Data Centers
Ahead of Thursday’s Escambia County ordinance hearing, the Gulf Coast Against Data Centers organizer talks about water, power bills, and an unlikely coalition of Democrats, Republicans, and Libertarians who all agree on one thing.
Pepper Wimer didn’t start out fighting data centers. Wimer, a spokesperson for Gulf Coast Against Data Centers, first got involved in local advocacy pushing back against Flock surveillance cameras in Pensacola. When word spread about data center proposals in the area, Wimer saw a chance to get ahead of the issue before it was too late.
- “The thing for me was that they’re not built, the deal wasn’t done, so it was important to jump on it before they were installed, unlike the flock cameras,” Wimer said. “I heard about the flock cameras after they installed.”
The Concerns: Water, Power, and Who Pays
Wimer’s objections to data centers center on resource consumption, environmental impact, and cost.
“They not only do they suck your resources dry and of course they’re bad for the environment, but a lot of times the bills will get passed on to the consumer. The people in the community that they’re getting their water destroyed, their water resources destroyed, are also paying for the electric bill for the data centers, and that is just absolutely unacceptable.”
Unlikely Allies Across the Political Spectrum
Opposition to data centers has drawn support from all corners of the political map. Wimer said the fight has connected the community in ways she’s never experienced.
- Socialists, Democrats, Republicans, Libertarians, and self-described radicals have all joined the cause
- County commission public forums routinely run long as speakers line up to oppose data centers
- Wimer credits the shared fight with building trust across ideological lines
“It’s just been shown to me in such a new strong light with this fight because, you know, it’s socialists, Democrats, Republicans, Libertarians, anything you can think of, radicals, we all don’t want data centers. We all don’t want flock either,” Wimer said.
Reception From County Commissioners
Wimer said response from commissioners has been mixed, but singled out two for engaging directly with residents.
“I’m just gonna give a shout out to Commissioner Steve Stroberger. He actually responds and he’s willing to have a conversation, and a few of us had a meeting with him. Same goes for Mr. Lumon May. Both of their aides are willing to communicate with the public and help us talk with the commissioners.”
Wimer also said she was surprised by the level of support shown at the last Board of County Commissioners meeting, including from a commissioner she assumed hadn’t been on board. The board ultimately passed a resolution against data centers unanimously.
Is the Ordinance Enough?
What began as a resolution has evolved into a full ordinance now headed for a public hearing. Wimer explained why that next step is critical.
- “If we can’t get them to do a land development code change, which is the ideal protection for communities, we need something to protect us from these data centers,” Wimer said. “The more that do, and as they should, the more likely that they are to come in the places that aren’t protected.”
Wimer pointed to other communities getting creative with regulation, including requiring independent impact studies and infrastructure-upgrade payments before a data center can move in, rather than regulating strictly by megawattage.
- Escambia County: Public hearing on the data center ordinance, Thursday, August 6. Public forum starts at 4:30 p.m., meeting at 5 p.m.
- Pensacola City Council: Takes up its own measure the following week, August 13
- Florida Power & Light, Duke Energy, and Tampa Electric have formed a new industry group tied to data center development — a story first reported on Rick’s Blog
What to Expect Thursday
Wimer expects commissioners to pass something Thursday, but hopes it will actually curb the kind of development the county is trying to prevent.
“Fifty megawatts is—we’re never gonna get a large scale data center at that level. It’s more than the whole city of Pensacola uses. So that’s why we are talking to them about maybe defining AI, rather than doing megawattage. The AI data centers are what we’re trying to get rid of.”
Wimer said the group is pushing commissioners to define AI-driven data centers specifically in the ordinance language rather than relying on power-consumption thresholds alone.
