Digital Gateway data center project dies after final developer drops appeal
The massive PW Digital Gateway data center project in Prince William County, Virginia, is officially dead after developer QTS withdrew its appeal to the Virginia Supreme Court. The project faced years of legal challenges from citizen activists and conservation groups, culminating in court rulings that voided the rezoning approval. This outcome marks a significant victory for the opposition.
The extensive PW Digital Gateway data center project, planned for rural Prince William County, Virginia, has been definitively halted after developer QTS voluntarily withdrew its appeal to the Virginia Supreme Court. This decision on Thursday brings an end to a protracted legal and community battle that saw significant opposition from citizen activists and environmental groups, including the Coalition to Project Prince William and the American Battlefield Trust.
The project, which at full buildout would have been the world's largest data center campus spanning 2,000 acres near Gainesville and Manassas National Battlefield Park, received rezoning approval from the Prince William Board of County Supervisors in December 2023. However, this approval was challenged in court, with Prince William Circuit Court Judge Kimberly Irving ruling in August that the rezonings were void due to improper public notice. This ruling was subsequently upheld by the state Court of Appeals on March 31.
Initially, QTS, alongside Compass Datacenters, were co-developers facing two primary lawsuits from the Oak Valley Homeowners Association and the American Battlefield Trust. Compass and Prince William County withdrew from the legal challenges earlier this year, leaving QTS as the sole appellant. David Duncan, president of the American Battlefield Trust, hailed the outcome as a "banner day for the historic preservation community," praising the perseverance of those who fought to protect a historic national park from industrial development. Attorney Chap Peterson, representing the opposition, stated that "truth and accountability prevailed."