Five residents of Taylor’s South Side have filed a lawsuit to stop a data center from being built on land they say the previous owners gave to a foundation to be used as parkland.
Pamela Griffin, Ralph Griffin, Michelle Griffin, Corey Griffin and Polly Randle own land that backs onto the field at 1601 E. MLK Jr. Blvd. where Blueprint Data Centers plans to build three 45,000 square-foot data center buildings powered by an on-site electricity substation.
The lawsuit, filed in the 395th state District Court in Georgetown, seeks a temporary restraining order to prevent Blueprint parent company NCP Travis TPP Project LLC from making any changes to the land until the case is settled.
The civil action also asks the court to grant a permanent injunction to prevent any use of the land that is not for parkland purposes.
“I want Taylor to grow. But you cannot grow if you’re going to do it on people’s backs. We have to do it the right way, not the wrong way,” Pamela Griffin said.
A spokesperson for the company could not be reached for comment.
Residents since June have been trying to convince the City Council to keep the company from building at that site with no success.
Some worry about health issues, but others have asked the council to persuade the development to move outside of the U.S. 79 loop, away from developed neighborhoods.
Council members have said their only area of influence involves road planning and some infrastructure issues.
The neighbors are represented by the Osborn Law Firm PC of Taylor.
Griffin recalled she and other neighborhood children were allowed to play on that land in the 1990s. She says the previous owner was concerned about the lack of facilities for children in the area and told her family he would make sure the land was left to benefit area youngsters.
Griffin started looking into the land’s history and said she discovered a deed signed July 7, 1999, giving the 87.797-acre tract to the Texas Parks and Recreation Foundation.
The deed included a restriction that the land was to be held in trust for future use as parkland, she said.
From there, the land was deeded over to the Williamson County Park Foundation in 2003, then to Taylor in 2004. In 2008, part of the property was transferred to the Taylor Economic Development Corp., which sold about 53 acres to the data center developer earlier this year. At a Community Conversations meeting held Tuesday, Aug. 12, at the Dickey Museum and Multipurpose Center, 500 Burkett St., neighbors and community supporters heard an update on the efforts to halt the data center.
Many were surprised to hear they have support from other areas of the city.
“The community has really come out to help. The North Side people, they are as mad as we are. They are moving to help us fight this. We do have people on our side,” Griffin said.
Nakevia Miller, who hosted the meeting, said she was pleased to see the community being more involved in the political process, as well as scrutinizing the city’s comprehensive development plan.
“I have always wondered why don’t people vote? Why don’t people stand up and say anything?” Miller said. “I’m really proud to see the community supporting each other.”
“ The North Side people, they are as mad as we are. They are moving to help us fight this.
We do have people on our side.”
— Pamela Griffin, nearby landowner
