ABBEVILLE — No data centers are looking at Abbeville County and county officials will keep it that way for at least six months.
A moratorium was approved by the Abbeville County Council to have time to learn more about the facilities before setting policy.
Data centers are a big topic across the state, Councilman Charles Goodwin said. He attended a state conference and officials from all 46 counties had said discussions had taken place about such centers and about AI.
Officials need to learn how such centers would affect the county, Goodwin said at Monday’s meeting. He also said no applications or submissions concerning data centers have been sent to the county.
Councilman James McCord also said no one has contacted him about data centers. He is curious about them, adding that he hasn’t done much research about them. He said some use a lot of water while others apparently use little water. They are a source of tax revenue, he said.
The goal is to find neutral information, County Director Brian Moon said. The problem is the technology is changing so fast. What officials find out now might be out of date in six months.
The subject if data centers has been aired recently throughout the Upstate region, according to John Lummus with the Upstate Alliance. The organization covers a 10-county area. He likened data centers to infrastructure such as optical fibers and gas lines.
The first thing backers of data centers are going to do is contact power companies to determine what their capacity is, said Lummus, whose presentation focused on a promotional video about the agency as a means of countering what is perceived to be anti-growth sentiment in the Upstate.
Many people are asking what is going to happen, Lummus said. Everyone is using the internet and are starting to use AI.
The most positive benefit of data centers is taxes. He referred to a Cherokee County project that is expected to provide up to $2.5 billion in property taxes, nearly one-third of the county’s total property tax revenue.
With any proposed data center project, Lummus said backers must be transparent about how much water, power and land they will use. Overall, the financial benefits are hard to turn down for the little bit of impact on services, he said.
“It’s something each community needs to weigh as to the benefits,” he said.
South Carolina is a manufacturing state, according to the video Lummus presented to the council, a video that will be shown throughout Upstate communities. Two residents, Michael Hall and Bonnie Conn, congratulated the council for supporting the moratorium.
Ticket to ride
Interest in transit systems has grown beyond Abbeville, according to Rick Green with the Upper Savannah Council of Governments, who provided copies of a study on public transit systems. Abbeville, Laurens and Saluda are the only counties in the state that lack a public transportation system, he said.
Options mentioned in the report include a nonprofit agency and working with another county, Green said, acknowledging a system that was established in Abbeville a few years ago with help from Matrans of McCormick County. Another option is a volunteer service, he said. One funding option is the county council providing a match for any federal funds devoted to a transit system.
An official with Family First Alliance has expressed interest in a volunteer system, and Mayor Faye Thomas said a public transit system is one of the things she supports.
According to the study, more than 75% of residents in the three counties commute outside their home county for work and more than 2,300 households lack access to a personal vehicle.
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