Prince William County ends by-right data center development
Prince William County supervisors have voted to end a decade-long policy that allowed by-right data center development, drastically reducing the size of the county's data center opportunity zone. After a 90-day grace period, all new data center applications will require a special use permit and board approval. This policy shift is a response to rising resident backlash against large data centers and their electricity demands.
The Prince William County Board of Supervisors has unanimously voted to adopt a zoning text amendment that will significantly restrict future data center development within the county. The new policy, which takes effect after a 90-day grace period, ends a decade-long practice of allowing data centers to be built "by right" in a designated overlay district.
Under the new regulations, the county's "data center opportunity zone overlay district" will shrink from approximately 9,700 acres to 3,500 acres. This change means that once the grace period expires, all new data center applications will require a "special use permit," subjecting them to a lengthy review process and requiring direct approval from the Board of Supervisors. Key properties, including the site of the former Prince William Digital Gateway and land for a proposed high school, will be removed from the reduced overlay district.
Supervisors stated the move was driven by increasing resident opposition to the visual impact of data centers and concerns over their high electricity consumption, which is contributing to rising residential power bills. Despite the new restrictions, the county expects to see 140 data centers built in the coming years, including those already completed, under construction, or with pending applications. State Sen. Danica Roem also urged the supervisors to reject a controversial electrical substation, which opponents fear would attract more high-power transmission lines to the Vint Hill area.