SOURCE: Tennessee Lookout
HEADLINE: Gallatin lands Facebook data center
SUBHEAD: Construction has already begun on $800 million investment
BYLINE: Holly McCall
DATE: August 12, 2020
URL: https://tennesseelookout.com/2020/08/12/gallatin-lands-facebook-data-center/
ARCHIVE: https://web.archive.org/web/20200924014732/https://tennesseelookout.com/2020/08/12/gallatin-lands-facebook-data-center/
RETRIEVED: 2026-08-17 (via Internet Archive; live site returns 403)
WHY SAVED: REPRINT #2, and the most telling of the three. A real news outlet with a veteran
political reporter. Two full paragraphs are lifted verbatim from the state press release with
no quotation marks and no attribution. It DOES contain original reporting -- the Project
Woolhawk connection and the just-after-midnight timing -- which makes it the best example:
even the outlet that did actual work still ran the state's copy as its own.
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Facebook, the California-based global technology company, is building an $800 million data
center in Gallatin, Gov. Bill Lee, Facebook officials and Bob Rolfe, Commissioner of Economic
and Community Development have announced.

The announcement, which came just after midnight Wednesday, confirms months of speculation
about discussions for a major project known publicly as "Project Woolhawk" and is the
culmination of a three-year recruitment effort by the Gallatin Economic Development Agency,
the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development and Tennessee Valley Authority.

"Our community made the decision three years ago to pursue technology jobs as part of our
economic development strategy. We are pleased to welcome Facebook to Gallatin, and we look
forward to the positive impact they will have on our city," said Gallatin Mayor Paige Brown.

Construction has already begun on the 982,000-square-foot project, which is estimated to
provide more than 1,100 construction workers at peak. Once operational, the data center will
support about 100 jobs including logistics staff, electricians, security staff and technical
operations positions.

The Facebook Gallatin Data Center will be among the most advanced, energy- and water-efficient
data center facilities in the world. It will be supported by 100 percent renewable energy,
will use 80 percent less water than the average, and, once completed, will be LEED Gold
certified.

Facebook has already partnered with the TVA to bring 220 MW of new solar energy to the
Tennessee Valley to support Facebook's operations in the region.

According a data center trade publication, the first Facebook building is slated to be
complete in approximately two years with the second due 18 months after that.

[VERBATIM OVERLAP WITH STATE PRESS RELEASE -- unquoted, unattributed:]
  - "culmination of a three-year recruitment effort by the Gallatin Economic Development
     Agency, the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development and Tennessee
     Valley Authority"
  - "The Facebook Gallatin Data Center will be among the most advanced, energy- and
     water-efficient data center facilities in the world. It will be supported by 100 percent
     renewable energy, will use 80 percent less water than the average, and, once completed,
     will be LEED Gold certified."
  - "Facebook has already partnered with the TVA to bring 220 MW of new solar energy to the
     Tennessee Valley to support Facebook's operations in the region."