Butler Snow attorney Tray Hairston recently spoke at Delta Fest, the first-ever economic activation festival for the Deep South co-created by Bill Bynum, the founding Chief Executive Officer of Hope Credit Union and Yancey Consulting, a partnership aligned with building thriving communities. Delta Fest was sponsored by the Ford Foundation, Wells Fargo, Capital One, Goldman Sachs and the Nathan Cummings Foundation. Finance leaders like Bill Bynum, mayors of several major Deep South cities and others attended the conference, which planners have called an “economic activation festival” to map a 10-year plan for economic prosperity in the Deep South. Mayors in attendance included Mayor Randall Woodfin (Birmingham, Alabama), Mayor Frank Scott, Jr. (Little Rock, Arkansas), Mayor Steven Reed (Montgomery, Alabama) and Mayor John Horhn (Jackson, Mississippi).
Hairston’s talk was titled Data Centers, Economic Development & the New Infrastructure of Civilization. He argued that data centers are the invisible heartbeat of the modern economy, powering everything from telemedicine and banking to education and entertainment. Yet, while these digital factories quietly transform the world, many communities don’t recognize their potential to transform their local economies. Hairston’s session explored how data centers are becoming the 21st-century equivalent of railroads and highways: critical infrastructure that connects people, ideas, and opportunity. He confronted the energy paradox and how these massive power users are also driving innovation in renewables, efficiency, and sustainability, as well as water mitigation. He reframed data centers not as distant tech fortresses, but as anchors for job creation, tax revenue, and inclusive growth. For mayors, business leaders, and community stakeholders, his talk offered a blueprint for how to attract, integrate, and maximize the benefits of data centers, positioning even rural communities to compete on a global stage.
Tray Hairston
Tray Hairston is a member of the firm’s Public Finance, Tax Incentives & Credit Markets group and concentrates his practice on public finance and economic development matters. He has served as bond counsel for various cities and counties as well as incentive counsel to developers and companies working on transactions totaling more than $2 billion. In addition, he is a Certified Economic Developer (CEcD) through the International Economic Development Council. In his role as a CEcD, Hairston provides economic development consulting advice to communities throughout the country and site selection consulting advice to companies throughout the U.S.
Hairston has been recognized by BL Rankings, The Best Lawyers in America® for Economic Development, Thomson Reuters Super Lawyers® and Southern Business & Development’s Under 50 Economic Developers to Watch. In 2018,The Bond Buyer publication recognized Hairston as one of the 28 “Rising Stars” within the public finance industry throughout the country. Hairston recently participated in the Harvard University Kennedy School’s Effective Leadership Across Sectors Program, a leadership training program designed and led by Harvard faculty.
