TGC Commissioners Hear from Reps of Beacon Data Centers

Tom Green County commissioners heard from representatives of Beacon Data Centers at their meeting on June 2.

The proposed AI data center is being planned for Dove Creek.

Two agenda items on the agenda took center stage. The first allowed for the discussion with Beacon Data Centers. The second called for the commissioners to consider placing a green energy and data center moratorium for Precinct 4, a region of Tom Green County that includes communities such as Dove Creek, Christoval and Knickerbocker.

The item calling for a discussion with Beacon Data Centers was created following the court’s May 26 meeting, when the Precinct 4 moratorium was first presented.

If passed, the moratorium would last 12 months and prevent new construction from beginning on the following types of facilities, including battery energy storage exceeding five (5) megawatts capacity; data processing facilities exceeding one thousand (1,000) square feet; power generation facilities exceeding five (5) megawatts capacity; and associated substations, cooling systems, transmission infrastructure, and industrial support facilities directly related thereto.

The moratorium was tabled at the May 26 meeting, and the commissioners voted to continue the discussion at the June 2 meeting instead.

The discussions focused on land use in Dove Creek. There was also a discussion on water use and what to do with the thousands of gallons of wastewater that the facility would produce daily. The company also presented plans to minimize noise coming from the data center.

The company did say that the data center would create about 1,200 jobs in the area and would also create 300 maintenance and other jobs.

County Commissioner Shawn Nanny asked the representative from Beacon Data Centers to commit to holding a town hall to address residents’ concerns about a data center. The representative replied that the company would be open to engaging and informing the community.