New pipeline worries; City fights against new data center; Down-ballot run-offs

Summary

Georgia Today Podcast – May 21, 2026
Host: Peter Biello (Georgia Public Broadcasting)

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Episode Overview

This episode spotlights several pivotal local developments in Georgia, focusing on:

• Down-ballot run-off races following the primaries
• Community resistance to a proposed data center in Maysville
• Farmers' and residents' concerns over a planned natural gas pipeline in Scriven County
• Updates on local business, mental health initiatives, and sports highlights

The tone is informative, community-centered, and attentive to local voices impacted by policy and industry.

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Key Topics & Analysis

1. Down-Ballot Run-Offs After Primary Day

(00:26 – 01:28)

• While the gubernatorial and Senate primaries grabbed much attention, several other state races remain undecided and are headed to run-offs:
  • Lieutenant Governor:
    • Republicans: State Senator Greg Dolezal vs. former Senate President Pro Tempore John F. Kennedy
    • Democrats: State Senator Josh McLaurin vs. former State Senator Nabila Parks
  • Secretary of State:
    • Democrats: Judge Penny Brown Reynolds vs. Commissioner Dana Barrett
    • Republicans: State Rep. Tim Fleming vs. ex-Rep. Vernon Jones
• Run-off Election Date: June 16
• Attorney General:
  • Contested races completed; the November ballot will include Republican State Senator Brian Strickland and Democrat State Rep. Tanya Miller

2. Maysville Residents Push Back on Data Center

(01:28 – 02:03)

• A city council meeting in Maysville about a proposed Northern Data Group data center was rescheduled due to high citizen turnout and concerns about transparency.

• Many residents value the area's rural feel and fear industrialization.

  “We like living here. Everybody that moved to Jackson County moved here because we like the rural environment. We don’t want to live in a big city. We don’t want to live in a city that’s a data center.”
  — Carissa Martin, Maysville resident (01:53)

• Maysville and Georgia more broadly are becoming attractive to data center developers, partly due to eager local utilities.

3. South Georgia Gas Pipeline Concerns

(02:03 – 06:08)

• Kinder Morgan proposes a major gas pipeline ("the Bridge Project") through Scriven County to supply a South Carolina power plant.

• Farmers like Carl Huggins recount multigenerational pipeline disruptions on their land, fearing ongoing soil fertility losses and reduced crop yields.

  • Personal history: Multiple pipelines since the 1950s; “big machines” were a childhood memory.

  “My great granddaddy let them come through in 52 or 54, and then my daddy let them come through in 77 or 78 ... I really thought they were cool, you know?”
  — Carl Huggins (02:59)

  “The water won’t soak in. It just sits there because it’s so packed so hard.”
  — Carl Huggins (03:42)

  “Why should I have to pay for their gas line messing up my land?”
  — Carl Huggins (05:08)

• Fear about eminent domain and inadequate compensation if the project proceeds.

• Neighbors like Lynn Shepherd and Margo Metz express environmental concerns, particularly for water supplies:

  “All of Scriven County is located between the Geechee and Savannah rivers. The concern of it going through our backyard water supplies and irrigation is of grave concern, especially if a pipeline were to break.”
  — Lynn Shepherd (05:39)

• Kinder Morgan’s VP of Public Affairs, Alan Foer, says about half of landowners have permitted surveys; others, like Huggins, resist but feel powerless.

  “I feel like I really can’t tell them, hell no, you can’t come.”
  — Carl Huggins (06:06)

4. Atlanta's Redeveloped CNN Center Reopens

(06:22 – 07:16)

• Celebrated reopening after renovation, with new murals, restaurants, retail, and residences.
• Part of Atlanta’s broader redevelopment and international event-hosting strategies.
• Mayor Andre Dickens highlights economic and cultural aspirations:

  “Fans from across the globe will walk across the street to stay in our hotels, eat in our restaurants and experience Atlanta firsthand. Moments like that require a downtown that is active, welcoming and ready. The center helps us meet that moment.”
  — Mayor Andre Dickens (06:52)

5. Carter Center’s 30th Annual Mental Health Forum

(07:16 – 08:11)

• Continues Rosalynn Carter's advocacy legacy.

• Former U.S. Representative Patrick J. Kennedy pushes for more mental health prevention and early intervention funding in Georgia:

  “We pay for the most costly care because we wait till it becomes a crisis. No surprise if you waited for cancer to be stage four, you’d end up spending a lot more money than if you did much more early on.”
  — Patrick J. Kennedy (07:47)

• Emphasized systemic savings by investing in early screening and community support.

6. Local Business & Sports Updates

(08:11 – 10:28)

• Bitcoin Depot Files Chapter 11: 109 layoffs, 23 in Georgia; company operates the US’s largest bitcoin kiosk network.
• Home Depot Expansion: Growth in professional HVAC sales after acquiring distributor Mengeledorf; $2 billion sales increase Y/Y.
• Nolan Smith Jr.: Local football star and Philadelphia Eagles player arrested for speeding in Georgia; released on bond.
• Atlanta Braves: Notable performance in Miami; highlights include Dom Smith’s “Little League home run” and Chris Sale’s strong pitching.

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Notable Quotes & Timestamps

• “Why should I have to pay for their gas line messing up my land?”
  — Carl Huggins (05:08)
• “We don’t want to live in a city that’s a data center.”
  — Carissa Martin (01:53)
• “The concern of it going through our backyard water supplies and irrigation is of grave concern, especially if a pipeline were to break.”
  — Lynn Shepherd (05:39)
• “We pay for the most costly care because we wait till it becomes a crisis ... if you waited for cancer to be stage four, you’d end up spending a lot more money than if you did much more early on.”
  — Patrick J. Kennedy (07:47)

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Segment Timestamps

• Down-ballot run-offs: 00:26 – 01:28
• Maysville data center: 01:28 – 02:03
• Gas pipeline & farmers: 02:03 – 06:08
• CNN Center reopening: 06:22 – 07:16
• Carter Center mental health: 07:16 – 08:11
• Business and sports updates: 08:11 – 10:28

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Overall Tone & Takeaway

The episode prioritizes real voices and lived experiences of Georgians, giving particular space to rural concerns and community activism. Reportage balances personal stories, expert commentary, and context on policy implications. It’s a compelling overview for anyone tracking Georgia’s evolving landscape—social, political, and economic.

Transcript

[A]

Welcome to the Georgia Today Podcast. Here we bring you the latest reports from the GPB newsroom. On today's episode, we'll review a few down ballot results from primary day that you might have missed. Citizens of the northeast Georgia city of Maysville push back against a planned data center and a new gas pipeline planned for South Georgia may cut across privately owned farms.

[B]

I mean, why should I have to pay for their gas line messing up my land?

[A]

Today is Thursday, May 21st. I'm Peter Biello and this is Georgia Today. While the gubernatorial and Senate primary races dominated headlines this week, several other statewide races are also headed to a runoff. GPB's Sarah Kallis reports.

[C]

Both parties lieutenant governor races will be decided in a runoff. State Senator Greg Dolezal and former Senate President Pro Tempore John F. Kennedy will compete for the Republican nomination, while State Senator Josh McLaurin and former State Senator Nabila Parks are both vying for the Democratic nomination. The Democratic and Republican Secretary of State races are also undecided. Judge Penny Brown Reynolds and Fulton County Commissioner Dana Barrett advanced to the runoff for the Democratic ticket. State Representative Tim Fleming and former State Representative Vernon Jones will face off on the Republican ballot. The runoff will be held June 16. Both Attorney General races were decided on election night. Republican State Senator Brian Strickland and Democratic State Representative Tanya Miller will be on the ballot in November. For GPB News, I'm Sarah Kalis.

[A]

Citizens of the northeast Georgia city of Maysville will have another opportunity to hear from its City council about a proposed data center, this after Monday's meeting was canceled because the venue was too small to contain the crowd. The new meeting is scheduled for June 1. Attendees at Monday's meeting expressed concerns about the data center and the way the city announced meetings at which the data center would be discussed. Carissa Martin says she wanted more transparency from the council.

[D]

We like living here. Everybody that moved to Jackson county moved here because we like the rural environment. We don't want to live in a big city. We don't want to live in a city that's a data center.

[A]

Farm Georgia has become one of the country's top sites for new data centers, thanks in part to utilities eager to sell electricity. Neither Maysville City Council nor its mayor nor the data center developer, Northern Data group, responded to GPB's request for comments. The United States is expanding the use of some fossil fuels to satisfy rapidly growing demand for electricity, much of that due to the spread of data centers. Now a new gas pipeline may be planned to cross one county in south Georgia as GPB's Gillian Magtoto reports, farmers in Scriven county worry about what that could mean for their water and their land.

[E]

Carl Huggins family farm in Newington has grown pines, peanuts and pecans since the 1800s. And in more recent decades, pipelines, which have lived on his farm longer than he has.

[B]

My great granddaddy let them come through in 52 or 54, and then my daddy let them come through in 77 or 78. I was 4 or 5 years old on that one. So I just vaguely remember the big machines, which I thought. I really thought they were cool, you know?

[F]

Sorry you rode so far.

[E]

Riding around Huggins farm, you can see the marks buried pipelines have left.

[B]

Slow down. Right. In this one, I want you to look out your window to the right, right? See how you got that clay coloration in the soil.

[E]

The dirt is rusty red. Above one pipeline. The roots of pine or pecan trees here would damage it. While he can plant row crops like cotton and soy, his yield will be halved because the soil here is compacted.

[B]

The water won't soak in. It just sits there because it's so packed so hard.

[E]

In some spots, he's just given up entirely.

[B]

When we quit farming this little corner, what's the point? Every time we get in pretty good shape, they come back, dig up more

[E]

stuff, and he may be right. Now a fourth pipeline might be coming, even larger than the others. Since September, Huggins and other landowners have received a few packets of letters in their mailboxes from gas pipeline company Kinder Morgan requesting to survey their land. A company representative visited Huggins farm twice since he got the letters.

[B]

She had a map and she. Well, I know you don't want to talk to me, but I'd like you to show you this map, what we're proposing. I said okay.

[E]

The company seeks to build the bridge project, an estimated $430 million pipeline. It will siphon gas from the Elba Express pipeline already running through Scravin county to a proposed South Carolina power plant about 70 miles away. Now Kinder Morgan is surveying what plots of land that pipe can go through.

[G]

There will be refinements in the route.

[H]

I have no doubt about that.

[I]

But that's st standard procedure in these projects.

[E]

That's Alan Foer, VP of Public affairs for Kinder Morgan.

[J]

Once surveying is done, by the end of this year, the company will apply for approval to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. Approval would likely mean Kinder Morgan could acquire private property through eminent domain. Farmers like Huggins don't expect they will be fairly compensated for the loss of fertility on their land.

[B]

You have to put lime out refertilize it because it's all changed. Production's down every year on that right of way. I mean, why should I have to pay for their gas line messing up my land?

[J]

Other farmers are pushing back on the pipeline going through Skevin county entirely.

[F]

We're trying to keep from having mine, trying to not be what they've done to you.

[E]

Sisters Lynn shepherd and Margo Metz own

[J]

a neighboring farm to Huggins about a mile away.

[E]

They own a lake filled with cypress trees and water birds, and shepherd says the Bridge Project pipeline could be constructed yards away.

[F]

All of Scriven county is located between the Geechee and Savannah rivers. The concern of it going through our backyard water supplies and irrigation is of

[E]

grave concern, especially if a pipeline were to break. Kinder Morgan's Alan Foer says about half of the 33 Scriven county landowners it contacted have said yes to surveyors. Carl Huggins has not because I feel

[B]

like I really can't tell them, hell no, you can't come.

[E]

Huggins is pretty confident the company and the pipeline would come anyway. For GBB News, I'm Jillian Magtoto in Newington.

[A]

The former CNN center reopened to the public today as the center. GPB's Amanda Andrews has more.

[K]

City leaders celebrated the reopening of the redesigned landmark building with music and confetti. The center includes murals from Atlanta artists, restaurants, a World cup shop and residential floors. The redevelopment is part of a larger effort to bring people and businesses back to downtown Atlanta. Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens says investments like this help Atlanta host major events like the World Cup.

[I]

Fans from across the globe will walk across the street to stay in our hotels, eat in our restaurants and experience Atlanta firsthand. Moments like that require a downtown that is active, welcoming and ready. The center helps us meet that moment.

[K]

The building first opened to the public 50 years ago. For GPB News, I'm Amanda Andrews.

[A]

This week, the Carter center hosted its 30th annual mental health Forum, continuing the work of former first lady Rosalynn Carter. GPB's Ellen Eldredge has more.

[L]

The forum brings together thought leaders and experts from all corners of mental health advocacy. Former U.S. representative Patrick J. Kennedy spoke at the event. He worked with the Carter center to pass the 2008 Federal Mental Health Parity act that helped Georgia craft its state parity law. Kennedy says Georgia could still improve by investing more in prevention because right now

[H]

we pay for the most costly care because we wait till it becomes a crisis. No surprise if you waited for cancer to be stage four, you'd end up spending a lot more money than if you did much more early on.

[L]

To screen, Kennedy says the savings to taxpayers are not just in healthcare, but criminal justice and human services. For GPV News, I'm Ellen Eldredge.

[A]

Bitcoin Depot is laying off 109 employees as it files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. 23 of those employees work in Georgia. Bitcoin Depot owns and operates the largest network of bitcoin kiosks across North America. The company allows users to turn cash into bitcoin through approximately 9,700 kiosks throughout the United States and Canada. Atlanta based Home Depot says it is expanding its ability to sell H Vac parts and supplies to professional customers. In an investor relations call this week, the company said its acquisition of wholesale distributor Mengeledorf gives it an incredible opportunity to penetrate the national market for H Vac parts and supplies. Home Depot reported a sales increase of nearly $2 billion in the first quarter of fiscal year 2026 over the same quarter in the previous year. Philadelphia Eagles edge rusher Nolan Smith Jr. Was arrested in Twiggs County, Georgia last week on suspicion of speeding and reckless driving. The Twigs County Sheriff's Office said Smith was arrested driving 135 miles an hour in a 70 mile an hour zone. He posted bond and was released. A Savannah native, Smith played at Georgia and was drafted by the Eagles in 2023. A sheriff's office representative said Smith will not need to appear in court if he pays his fines. In other sports news, the Braves faced the Marlins in Miami tonight for the final of the four game series. So far, the Braves have won two of the games in the series, including last night's game during which Dom Smith hit both an over the fence home run and a Little League home run that was officially ruled a triple starter. Chris Sale limited the Marlins to four hits and picked up his seventh win after losing his previous two starts. Spencer Strider is expected to get the start for the Braves tonight. That's it for this edition of Georgia Today. Thank you so much for tuning in. If you want to learn more about any of these stories, go to gpb.org news if you haven't yet subscribed to this podcast, take a moment. Do it now. That'll keep us current in your podcast feed and as always, we're open to your feedback. The best way to get it to us is by email. Send it to Georgia todaypb.org I'm Peter Biello. Thank you again for listening. We will see you tomorrow.

[G]

You know, Every day on Up First, NPR's Golden Globe nominated morning news podcast. We bring you three essential stories. the heart of each story are questions, what really happened? What really mattered? What happens next? At npr, we stand for your right to be curious and to follow the facts. Follow up first wherever you get your podcasts and start your day knowing what matters and why.