Brookwood Mayor Joe Barger Breaks Silence On Proposed Data Center

Days after the Tuscaloosa Thread reported that Applied Digital Corporation has received a state permit to build a two-million-square-foot data center in Brookwood, Mayor Joe Barger has weighed in publicly for the first time.

In a Thursday statement, Barger stressed that the City of Brookwood has no role in the state permit at the center of the debate and directed questions about the project to Tuscaloosa County's economic-development arm.

Barger, who agreed in early July to answer the Thread's written questions but then did not respond to them for weeks, provided a written statement Thursday afternoon.

"As a resident of this community myself, I care deeply about Hurricane Creek and the long-term well-being of Brookwood," Barger wrote. "My commitment is to always do what is in the best interest of our residents and our community."

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Much of the mayor's statement worked to define the limits of the city's involvement.

"The permit application that has received attention was submitted to the State of Alabama and is administered through the state's permitting process," Barger wrote. "It is not an application that comes before the City of Brookwood for review or approval. Likewise, private real estate transactions are not conducted or managed by the City."

On that point, the mayor is largely correct: the construction stormwater permit is issued by the Alabama Department of Environmental Management, not the city, and the dozen-plus land sales of the 1,300 acres Applied Digital now owns in the area were private matters.

Barger directed questions to the Tuscaloosa County Economic Development Authority, which he described as the lead organization for recruiting and evaluating economic-development opportunities in the county, and named its executive director, Justice Smyth, as a point of contact.

On Friday morning, during a live broadcast of the Steve & DC Morning Show on 95.3 the Bear, Barger spoke even more on this project, giving the DJs a long statement about the secrecy surrounding industrial development.

"Well guys, I'd love to answer every single question out there because I'm very proud of what we as a city are working toward, and at some point will do so. Unfortunately, I'm subject to certain contractual agreements that limit my ability to speak in detail at this point, and that's no different than any other economic development project over the last 30 years.
If you guys remember, Mercedes was a rumor for a long time in this county before officials were able to come to the microphone and talk about it. There's a reason for that. It makes sense and the reasons are important. But I will say this — we are working on bringing more industrial development to our industrial parkway that myself and those in roles before me have fought tooth and nail to get built for our city. Soon enough, I'll have you guys out and we'll answer every question you've got.
But until then, I will say this. I love the city and its people. That's the only reason a person that owns a business would put forth the massive effort and hours I put forth to make this place a better place every single day. Because of that, I would never take action that I thought would be detrimental to or hurt the city.
I can't wait for the day to bring you guys out and tell you in detail, because at the end of the day, this is a story about underdogs. From having to fight for 20 years to build that industrial parkway from Mercedes over to Highway 216, getting Lear and other industrial partners we already have located on that corridor, to whatever holds the future for Brookwood.
Brookwood's an underdog and we fight to make this a better city for our citizens. The future's bright for Brookwood and I am proud as I can be of what we can and will continue to accomplish for our city and citizens."

The Thread reported Tuesday that the permit, ADEM No. ALR10C8B4, identifies the applicant as APLD BHM-01 LLC, with Applied Digital president and co-founder Jason Zhang as the responsible official.

It was the first public confirmation that Applied Digital, a Dallas-based developer of artificial-intelligence data centers, is behind the project.

The filing describes a roughly two-million-square-foot building on about 1,300 acres the company owns around Brookwood Parkway, with an initial land disturbance of about 137 acres and construction runoff draining into Hurricane Creek.

Applied Digital also responded to the Thread's reporting on Tuesday. In a statement attributed to Nick Phillips, the company's executive vice president of external affairs, the company neither confirmed nor ruled out the Brookwood project.

"Applied Digital continually evaluates potential sites in many locations," Phillips said. "No decision has yet been made whether or not to proceed with a project at that particular location."

The statement stops short of saying the Brookwood project will move forward. The company has, however, already obtained the state permit for the site — a 102-page filing, approved effective July 20, that anticipates construction beginning immediately and finishing by the end of 2028. The construction permit does not expire until 2031

.Barger's written statement was more measured than the case he made at a recent Brookwood City Council meeting, where he spoke at length in support of the corridor's data-center projects, touting potential jobs and working to ease residents' concerns about water, power, noise and the nearby middle school.

The project has drawn months of speculation and, more recently, concerns from residents and environmental advocates about transparency and the health of Hurricane Creek.

Although Tuesday's report said the Brookwood Planning and Zoning Commission would take up a request related to this matter on Aug. 11, Applied Digital said in a message to the Thread that they have no business before that body on Tuesday.

For more coverage of this project and other industrial development in West Alabama, stay connected to the Tuscaloosa Thread.