AVAIO Digital, a Connecticut-based data center developer, filed a federal lawsuit Thursday against Pulaski County, alleging newly enacted regulations targeting its project are unlawful. The 38-page complaint, submitted in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas, claims the county exceeded its authority and circumvented the state's open meetings law.
The dispute centers on Pulaski County’s recent regulations, which were approved this week despite a veto by County Judge Barry Hyde. The quorum court overrode Hyde’s veto following public concern over AVAIO’s planned data center near 145th Street. The regulations, according to the company, create legal uncertainties and jeopardize its “existing business, financial, and investment arrangements.” AVAIO is seeking an injunction to halt the ordinance's enforcement, monetary damages, and access to records it claims were withheld.
The lawsuit also accuses Wendell Griffen, the Democratic nominee for Pulaski County judge, and Justice of the Peace Julie Blackwood, the ordinance’s lead sponsor, of inappropriate conduct. AVAIO contends that Griffen and other officials engaged in backroom deliberations that breached the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act. Judge Griffen, in response, stated that the lawsuit was anticipated and defended the county’s actions as a legitimate exercise of its regulatory powers.
“If they contend that a private citizen exercising his First Amendment right to approach members of the legislative body of the county about a matter of public interest is unlawful authority, then they need to reread the First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States,” Griffen told the Arkansas Advocate. Justice of the Peace Blackwood did not comment publicly on the lawsuit.
AVAIO further argues that the regulations interfere with the federal government’s authority under the Federal Power Act, which governs interstate transmission of electricity. The company claims this makes the ordinance unenforceable.
This is the second federal lawsuit connected to data center projects in Arkansas within the past year. In September, Entergy Arkansas unsuccessfully sued a local resident and the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette over the publication of records tied to Google’s West Memphis data center.
The case against Pulaski County has been assigned to U.S. District Judge Lee Rudofsky, who also presided over the Entergy lawsuit. A county spokesperson did not return requests for comment as of Friday evening.