Judge hears arguments in lawsuit seeking to halt Amazon data center in Warrenton
A lawsuit challenging the Warrenton Town Council's 2023 approval of a special-use permit for an Amazon data center on Blackwell Road saw oral arguments presented to Judge Stephen Sincavage. Citizens for Fauquier County argue the underlying 2021 zoning amendment allowing data centers was improper and should be voided, which would also invalidate Amazon's permit. Amazon contends the zoning amendment was valid and the challenge is untimely, while the town of Warrenton has shifted its legal assessment to support some of the plaintiffs' arguments.
After more than three years, a lawsuit seeking to halt a potential Amazon data center in Warrenton, Virginia, advanced with oral arguments heard by Judge Stephen Sincavage in Fauquier County Circuit Court. The lawsuit, filed by Citizens for Fauquier County and 10 individual plaintiffs in March 2023, aims to overturn the Warrenton Town Council's February 2023 approval of a special-use permit for Amazon's data center on Blackwell Road, alleging the permit was improperly issued.
Plaintiffs' attorney Dale Mullen argued that a 2021 zoning amendment by the Warrenton Town Council, which allowed data centers, should be deemed "void ab initio" because the town allegedly failed to state the amendment's purpose as required by Virginia statute. If the amendment is voided, all permits based on it, including Amazon's, would also be invalidated.
Amazon, represented by attorney Matt Westover, countered that the zoning amendment was valid, asserting that the initiating resolution does not need to explicitly parrot the statute, and Warrenton's own zoning ordinance, which does not require a statement of purpose, should control. Westover also emphasized the untimeliness of the plaintiffs' challenge, citing a 30-day window for challenging zoning amendments, which the plaintiffs reportedly missed by years.
Adding a wrinkle to the proceedings, Warrenton Town Attorney Philip Carter Strother, despite the town being an initial defendant, spoke in favor of some plaintiffs' arguments. Strother stated the town's legal assessment had shifted, supporting the "void ab initio" challenge and disagreeing with Amazon's claim of a 30-day review period. The town council's stance on data centers has indeed evolved, as it amended its zoning ordinance in July 2025 to remove data centers as a permissible use in industrial zoning districts, though this change did not reverse Amazon's existing permit. Judge Sincavage concluded the hearing without delivering a decision or providing a timeline for his ruling, noting the extensive research required for the case.