- Georgia Power is using eminent domain to seize hundreds of properties in Coweta and Fayette counties for a $16 billion grid expansion plan to meet surging electricity demand, largely driven by data centers.
- At least 330 properties are affected, with 20-30 homes to be demolished and many landowners forced to accept permanent easements for high-voltage transmission lines close to their homes.
- Affected residents, like Ansley Brown and Cynthia Van Epps, report lowball offers and coercive tactics, with some offers hundreds of thousands below property values and threats of condemnation.
- Residents argue the project disproportionately benefits private corporations, particularly data centers, while destroying their property values and quality of life, with safe distances from power lines not being met.
- Alternatives like burying lines or choosing less destructive routes were dismissed as impractical, leading to public outrage and legal challenges, including questions about blanket eminent domain authority.
- Georgia Power claims it negotiates in good faith, uses eminent domain as a last resort (less than 1% of transactions), and selected the route with the least community and environmental impact.