Data Centers

Stafford

Stafford Considers Tougher Rules for Data Centers Amid Growth Concerns

By Uriah Kiser

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.

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Stafford

Stafford Supervisors To Debate New Data Center Rules Today

By Uriah Kiser

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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Stafford

Stafford Supervisors Delay Vote on Data Center Rules After Heated Hearing

By Uriah Kiser

An overflow crowd packed the Board of Supervisors chambers Tuesday night, urging elected officials to adopt stricter rules for data centers. After hours of emotional testimony and sharp debate among supervisors, the board voted to delay a decision and will hold a work session next week before advertising new regulations.

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Podcast

Patrick Harders Talks Data Centers, Sudley Corridor, and the November Election

By Uriah Kiser
Harders

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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Podcast

Big Push to Rein in Virginia’s Data Center Boom

By Uriah Kiser
Village Place Technology Park in Gainesville, approved by the Prince William Board of County Supervisors in 2022

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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Originals

Gainesville GOP Candidates Spar Over Growth, Data Centers, and Immigration Enforcement Ahead of Saturday Primary

By Uriah Kiser
Harders/Landrum

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.

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Newslinks

Brian Landrum Linked to PAC That Took Data Center Developer Donation

By Uriah Kiser
Landrum

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.

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Prince William

Gainesville Republicans Pick Nominee This Saturday—Dems Already Chose Theirs in Nail-Biter

By Uriah Kiser

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.

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Originals

Judge Sides with Residents, Voids Prince William Digital Gateway Rezoning—for Now

By Potomac Local News
The Judicial Center for Prince William County, Manassas, and Manassas Park.

PRINCE WILLIAM COUNTY, Va. – Prince William Circuit Court Judge Kimberly Irving has ruled in favor of Oak Valley residents challenging the rezoning for the PW Digital Gateway, a proposed 22-million-square-foot data center complex near Manassas. According to InsideNova.com, Irving found the county failed to properly advertise public hearings on the project, effectively voiding the rezoning approval, though an appeal is expected.

The lawsuit, filed by 12 Oak Valley homeowners, named the Prince William Board of County Supervisors and developers H&H Capital Acquisitions and GW Acquisition Co. as defendants. The plaintiffs argued that the county’s hearing notices in the Washington Post did not comply with state or county requirements and that relevant application materials were not available to the public when the first ad ran.

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Fredericksburg

AI’s Growing Power Bill: Why Northern Virginia May Face Hundreds of Hours Without Electricity

By Uriah Kiser
Village Place Technology Park in Gainesville, approved by the Prince William Board of County Supervisors in 2022

MANASSAS, Va. – Northern Virginia could face more than 400 hours of power outages a year by 2030, according to a new report from the U.S. Department of Energy, raising alarms about the region’s ability to keep up with the explosive growth of artificial intelligence and data centers.

The report, released in July, highlights a significant imbalance: while demand from AI infrastructure and data centers is expected to surge by 50 gigawatts nationally, the U.S. is retiring 104 gigawatts of firm generation—like natural gas and coal plants—with only 22 gigawatts of firm replacement power planned. The gap puts pressure on the electric grid and raises the risk of prolonged outages across the country.

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