EFFINGHAM COUNTY, Ga. (WTOC) – Three Effingham County residents are suing the county, alleging officials changed local zoning rules to allow data centers without giving the public a chance to weigh in first. The lawsuit was filed in Effingham County Superior Court by Dr. Michelle Finch-Mincey, Lehman Mincey, Jr. and Raymond Carver. They’re asking a judge to declare the zoning change invalid and to stop the county from acting on it. The lawsuit centers on Ordinance 2026-352. Effingham County commissioners gave it final approval on Aug. 4, 2026. The change updated the county’s Permitted Use Table, which spells out what can be built where, and opened the door for data centers to be built on land already zoned industrial. READ MORE: Effingham County residents protest as $20B data center project moves forward According to the complaint, the ordinance “expanded the ability for ALL currently zoned industrial properties to build data centers.” “The Commissioners’ final vote on August 4, 2026, served as the culmination of a multi-year scheme to intentionally hide details about the multi-billion-dollar AI Data Center ‘Project Camellia’ that was negotiated by corporate executives and local government leaders behind closed doors,” reads the lawsuit. In the lawsuit, the three residents allege the county was supposed to hold two public hearings before making that kind of change, one in front of the planning board and one in front of the county commission, as required by state law and the…
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