Data Centers
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MANASSAS, Va. — The court fight over the Prince William Digital Gateway reached a turning point Wednesday as Judge Kimberly Irving declined to stay her ruling that voided rezonings for the massive data center corridor.
Irving struck down the rezonings on August 7, finding that the county’s public notices ahead of December 2023 hearings did not comply with state and local law. County lawyers and developers had urged her to put the decision on hold while they appealed, warning that the ruling could stall plans for 37 data centers on 2,100 acres along Pageland Lane.
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STAFFORD COUNTY — Stafford County leaders are weighing whether to impose stricter rules on data centers, as residents and advocacy groups warn the industry’s rapid expansion is already too close to neighborhoods, schools, and sensitive environmental areas.
On Tuesday, August 26, the Board of Supervisors held a meeting to review proposed updates to the county’s zoning ordinance and comprehensive plan. The changes come just two years after Stafford first adopted rules regulating the booming industry.
STAFFORD Va. — Stafford supervisors will meet today to decide how far the county should go in tightening rules for data centers, after weeks of public outcry and sharp division on the board.
The Board of Supervisors will hold a 5 p.m. work session focused exclusively on data centers. The discussion follows an overflow hearing earlier this month where residents warned of health and environmental threats from the projects, while supervisors split over how strict to make new rules.
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GAINESVILLE, Va. – Patrick Harders says he’s ready to carry on the legacy of the late Gainesville District Supervisor Bob Weir as he campaigns for the seat in this fall’s special election.
Harders, a Republican and longtime Manassas resident, won his party’s nomination on August 16. The Prince William County Republican Committee announced Harders’ win that evening, saying he earned 1,838 votes to Brian Landrum’s 840. He will face Democrat George Stewart in the November 4 election to fill the seat left vacant after Weir’s death in July.
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Christopher Miller, president of the Piedmont Environmental Council, says Virginia is at a breaking point when it comes to data center growth.
On the Potomac Local News Podcast, Miller announced the launch of Virginians for a Smarter Digital Future, a new initiative aimed at bringing transparency and oversight to the state’s fast-moving data center industry. The campaign rests on four principles: transparency, state oversight, protection of families and businesses, and incentives for efficiency. “We call it a crisis by contract,” Miller said, pointing to local governments approving projects without fully considering power, water, or environmental impacts.
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GAINESVILLE, Va. — The two Republicans vying to replace the late Supervisor Bob Weir clashed over land use, data center growth, fiscal priorities, and immigration enforcement during a candidates’ forum this week, just days before GOP voters choose their nominee for the Gainesville District seat.
Patrick Harders, a 24-year Gainesville resident and founder of a regional outdoor lighting company, and Brian Landrum, a historic preservation advocate serving on the Prince William County Architectural Review Board, met in a debate hosted by the Prince William Republican Committee at Guiseppie’s Restaurant in Haymarket, a haunt of the late supervisor. The forum honored Weir’s legacy, with both men praising the late supervisor’s bipartisan approach and focus on putting residents first.
Prince William Times: Brian Landrum, a Republican candidate for Gainesville District supervisor, has said he won’t take any donations from data center developers. But as recently as 2023, he served as treasurer for a political action committee tied to former county board chairman Corey Stewart that accepted a $5,000 donation from a local data center developer. More from Prince William Times.
GAINESVILLE, Va. – The folks at the Prince William County Republican Committee just told Potomac Local News they’ll hold a firehouse primary this Saturday, Aug. 16 to decide their candidate for Gainesville District Supervisor. Voting runs from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Bull Run Middle School on Catharpin Road—and it’s only open to Gainesville District voters.
Two Republicans are vying for the nod: Patrick Harders, a longtime Manassas resident and founder of a regional outdoor lighting company, and Brian Landrum, who entered the race earlier this month. Harders says he wants to carry on the work of the late Supervisor Bob Weir—particularly his opposition to sprawling data center developments. Landrum has called for greater transparency in local politics and recently accused a prominent community leader of misleading voters—charges she denies while endorsing Harders.