Trammell Crow Proposes 12M SF Georgia Data Center

Trammell Crow Co. is proposing a 12M SF data center campus about 25 miles north of Macon that will cost a reported $21B.

The developer is seeking to build on more than 1,600 acres on the west side of Interstate 75 in the city of Forsyth in Monroe County, according to an application filed with the Georgia Department of Community Affairs.

The $21B project, dubbed the Forsyth Technology Campus, would be Trammell Crow’s third such proposed project in Georgia, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported. The developer is also targeting an 8M SF data center campus with 29 buildings in Columbia County as well as a 2.3M SF campus at 2912 Post Road in Douglas County, according to the AJC.

The Georgia Department of Community Affairs regularly reviews proposed developments that will have a regional impact on infrastructure.

A spokesperson for Trammell Crow declined to comment. Forsyth Mayor Eric Wilson didn’t respond to a message seeking comment. 

The property owner, H&H Timberlands LLC, is seeking a conditional use approval from the city of Forsyth for the data center campus, according to documents sent to Bisnow from the city's planning department.

The planned facility is proposed to have four gated entrances and will have 500 to 700 employees working there daily. The project will be constructed in phases “over the course of several years,” H&H Timberlands said in its filing. 

The Forsyth Planning and Zoning Commission is expected to first hear the proposal on Dec. 22, with a second public hearing on Jan. 5, Forsyth spokesperson Rachel Floyd told Bisnow via email. 

The proposed size for the Forsyth Technology Campus is staggering even by the standards of recent data center campuses.

It would be nearly twice the size of Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport’s 6.8M SF of terminals and could generate more than $220M annually in local taxes.

The project would also require around 1.5 million gallons of water a day to cool the data centers, according to the application. This would necessitate 4 to 5 miles of new water lines feeding into the property. 

“Water demand for technology facilities vary greatly based on the need for cooling and cooling approach,” Forsyth Community Development Director Dean Nelson wrote in the application. “The design team will work with watershed management and their modeling to establish an achievable demand and adjust the cooling approach as necessary.”

Georgia and Metro Atlanta have been targets of data center expansion in recent years. 

Total data center capacity in Georgia skyrocketed from more than 1.6 gigawatts in 2021 to more than 19.6 GW this year. Data center capacity nearly tripled in 2024 alone. 

Georgia Power is projecting that regional power demand will triple by the mid-2030s. The utility sought permission earlier this year to expand its power grid by 10 GW by 2030, a $15B expansion. The Georgia Public Service Commission is scheduled to vote on the proposal Dec. 19. 

Georgia Power has said the expansion would largely be funded by the data center operators themselves, but critics worry Georgia ratepayers will also foot the bill if the projected data center power demand fails to fully materialize.

The pipeline of scheduled projects requiring new power shrunk by 6 GW in the second quarter, Utility Dive reported, citing reports by the PSC staff.