-door discussion about a pending lawsuit challenging their decision to classify the data center as a minor land development.

Why does it matter?

Data centers power many of the internet services people rely on every day, and they are becoming even more important as AI expands. AI can help utilities forecast demand, improve efficiency, and better integrate cleaner energy sources. 

However, the data centers behind AI can also consume enormous amounts of electricity and water, potentially straining local infrastructure, raising utility costs, and creating new concerns about security, oversight, and how quickly projects are approved. 

Residents are also worried about backup generator pollution and increased traffic and noise for surrounding communities. If a project is built too close to homes without clear planning, nearby families could be the first to deal with any fallout involving air quality, traffic, water demand, or emergency response.

The standoff also reflects a challenge playing out across the country: how to balance economic development and digital growth with transparency, public health, and community costs.

What's being done?

Abusaft said the council wants to understand "the ins and outs" of whether power generation is or is not a real issue for the community before more projects move ahead. Residents are pushing for more than future guardrails.

Some want officials to pause not just upcoming data centers but also the South Pine Street facility already under construction, arguing that key questions should have been answered before the project broke ground.

As one resident told council, "I think you were uninformed when this decision was made, and now you have a chance; this is a chance to press pause." Another asked, "Does this sound like the type of thing we build next to neighborhoods?"

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