The server farm will be one of four in Manassas and will have three buildings. Post says that the construction has caused significant issues for his business. “The blasting has caused our sprinkler standpipe to shift in the ground, and a truck damaged our portico. It has cost me $2,900 in repairs,” he said. “There have been instances where the blasting has disrupted funeral [ceremonies]. During a funeral, a minister was giving a eulogy, and without any warning, they let off a giant explosion. Then, the fire alarm went off right after the blast and sounded throughout the funeral.”
Despite these challenges, Post says that the city has been largely indifferent to the struggles of existing businesses in the area. “It seems like the new city leadership is letting the data centers walk all over us,” he noted. “The old leadership would never have allowed this to happen. They understood the importance of protecting local businesses while managing growth.”
Internal city communications obtained through the Freedom of Information Act show that Acting City Manager Doug Keen expressed concerns about how Amazon would respond to complaints from neighbors, saying, “Amazon is not going to be happy about this.” When asked about his email response, Keen said, “Amazon wants to maintain a good public image when it comes to the construction and operation of its data centers.”
When made aware of the internal communications, Post said, “they are more concerned about Amazon than the rest of us because of the amount of money that Amazon is going to be paying them in taxes, and God forbid they have [neighbors like me] complaining and causing issues for the money they are about to make. The city estimates tax revenues from the four approved data centers to net the city between 5-12 million dollars each annually. Keen also expressed a desire to have others in the city help handle Post. “I may need you to meet with [Post] as well; I can’t be the only [City official] that he feels listens to him,” he wrote.
Pastor David Sanzo of the nearby Life Connection Church has also voiced his frustrations regarding the impact of the construction. He noted that construction trucks frequently use his church’s parking lot for maintenance or as overflow parking for their equipment. One weekend, churchgoers were surprised to find construction equipment blocking sections of their parking lot. Sanzo said this creates a potential deterrent for congregants. “People will leave to go elsewhere if there is no parking nearby,” he explained.
“Those trucks are tearing up the parking lot. We’ve put a lot of work into maintaining the parking lot,” he said. Despite those efforts, the giant heavy machinery has cracked the asphalt. Sanzo described how his start-up church is not financially able to fix the damage caused by the trucks. The church just completed a costly city-mandated fire suppression renovation of the church building that shares a property line with the new Amazon facility.
Sanzo sporadically showed mounds of red and black grease around his parking lot, where he says drivers were greasing their equipment. “Thankfully, it has not been tracked into the building,” he said. Sanzo also said EE Reed [the firm building the data center] has placed a fence over the church property that the city acknowledges is improperly placed. The city has said they were going to get EE Reed to correct it, but nearly a month later, the church is still denied the use of its property because of the fence.
“No one from EE Reed or the blasting company has reached out to us regarding their work,” Sanzo said. Post echoed this concern, expressing disbelief at the lack of communication from the construction company. “They are clearly aware of the disruption they are causing, yet they have not made any effort to inform us or mitigate the impact.”
Despite repeated attempts, neither Amazon nor EE Reed President and Chief Operations Officer Doug Peterson responded to requests for comment.
Post said that after he filed a complaint with the city, he had only heard from the West Virginia-based blasting company, but that line of communication dried up when Post told them about the damage Post claims the blasting had caused to his sprinkler standpipe.
Mayor Michelle Davis-Younger acknowledged the balancing act Manassas faces between fostering economic development and addressing community concerns. “We want to make sure that we are accommodating growth while also being considerate of our existing businesses,” she stated. “However, we also understand the benefits that these data centers bring to our community.”
James Arnold, the site manager for EE Reed’s Amazon project questioned whether the construction equipment seen at the church belongs to his company’s construction project “how do you know they are associated with this project,” asked Arnold.
When told of security camera footage showing trucks leaving the church parking lot and entering his project, he replied, “If they are, they’re doing it without our knowledge, [as] we’ve specifically asked them to stay out of these parking lots.”
Arnold’s office overlooks both the church and his construction site with a clear line of sight to be able to see vehicles entering and leaving both properties.
When told of Keen’s statement and asked if the city is playing favorites amongst businesses and data centers, Davis-Younger said, “I’m not. A lot of what you’re saying [hasn’t] reached me, but I wouldn’t say we are. Everybody wants that tax revenue that comes from [data centers]. I know that’s a big draw for them [building in Manassas], but we certainly don’t want anyone inconvenienced or causing undue burden on our residents and churches. So I wouldn’t say we’re playing favorites,” she said.
Post remains unconvinced about the city’s commitment to protecting small businesses. “The city seems more interested in appeasing these large companies than in protecting small businesses like mine,” he asserted. He believes that the city should be more proactive in ensuring that businesses affected by construction receive the support they need.
As the construction progresses, the concerns of local business owners like Post and Sanzo continue to grow. Both are calling for more accountability from the city and the construction companies involved.
“It’s essential for the city to recognize the impact of these developments on our community and to take action to support local businesses. We are not just collateral damage in this process,” said Post.
