Alabama’s data center industry has a statewide association for the first time.
The Alabama Connected Communities Association, a 501(c)(6) trade association that goes by Alabama Connected launched this week.
The group said it will work alongside Alabama communities to build “a nationally competitive hub for digital infrastructure investment” and to answer the questions residents ask when a project lands in their county.
Cathie Vick, a critical infrastructure executive at Google, is the board chair. Google announced a $1.5 billion expansion of its Jackson County campus in June.
“Data centers are only as strong as the communities that welcome them,” Vick said. “Our members are committed to responsible development, and we want the neighbors who live and work alongside these facilities to have clear answers about power and water and a real voice in what comes next.”
“Alabama Connected brings together the people best positioned to provide both, so growth in Alabama is built on trust and delivers tangible benefits, including local jobs, to the communities it serves,” she said.
Henry Thornton, Community Development Regional Manager at Meta, joined the launch on behalf of one of the first hyperscale operators to bet on Alabama.
Meta picked Huntsville in 2018 with an initial $750 million commitment. That campus has grown to seven buildings, nearly 3.5 million square feet and more than $1.5 billion in investment, with more than 300 full-time jobs on site.
Meta then doubled down in Montgomery, announcing an $800 million campus in 2024 and raising it past $1.5 billion a year later.
The company’s Alabama investment tops $3 billion. Meta has backed four projects adding 687 megawatts of new clean and renewable generation in the state and put more than $4.5 million into Madison County-area schools and nonprofits.
“We believe data centers should deliver lasting value to the places that host them,” Thornton said. “That means listening to local leaders, investing in local priorities, and being a good neighbor over the long term. Alabama Connected helps the whole industry hold to that standard.”
The association said it exists to make sure data center growth in Alabama is “done the right way: working to lower power bills for Alabama families and small businesses, and showing up in better paychecks for Alabama families, not just bigger announcements.”
A PricewaterhouseCoopers study commissioned by the Data Center Coalition found the industry supported 5.5 million American jobs in 2024 and added $927 billion to U.S. GDP. Each direct data center job supported about 4.5 more elsewhere in the economy.
Alabama is competing for a bigger share of that. Lambda announced a $33 billion campus in Lowndes County earlier this month, the largest data center investment ever announced in the state.
Governor-elect Tommy Tuberville campaigned on bringing more of them.
Alabama’s landmark data center law, passed by state lawmakers earlier this year, took effect in October. It requires the largest new data centers to pay the full added cost of the power they use, keeping those costs off the bills of Alabama families and small businesses.
Fort Payne, Cullman, Birmingham, Leeds and Homewood have paused new projects this year. Alabama Connected said it will “listen to community concerns, help separate fact from myth, and give communities clear, upfront answers about water use, power, and noise.”
The association will serve as its members’ unified voice on policy, track local and national legislation, and provide shared policy research and public education resources. It will also partner with community colleges and apprenticeship programs on pathways into the skilled trades.
Membership is open to economic development organizations, general contractors and engineering firms, digital infrastructure developers, data center owners and operators, and supporting industries.
The association said it also welcomes partnerships with local governments, community organizations and residents across the state.
Grayson Everett is the editor in chief of Yellowhammer News. You can follow him on X @Grayson270.
