AI will be debated all day, everyday, for countless years to come. The nature of AI and its threat to humanity seems to be impending doom for those who identify as anti-AI. For others, this is the frontier of our future and technology.
AI has been at Wofford for a while now since its introduction to American campus lives. But now, it’s hitting home at Spartanburg, with tech company TigerDC proposing the construction of generative AI data centers in Spartanburg County.
Based in New York, TigerDC has had involvement in Spartanburg before. In 2022, they constructed a Bitcoin mining facility on Jones Road with the help of local sponsors such as Pacolet Construction.
Their newest Spartanburg project titled, “Project Spero,” proposes construction of a 400 megawatt-producing AI data center. Their company claims its technology to be renewable with no recorded strains on local water and electrical infrastructure.
It is not known if there has been correspondence between TigerDC and Spartanburg Water or Duke Energy. If there were to be concerns over the limitations our local infrastructure would face from the center, it has not been publicly released.
Many citizens are opposed to the construction of this data center, which is proposed to start construction in 2027. Local petitions and groups have gone to the streets arguing with the city council in protest of this center.
An online petition against the construction of this center and others states, “There is community concern on how these centers will affect our environment when it comes to water usage, air pollution and how these emissions will be removed so they do not cause harm to the surrounding community.”
With no public release of information on the possible impacts, it’s difficult to trust the company, as well as city council members in favor of its construction. The plan passed a preliminary vote last November, and its second vote was just approved Feb. 17.
It was TigerDC officials who requested the second vote to be delayed. City council officials claimed that the plan was being reevaluated to identify the benefits of the center to the community.
One benefit publicly shared was that this center could provide 50 jobs. This information was shared by TigerDC, and then distributed by those in favor. Data centers are not new to Spartanburg. In the spring of 2025 NorthMark Strategies Inc. introduced the construction of a data center located right off of the city’s limits.
In response the Sierra Club of the Upstate and Southern Environmental Law Center shared insight on the drawbacks of what this center would do to the environment. NorthMark Strategies Inc. had no regulations regarding its air pollution emissions and could create serious harm to the local community.
It’s not unheard of in recent years that these centers are demanding too much of its environment, and taking it away from locals. The stories of people turning on their faucets and no water running is a common horror story as more centers are requiring the water for cooling.
Along with water issues, the stress on the electrical grid from these centers could prove to be devastating. With populations increasing in the Upstate, it can be assumed that Duke Energy’s system is already under more amounts of stress than it was originally built for. These centers would add even more to that possible increasing stress.
“Project Spero” is designated to be built in Tyger River Industrial Park, a property designated to local industrial plants. Approximately less than a mile away exists residential neighborhoods. The possibility of no water running from their faucets and black-outs in their homes could be a reality with the center constructed nearby.
A town hall meeting on Feb. 10 hosted by District 3 Rep. Paul Abbott discussed the implications of this construction. Speakers from all over spoke on what it could mean for the county. Overall, the public still seems to agree on no to these data centers.
The project will go through a third and final vote by the city council in the near future.
