Nearly 53 acres of farm and residential land adjacent to the Rockdale Regional Youth Detention Center could soon be turned into a data center consisting of three buildings and a massive power substation. The proposal is outlined in a new permitting request filed with the Georgia Environmental Protection Division, which is now accepting public comments.
Proposed Rockdale Couny data center
The 52.84-acre project requires a federal permit from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers because construction would fill wetlands, ponds and streams on the property. According to the application, the work would permanently impact 0.213 acres of wetlands, 3.30 acres of pond, and more than 1,200 feet of streams that flow toward the Yellow River watershed. To offset the loss, the developer proposes buying more than 21 wetland mitigation credits and more than 6,200 stream credits from an approved mitigation bank.
DC BLOX, operating through DCB Atlanta East LLC, wants to build a multi-building data campus west of Farmer Road Northwest and Lester Road Northwest in Conyers. The project would include three 40-megawatt data center buildings, five stormwater ponds, new access roads and a 383,250 square foot electrical substation. The company says the site would support the growing demand for digital storage and connectivity in the region.
The site sits beside the Rockdale Regional Youth Detention Center and includes a mix of wooded land, open fields and small streams. Engineering documents show several wetland pockets, intermittent streams and one pond scattered across the layout. The project would also add a northern stormwater outfall and a network of interior access roads connecting the three data halls.
State water quality certification is also required.
What DC BLOX says about the project
DC BLOX describes the Rockdale County project as a hyperscale-ready data center campus designed to support growing regional demand for digital infrastructure.
In a company announcement, executives said the site will provide long-term reliability, high-capacity power and connectivity for enterprise, cloud and government customers.
The company says it has secured a hyperscale client to anchor the first phase and expects the campus to reach up to 216 megawatts of total capacity once fully built out.
DC BLOX says the project is intended to strengthen local technology resources, create new jobs and deliver economic benefits for Rockdale County.
The developer has also highlighted partnerships with county officials and economic development leaders, calling the campus part of a broader effort to expand digital capacity across metro Atlanta.
Georgia EPD comment period
Georgia EPD opened a 30-day comment period on Nov. 18 and will accept feedback through Dec. 18. Comments must reference control number SAS-2024-00075.
Non-water-quality construction is scheduled to begin in December 2025. Work tied to state and federal permits could start as early as October 2026, with the full build expected to take about one year.
How many jobs would it create?
It is not yet clear how traffic would be affected or whether residents oppose the site.
The developer has not disclosed how many long-term jobs the facility might create.
