Jackson Jambalaya

Did U.S. District Judge Henry Wingate coronate himself the Czar of Economic Development for Jackson? 

This little tale of judicial overreach began Friday when WLBT reported Friday: 

Records obtained by 3 On Your Side show city officials have been working behind the scenes for months on a strategy to bring data centers to Jackson, including eyeing Lake Hico as a potential site to create a data center hub in the state.

The documents were obtained through an open record request and show members of Mayor John Horhn’s administration have met with attorneys, lobbyists, tech experts, and others to map out a strategy to attract data centers to Jackson, and to make Jackson an anchor of the state’s tech corridor....

The document states that the 654-acre site of the former Rex Brown Steam Electric Station at Lake Hico is likely “Jackson’s single best opportunity in 50 years to reverse the structural decline of its tax base, restore Jackson Public Schools’ lost revenue, and position the state capital as the anchor city of the Mississippi tech corridor.”

It also states that based on what’s happening in other areas, a $5 billion to $15 billion hyperscale data center at the site could generate between $9 million and $20 million a year in direct revenue for the capital city, as well as $9 million to $20 million a year for Jackson Public Schools.... Rest of article and copy of records.

Such economic development news is usually not made public until after the contracts are signed and the deals are made.  However, the city of Jackson dropped the ball.  The Mississippi Public Records Act allows governments to exempt records involving economic development and proprietary information from public disclosure.   However, Jackson's carelessness meant WLBT got a nice little scoop that caught Judge Wingate's attention.  

Judge Wingate sent out a notice on Saturday night that a hearing on the data center's effect on the Jackson water system would be held Monday afternoon.  Monday came and held the hearing was.  WLBT reported: 

The judge was concerned about the impact a data center could have on JXN Water, and whether the interim third-party manager, Ted Henifin, had been looped into the process.

“Because Mr. Henifin is manager for the water company, and I found out he had not been in the process at all, I wanted to make sure JXN Water was at the table,” he said.

Horhn said no project had been approved, and that any talks on data centers at Lake Hico were still “very, very, very premature.”

“All the things you mentioned would be steps of taking if there was a project, but there is no project now,” he said. “The developer has up to three years to enter into an agreement with the Board of Trustees of Jackson Public Schools to do the examination and [determine] what is the best thing to do on the property, to get the maximum return for the district, the city and the county.”...

The judge directed all parties to attend the hearing, and had several questions for the city, including what was being proposed, whether the city had received a formal application for development, details on the city’s approval process, whether JXN Water could support the project, whether the project would require the court to modify its priorities related to the city’s ongoing water system recovery, and how the project would impact ratepayers.

City Attorney Drew Martin said no project has been approved for Lake Hico, and “there is not even an application for one.”

“There is a developer who has entered into a lease option for JPS to do due diligence to develop the property,” he said. “Is it possible one thing the developer will propose is a data center? It is possible, but even the developer doesn’t know which way it will go.”

The company Martin was referring to was Goel Investments LLC, based in Houston, Texas.

According to information revealed in court, Goel has a three-year option on the 654-acre Lake Hico site in Northwest Jackson.

That property is 16th Section land and is owned by Jackson Public Schools. Article

Well, the cat is out of the bag now.  There is a reason such projects are kept confidential.  How long will it be until the neighboring burbs and counties try to poach this project.  "Heyyyy.... I see you are interested in building a data center.  We'd love to talk to you about the advantages of building it here." Hell, it wouldn't be surprising if Louisiana jumped in as aggressive as Governor Landry has gotten on recruiting data centers.  

There is also the matter of Judge Wingate. Think about what he did.  He forced Jackson officials to show up and provide more information in court on what should be a confidential economic development project.  

Suppose a miracle happens and Jackson manages to land a plant similar to Continental Tire.  Is Judge Wingate going to hold another hearing to force Jackson to divulge more information and determine whether the water system can meet its needs? What project will be too small to escape Judge Wingate's notice?  Is Judge Wingate now in charge of all economic development in Jackson through his control of the water system? 

There is a simple solution.  Ted Henifin is perfectly capable of determining Jackosn's water production and needs.  If there is a problem such as a project that requires a great deal of water, he is perfectly capable of discussing it with the Court.   

Judge Wingate simply went too far Monday and that, my friends, is the bottom line.