Franklin Springs denies rendering plant, moves ahead on residential wastewater treatment facility

In March 2025, Franklin Springs City Council members discussed rumors of an unnamed industry near a planned wastewater treatment facility. Mayor Moore said the city had not entered into any agreement with any industry and would do nothing without a public meeting. The council also approved accepting a deed from Franklin County for Oliver Road, abandoned by the county, so the city could access and maintain the road for when the wastewater treatment facility is built.

The following month, council discussed a wastewater treatment facility sized up to 1.5 million gallons per day, described as covering 300,000 gallons for Franklin Springs and additional capacity for Franklin County. The mayor issued a statement saying the city had not signed any contracts or agreements with Pilgrim's Pride, addressing rumors tying the project to that company.

By June 2025 a resident asked whether the city was still working on the 1.5 million gallon per day plant. In September, a city official told council the plant being built is residential, and every council member plus the mayor denied that any rendering, protein-ingredient, or processing plant of any kind was coming to Franklin Springs.

In January 2026, a resident asked where in the budget the city's planned spending on the wastewater treatment plant could be found. By June 2026, the council said it would not adopt a moratorium on data centers, crypto mining, or a rendering plant, but stated it had no plans for any of those and did not anticipate one ever coming.