Photos: Workforce Housing Attracting Meta’s Data Center Workers

Bryan and Angel Crawford initially worked in the nursing industry, but pivoted careers in 2024 after becoming empty nesters.

“We started with real estate and rentals because they are very much needed in this area,” Angel told Business Insider. “It’s very rural here, so when there are fluctuating prices in the market, it doesn’t really hit us because there are never enough houses for sale or rent.”

They began buying older homes and fixer-uppers that year.

“We had a vision to create a mobile home park, and already purchased some land when we heard about Meta’s data center. That’s what pushed us to keep going forward, ” Angel said. “We understood there wasn’t enough housing for residents, and our dream of building more multifamily houses was right in line to do that.”

In 2024, the couple founded Parish Line Properties, which operates 18 homes in the area, including a mobile home park called Antley Pines. Of the 18 homes, 14 are considered workforce housing.

In many ways, Richland Parish is a microcosm of the debate about data centers across the US. Some Americans are optimistic about data centers, citing new jobs, revitalized economies, and the securing of the country’s lead over China in AI development. Others are more critical, expressing concerns about the environment, the strain on utility grids, and how the acceleration of AI could impact the job market.

“Around here, people feel one way or the other about the data center. Either people are excited about the opportunities, or they hate them. There’s no in between,” Angel said. “I see it as an opportunity for us to have more experiences in our area and jobs for our children, so they can stay here instead of moving away.”

The Crawfords opened Antley Pines in December 2025. Despite some locals’ mixed feelings about the data center, the demand for housing is undeniable.

“All the homes were secured by deposits from Meta workers before we even got them into the park,” Angel said.

She said many of her tenants are subcontractors, like electricians, working with Meta.

Although Antley Pines isn’t directly in Holly Ridge, the mobile park is still reaping the economic benefits.

“Location is very important to Meta’s workers because they work six to seven days a week and 12-plus hours a day. They leave around 4:30 in the morning, and they don’t come home until 7 at night,” Angel said.

That kind of routine can take a toll on workers, many of whom are not from the area.

“One of the big things my tenants tell me is that if they live in Dallas and it’s 30 miles to work, it takes about 30 minutes. Well, in rural areas, 30 miles could take 60 minutes because of all the back roads and little towns you have to go through,” she said. “The closer they can get to the job site, the better.”

Antley Pines offers fully furnished four-bedroom, two-bathroom homes, which Angel said gives workers the option of staying with family or rooming with colleagues. She said the homes, which come with amenities, cost an average of $3,000 a month with utilities.

“I don’t have any problem with getting tenants in those homes at that price point,” Angel said. “Before Meta arrived, an unfurnished house without utilities in the same area would probably go for around $1,200 to $1,500 a month.”

In Richland Parish, the median household income was around $53,000 in 2024.

“We’ve assured our local long-term tenants that we won’t increase their rent. That’s not what we’re about. We’re not going to put local tenants in a bind. We’re going to find different and new properties to help with workforce housing,” she said.

Angel said there are a few common requests among the construction and operational workers under Meta.

“As soon as they get into their rentals, ‘What’s the WiFi password?’ is their first question,” Angel said. “Some don’t have their family here, so they want to do FaceTime.”

The tenants also value an escape from the bustling construction site.

“They’re with a lot of people all day long. They don’t want to come home to a lot of noise,” Angel said. “All of them say they love the peace and quiet.”

The demand for lodging in the area has continued to grow, Angel said.

“I get phone calls or text messages almost daily. Most of them are from my current tenants who have met someone who’s looking for somewhere to stay,” she said. “If you go on any of the websites, like Realtor.com, not all local rental properties are listed on there.”

That’s what led her to create StayNELA, a third-party website connecting tenants with property owners in 2025.

“I did a lot of research for several months by driving around the area and looking at all the different signs in people’s yards or at four-way stops that you couldn’t read properly. I kept a log, took pictures, and kept them in a folder on my phone. If anything was on Facebook about a rental, I saved it.”

While some construction workers traveled to work on Meta’s data center, others were locals leveraging the opportunity that arrived in their backyard, Angel said.

“A lot of young men in this area work offshore at oil rigs, so it’s a lot of time spent away from home,” she said. “We know a lot of young people who are working at the construction site right now who would usually be off working away from home.”

She added, “Hopefully, it’ll bring more jobs to the area for our kids and grandkids.”

Construction on Meta’s data center is expected to continue for several years, but there’s uncertainty among workers about how long they’ll be in Richland Parish.

“Most of them don’t know how long they’re going to be here. They hope they’re going to be here long-term, but in construction, they don’t get told until it’s done,” Angel said.

Month-to-month leasing is among the top requests from tenants.

Although Meta’s presence in Richland Parish has become the new normal, it won’t last forever.

The data center will eventually become operational, meaning construction will wane, and workers will leave. The Crawfords have thought about a future without Meta, and they’re not worried.

“Each home in our mobile park is on one-fourth of an acre. After Meta’s gone, we can sell them individually or rent them out,” Angel said.

For now, though, they’re focused on the economic benefits that have come to Richland Parish from the data center project.

“We’ve seen a lot of laundromats, RV parks, and mobile home parks come to the area,” Angel said. “It’s great for the economy in our area because people who we’ve worked with who install electrical systems, septic systems, plumbing, gravel, and all those things are busy because Meta’s here.”