No Data Centers in Candler County.
Someone bought farmland next to I-16, right across the highway from the Metter airport. They're asking the City of Metter to make it part of the city. That would put it out of reach of anything the county decides about data centers. Their lawyer told the city it's for cold storage and a hotel. Their own engineer's plans say "industrial." We want to know which one it is.
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01 · The Map
Two pieces of land sit side by side on I-16. The one on the right is being pulled into the city now. The one on the left is next, according to the engineer's own email. A skinny strip gets left behind in the county on purpose.
Swipe sideways to see the whole map.
Swipe sideways to see the whole map.
Site 1 is out by the interstate. The Fortner Road land touches I-16, and the airport runway is right across the highway. It's in the county today, but the City of Metter is in the middle of taking it in.
Site 2 is in town. It's off Hiawatha Street, west of Highway 129, inside Metter already. The county has no say over it.
Why the city line matters so much: the county has been talking about pausing data centers. A county pause only covers county land. Once land is inside the city, only the City Council decides what goes there.
What about that strip? If the city took all the land, a couple of neighbors would end up stuck, cut off from the rest of the county. So the engineers drew a strip that stays in the county to keep them connected. How that got worked out.
02 · The Plan
The engineer's drawings show big buildings. What the city heard was cold storage and a hotel. And the state paperwork leaves the biggest part blank.
Today the land is farmland. The plans want it changed to Light Industrial.
The drawing is titled "Parcel Subdivision, 990 Fortner Rd, Candler County, GA: Zoning Site Map." It covers two pieces of land, 46.76 acres and 54 acres, about 100.76 acres total. Existing zoning is listed as AG-3 (agricultural). Proposed zoning is listed as LI (Light Industrial). The retail center is listed at about 20,000 square feet. The hotel and fast-food spot have no size listed.
Source: Pape-Dawson Engineers, job no. 2025-262, July 15, 2026 (PDF).
At Metter's September 14 meeting, the owners' lawyer said it would be the headquarters of a Georgia produce company:
"This project is going to feature a retail center, a hotel, a fast-food opportunity and a cold storage warehousing facility."
The news described it as a "nearly 46-acre" project. The engineer's plans cover more than twice that much land.
WSAV covered the hearing. The 46-acre figure matches only the Fortner Road lot. The plans also include the 54-acre Leslie Road lot next door. WSAV reported that the owners, the Moghaddams, run a produce company in Evans County.
Source: WSAV, "Metter discusses future growth and development," September 2026; the site plan above.
Big projects have to be reported to the state so the region can review them. The City of Metter filed this one in April 2026, about six weeks before the earliest email the county gave us.
We've asked the regional commission for the full review file. We'll post what comes back.
This is Development of Regional Impact (DRI) #4695, "Fortner Road Mixed Use," on the Georgia Department of Community Affairs website. Filed 4/13/2026 by the City of Metter. On 4/16/2026 the Heart of Georgia Altamaha Regional Commission decided it "warrants regional review." Size: about 100 acres. Requested actions: rezoning and annexation. Power provider: Excelsior EMC, "16 MW/day at full buildout." The same line repeats for water, sewer, power expansion, on-site generation, and on-site wastewater: "As plans for the industrial parcel become available, additional review may be required." WSAV reported the project's projected value at $125 million when built out.
Source: Georgia DCA, DRI #4695 summary and forms; WSAV, September 2026.
03 · The Data Center Question
County leaders say someone is shopping for data center land next to I-16 and the airport. This land is next to I-16 and the airport. Here's what we know and what we don't.
Three separate records show the runway directly across I-16 from this land: the developer's July 15 site plan, an aerial photo in the County Administrator's own June 2 email, and the county parcel map in the annexation packet. The engineer's July 23 email says a planned road inside the development "will connect to the industrial park."
Sources: site plan, 7/15/2026; email thread through 7/23/2026 (aerial on p. 4); annexation packet (parcel map on p. 8).
We don't know yet. It matches every public description. But none of the records we've gotten say "data center," and none name who would use the buildings. What the city heard was cold storage and retail. This land might be the site, part of it, or just next door to it. We'll update this page as records come in.
The other site Aasheim named is in town, "west of Hwy 129 off Hiawatha St. near the Hiawatha Station planned development." It's already inside Metter, so the county has no say. At a September 14 town hall, Mayor Rashida Taylor said no data center applications had been filed with the city, and she started a resident task force on data centers.
Source: WSAV, September 2026.
04 · The Land Deal
"Annexation" just means a city taking in land that used to be in the county. Emails we got from the county show the developer's engineers spent months working out how to do it.
If Metter took in all of this land, two neighbors (the Monroe and Bowen properties) would be stuck. They'd be county land surrounded by city land. So the engineers needed a strip of land to stay in the county and keep those neighbors connected.
Their first idea was a thin strip of land. The County Administrator said the county's rules don't allow that. The final and official suggestion, approved by the county in August, was a wider strip, about 11.5 acres, partly used as a stormwater pond.
That same email thread says what comes next: taking in "the Leslie Road tract that fronts I-16," the second piece of land.
Sources: emails of 5/28, 6/1, 7/23 (includes 6/2, 6/8, 6/12), 8/4, and 8/24; division plat. Obtained from Candler County through the Georgia Open Records Act.
In July, the owners, Evangelina and Matthew Moghaddam, asked Metter to take in the Fortner Road lot. On September 14, the city's planning board said yes, 3 votes to 2, and the City Council said yes to the first vote, every member in favor. The council has to vote one more time before it's final. We don't have a date for that second vote yet.
The petition to annex parcel 037 021 at 990 Fortner Road was signed July 20, 2026. The City notified Candler County by certified letter dated August 13, 2026, and set a public hearing on zoning the property HOC (Highway Oriented Commercial) for September 14. The county had 30 days from receiving the notice to object. WSAV reported the 3-2 planning commission recommendation and the unanimous first reading.
Sources: annexation packet: survey, petition, deed, parcel map (PDF, 13 MB); City of Metter notice letter, 8/13/2026; acknowledgement form; City Clerk's email to the county, 8/14/2026; WSAV.
05 · Not Yet Answered
These come straight from the records. Somebody should have to answer them in public.
The city's notice says the land will be zoned for stores and businesses (HOC). The developer's own plans, drawn a month earlier, say industrial (LI). Industrial zoning allows very different things. Nobody has said which one is real.
The Moghaddams bought the Fortner Road lot in December 2025 for $1.1 million. The county valued it at $158,296 that year. The state filing lists a company called Evans Real Estate Investors as the developer. No record we've seen names who would actually use the buildings.
Deed dated 12/19/2025, recorded 12/26/2025, Deed Book 329 p. 662. The county valued the parcel at $158,296 for 2025 and $331,938 for 2026. The owners' attorney is Chris Gohagan; Pape-Dawson Engineers drew the plans.
Sources: deed and parcel card (annexation packet); Candler County Tax Assessor record for parcel 037 021; DRI #4695.
Only the Fortner Road lot is before the city right now. The engineer's July email says the Leslie Road lot is next. We haven't seen that request yet.
Source: email, 7/23/2026.
County commissioners have put off a vote on pausing data centers twice: September 8, and again September 21 after hearing from the public. And remember: a county pause wouldn't cover land once the city takes it.
Sources: county agenda, 9/21/2026 (draft); WTOC, 9/22/2026; The Georgia Virtue, 9/8/2026.
06 · Key Dates
What happened, in order.
The engineers survey the Fortner Road land for Matthew Moghaddam.
Evangelina and Matthew Moghaddam buy 990 Fortner Road for $1.1 million.
The City of Metter files the project with the state as "Fortner Road Mixed Use," about 100 acres.
The engineers pitch a skinny strip of land to stay in the county.
The county says no: the county's rules don't allow it.
After asking the county's lawyer, the county says no to the second try.
The engineer's plans for the whole 100 acres say "Light Industrial."
The owners ask Metter to take in the Fortner Road lot.
The engineers pitch a wider 11.5-acre strip, and say the Leslie Road lot is next.
The county says yes to the strip and asks for an official survey map.
The Fortner Road survey is officially recorded.
Metter officially tells the county, and sets a September 14 hearing with "commercial" zoning.
The engineers send the county the survey map that splits off the strip.
County commissioners put off the data center question. A local news site reports the Industrial Authority is courting a data center near the airport and I-16.
Metter City Council passes the first vote. The mayor starts a data center task force. The County Administrator reveals two data center inquiries.
County commissioners hear from the public and put off the data center pause again.
The Metter City Council's second and final vote. Date not announced yet.
07 · Source Documents
Candler County released these under the Georgia Open Records Act in September 2026. Posted exactly as we got them. Read them yourself.