Virginia Beach City Council voices support for citywide ban on large data centers
The Virginia Beach City Council has unanimously voted to direct staff to draft an ordinance banning large-scale data centers and hyperscale facilities within city limits. This decision comes after concerns were raised about infrastructure demands, land-use impacts, noise, energy consumption, and water use. Smaller colocation facilities and subsea cable landing sites will still be able to seek approval through conditional-use permits.
The Virginia Beach City Council has taken a decisive step towards restricting data center development, unanimously voting to direct city staff to draft an ordinance that would ban large-scale and hyperscale data centers within city limits. Mayor Bobby Dyer advocated for the ban, drawing applause from residents in attendance, citing that such facilities are "not good neighbors" and that the city lacks sufficient land.
The council's decision follows an April 8 Planning Commission meeting where commissioners raised concerns about data centers' infrastructure demands, land-use impacts, and noise. Planning and Community Development Director Kathy Warren noted that the commission subsequently requested an ordinance amendment for further regulation. Director of Information Technology Peter Wallace provided a briefing distinguishing between subsea cable landing sites, colocation facilities, traditional data centers, and hyperscalers, emphasizing the significantly greater land, electricity, and water requirements of the latter two.
While the proposed ordinance aims to prohibit large data centers, it will allow existing subsea cable landing sites and colocation facilities, such as Globalinx and Telxius, to continue operating and new ones to seek approval through conditional-use permits. City Council Members Stacy Cummings and Michael Berlucchi supported a differentiated approach, with Berlucchi stressing the urgency to update zoning regulations to reflect that hyperscalers are not a target industry for Virginia Beach's economic development and to address public alarm over their proliferation nationwide.