Residents pushing back on data centers in northern Virginia
Residents in Loudoun County, Virginia are actively opposing the expansion of data centers and the new high-voltage transmission lines proposed by Dominion Energy to power them. A recent town hall highlighted concerns about energy consumption, property impacts, and the routes for these power lines. The Loudoun County Board of Supervisors is seeking an alternate route for the transmission lines through school property, creating a power struggle with the School Board.
A significant debate continues in Northern Virginia's Loudoun County regarding the rapid expansion of data centers and the associated need for new high-voltage transmission lines. Residents are vocally pushing back against Dominion Energy's plans to construct these lines, citing concerns over the visual impact, potential devaluation of properties, and the immense energy and resource demands of data centers.
During a recent town hall in Leesburg, the boardroom was filled to capacity with concerned citizens from neighborhoods like Loudoun Valley Estates in Ashburn. They expressed frustration over a state ruling that greenlights Dominion Energy's project, arguing that data centers have grown too fast and that the Board of Supervisors has not adequately addressed their concerns, with one resident stating, "all of these have been approved by the board of supervisors. They don't listen. Nobody wants this."
Loudoun County Board Chair Phyllis Randall addressed the crowd, noting that the county is striving to regulate data center development but emphasized that moratoriums on construction are not legal in Virginia. In an attempt to mitigate the impact of the transmission lines, the Board of Supervisors is now appealing to the Loudoun County School Board to approve an alternate route that would traverse school property near Rosa Lee Carter Elementary and Rock Ridge High School. This decision must be made before July 20th, otherwise, the original state-approved route through the neighborhood will proceed. This proposed alternative has ignited a "power struggle" between the two government bodies, as some school board members have already publicly stated their opposition to the plan.