A California-based developer will need to wait until next month for a decision by the Powhatan County Planning Commission as to whether the commission will recommend approval of a proposed data center on Page Road.
The project, referred to as Powhatan Technology Park, would bring a projected $3 billion investment to the 119.9-acre tract located along Powhatan’s border with Chesterfield.
After a lengthy discussion during the Aug. 8 Planning Commission meeting, commissioners ultimately voted to defer a final decision on a rezoning application and a conditional use permit (CUP) request submitted by Province Group of Newport Beach, California, that, if approved, would pave the way for three data center buildings totaling approximately 1.52 million square feet.
The proposed rezoning would change the zoning of the property from agriculture to light industrial use, while the CUP would allow for the buildings to be over 45 feet in height.
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The vote followed over an hour of feedback from County residents, many of whom expressed concerns that a data center will bring a host of concerns ranging from potential environmental impacts to increased noise and traffic congestion.
While the proposed project site is located in what County planning staff describes as a heavily wooded area—and the applicant would be required to implement buffers and other screening measures—some residents who spoke out against the data center plan questioned whether those measures would be enough.
There were other concerns raised as well, including what kind of impact a project expected to use massive amounts of electricity would have on the electricity costs of area residents.
Pointing out that many of the nearby data centers currently in use or under construction are located in counties including Henrico and Hanover, one resident noted “That’s because the wise people live here.” The project, if approved, “would bring nothing good, other than money coming in,” the woman continued, and implored the commissioners to vote against the rezoning.
Objection to data centers, defined as facilities dedicated to housing a large number of computer servers and related equipment, has ramped up in recent years as those living near them have complained about noise from generators, increased traffic and what they view as potential environmental impacts from the carbon-based gases that power them.
Representatives from Province Group, however, countered during the Aug. 8 meeting that the project they are proposing is an ideal fit for the location and would bring little to no impact to surrounding properties.
Not only has new technology significantly reduced the amount of water used in the day-to-day operation of data centers, said Province Group vice president Tim Ramm, but the project would also be expected to generate $17 million in revenue for the County.
“This would be an economic powerhouse,” Ramm said, and would bring high-paying jobs to the County without significantly impacting schools or emergency services.
While Planning Commission chairman Kenneth Hatcher appeared to support the project, he and the rest of the commissioners ultimately voted to defer the decision in order to gather more information.
With time running out on the 100-day window to vote on the application, the commissioners will need to make a recommendation during the next Planning Commission meeting on Sept. 3.
That case will then go before Powhatan supervisors, who will make the final decision.
The Page Road site’s owners, Harold and Christina Ellis, had hoped to turn the property into a mixed-use development with up to 249 detached houses and town homes, with commercial buildings on U.S. Route 60.
The Board of Supervisors rejected this in 2019, and a scaled-down proposal for 180 houses, a 300,000-square-foot industrial building and a restaurant was ultimately not pursued.
