Months-long tensions erupted in Hood County Tuesday as commissioners voted to approve the Comanche Circle data center development without conditions — and after a shouting match between the county attorney and residents who spoke against the controversial project.
The court voted 3-1 to approve the concept plan and allow the project to move forward to the next stage of development review. Commissioner Nannette Samuelson cast the lone dissenting vote. Commissioner Dave Eagle was not present for the meeting.
Following public comment, a woman in the crowd asked commissioners how much they were getting paid, implying county officials were being bribed to push the project along.
"Not a dime," County Attorney Matt Mills snapped back, shouting across the room. "You're accusing people of being crooks. I'm tired of that. We don't have one iota of evidence of any of these people taking one dime."
Dozens of residents spoke against the project during public comment, raising concerns about water consumption, wastewater treatment, traffic, property values, noise and potential impacts to the county's rural character.
"I am asking this court to show some backbone today," said resident Joanne Thomas. "Call a bad faith actor exactly what he is. Deny this plan or at the absolute bare minimum hold them strictly to the conditions of his approval."
Several speakers also questioned the qualifications and track record of Sailfish founder Ryan Hughes and criticized his absence from Tuesday's meeting.
"How can we afford a project when the representative, Ryan Hughes, doesn't even have the respect or the courage to come in here and address the citizens in this commissioner's court?" Hood County Judge-Elect Mark Lowrey told commissioners.
"Ryan Hughes is telling this court to pound sand," Brian Crawford, another Hood County resident, said of the developer. "He is completely dismissing, disregarding and disrespecting the authority of this court. I recommend the court rescind the conditional approval and deny the concept plan."
The vote marks the latest chapter in a months-long battle between Hood County residents and Sailfish Investors, the Florida-based company behind the proposed 2,100-acre data center campus known as Comanche Circle.
Hughes was not physically present at the meeting, citing concerns for his personal safety.
However, Hughes remained active throughout the proceedings in the meeting livestream's comment section, posting messages including, "glad you guys are having fun," "Nannette (Samuelson) should check her Armani watch," and "Where do I get my reputation back?!"
Hughes even jokingly suggested he should run for county government.
KERA reached out to Sailfish and will update the story with any response.
The meeting centered on whether Sailfish had satisfied conditions imposed by commissioners when they granted conditional approval to the concept plan in January.
In a June 1 letter submitted to the county, Hughes argued the company had fulfilled all concept plan requirements and requested unconditional approval. If the county did not grant the approval, Hughes planned on suing the county.
The letter maintained that many of the conditions imposed by the county belonged at the site development plan stage rather than the concept plan stage and asserted the project complied with applicable regulations.
County officials and outside legal counsel ultimately concluded that many of the remaining technical questions raised by residents would be addressed during the site's future development plan review process.
During the meeting, outside counsel advised commissioners the county's regulations establish a multi-step process and that many of the engineering requirements sought by residents are not required at the concept plan stage.
County leaders also repeatedly referenced growing legal concerns surrounding development disputes in Texas.
The discussion came just days after Hill County rescinded its data center moratorium following a lawsuit filed by a developer seeking damages and alleging county officials lacked authority to impose the restriction.
Commissioner Kevin Andrews and Mills both pointed to Hill County as an example of the legal risks counties face when attempting to block projects that comply with existing regulations.
"We take an oath to follow the law," Mills told the court. "What does the law say? The law in Texas for decades is very pro- development, very pro- private property rights."
The approval comes after months of public opposition and repeated calls for Hood County to adopt a moratorium on large-scale data center development.
In February, commissioners rejected a proposed moratorium and instead sought an opinion from Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton regarding whether the county has authority to temporarily halt such projects.
However, that opinion may not come until after the November election, according to Mills.
Residents have consistently urged commissioners to use Hood County's unique development authority under Chapter 231, Subchapter K of the Texas Local Government Code to slow or stop data center development while impacts on water resources, infrastructure and public health are studied.
Despite those concerns, commissioners concluded Tuesday county regulations and state law did not provide sufficient grounds to deny Comanche Circle at the concept plan stage.
The vote allows Sailfish Investors to move forward to the site development plan process, where additional engineering, drainage, water, wastewater and environmental reviews are required before construction can begin.
Emmanuel Rivas Valenzuela is KERA's breaking news reporter. Got a tip? Email Emmanuel at erivas@kera.org. KERA News is made possible through the generosity of our members.
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