Chesapeake moves to restrict data center development, Virginia Beach presses pause

The Chesapeake City Council has taken decisive steps to regulate data center development, unanimously closing a zoning loophole and enacting an eight-month moratorium on new applications. This action follows a year of public pushback, including a recent rally outside city hall where residents expressed concerns about water and electricity consumption, noise levels, environmental harm, and property values. Council member Amanda Newins successfully proposed an ordinance amendment to eliminate "by-right" data center development, ensuring community input for projects with significant impacts, and explicitly prohibited data centers from connecting to groundwater. This decision also removed the Fentress Airfield Overlay district from consideration for data centers.

Similarly, the Virginia Beach City Council unanimously voted to implement a 12-month temporary ban on considering new data center permits. This pause aims to allow the city to develop new zoning definitions and potentially require conditional use permits for such businesses, preventing "by-right" outcomes in industrial districts. Planning Commission Chair John Coston had previously warned the council about the potential for by-right development due to undefined data center zoning.

Both cities are part of a broader trend across Virginia where local governments are leveraging land-use rules to manage the rapid proliferation of data centers in the state. While the moratoriums are in place, companies like Praetorian Fund, which recently purchased a large tract in Chesapeake, and Globalinx Data Centers, which is expanding in Virginia Beach, continue to operate or plan developments. Local officials and residents emphasize the need for thoughtful policy to protect community character and resources amidst the ongoing data center boom.