Project Squash data center (Wrightsboro Road, Harlem)
Project Squash is a 200-megawatt data center planned on 325 acres on Wrightsboro Road in Harlem. Its 2026 state filing says Google's Kinetic subsidiary will pay for new power lines and a substation. In August 2026 the county development authority approved a $17 billion+ deal with Kinetic.
Where things stand: A land disturbance (grading) permit request was filed for state review in May 2026; we could not confirm which zoning approval covers it.
🕒 Latest update (Aug 2026): Columbia County's development authority approved a $17 billion+ agreement with Kinetic Infrastructure Solutions, a Google subsidiary.
What we know
- 📍 Where6423 Wrightsboro Road, Harlem, Unincorporated Columbia County, Columbia County
- 🏢 CompanyThe Whiting-Turner Contracting Company (contractor)
- 🏛️ Owned byKinetic Infrastructure Solutions (Google/Alphabet) is funding power costs, per filing
- 🌳 Size325 acres
- ⚡ Power it needs200 megawatts (about as much as 160,000 homes)
- 🔌 Where the power comes fromGeorgia Power; needs a new substation, power lines, diesel backup generators and battery banks.
- 🗼 New power linesYes
- 💧 WaterColumbia County Water Utility · 148,000 gallons a day
- 💵 Cost$1 billion
- 👷 Jobs promised30
❓ Still unanswered
Nobody has answered these in public yet. Can you help find out?
- Is this the same site as the Pumpkin Center rezoning? 🙋 I'll find out
- What tax terms are in the Kinetic bond-for-title deal? 🙋 I'll find out
What happened so far
- May 5, 2026Grading permit for a data center on 325 acres filed for state regional review (DRI #4735), 200 MW.
- Aug 2026Columbia County's development authority approved a $17 billion+ agreement with Kinetic Infrastructure Solutions, a Google subsidiary.
Local votes and rules
🗳️ Public vote
Columbia County voters will decide in November 2026 whether the county can use a fund, allowed by House Bill 439, to give homeowners property tax credits paid for by the Google data center campuses. County leaders say credits could start in 2027.
🤝 Agreement with the company
Columbia County's development authority approved a deal with Kinetic Infrastructure Solutions, a Google (Alphabet) company, for a data center investment of at least $17 billion. County leaders say they want data center money to end the county's share of homeowner property taxes.
⚖️ Court case
A resident filed two court petitions challenging Columbia County's rezonings for the White Oak and Pumpkin Center data center projects. He says the county approved them without checking water and sewer capacity, used an old traffic study, skipped a full regional review and did not properly notify the school district.
🗺️ Zoning change
Columbia County commissioners approved rezonings for two data center sites: Pumpkin Technology Campus near Harlem and White Oak Technology Park near Appling. They denied a third, Byrd Farm, by a 4-1 vote. Developers still need site plans, grading permits and a letter from Georgia Power showing it can supply the power.
📜 Data center rules
Columbia County has a special Data Center zoning district. The county development authority calls it one of the strictest in Georgia. It requires 500-foot buffers from homes, a 65-decibel noise limit, closed-loop cooling, no private wells, shielded lighting and a plan to take the buildings down when they close.
Drag the slider to compare the land before and now.
Where this comes from
- DRI #4735: Project Squash (Development of Regional Impact filing) · Georgia Department of Community Affairs · May 5, 2026
- DRI #4735: Project Squash, Additional Information Form · Georgia Department of Community Affairs · May 5, 2026
- Columbia County advances $17 billion data center deal · WRDW/WAGT News 12 · Aug 26, 2026
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