Bill Wright – 022322 Citizen Press Conference at QTS Data Centers offices
9301 Freedom Center Dr., Manassas, VA
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BIO: Bill Wright-Gainesville Resident
A native of Garden City, New York, Bill graduated from Pace University in New York City with a Bachelor of Business Administration degree in Economics.
Bill served as a Navy Surface Warfare Officer for 25 years. He also served ashore on the staffs of the Chief of Naval Operations, Bureau of Naval Personnel, and Joint Chiefs of Staff. He retired from the Navy with the rank of Captain in April 2003.
Upon his retirement from the Navy, he joined the Transportation Security Administration. In January 2012, Bill transferred to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s new Human Capital Strategy and Technology group. He moved to the Department of Homeland Security headquarters in October 2016.
Bill retired from federal civilian service in December 2019 and moved to Gainesville with his wife Rosemary. He currently serves as Treasurer for the Gainesville Magisterial District Democratic Committee.
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Let me tell you about our good neighbor QTS.
The QTS website says “QTS has made a commitment to corporate responsibility through our key Environmental, Social and Governance initiatives.” Is sandwiching an 800-acre industrial development between a national park and a state forest QTS’s idea of environmental responsibility?
Yet QTS doubles down on their blatant hypocrisy. Their website states: “Our commitment to environmental sustainability, social accountability and corporate governance, rooted in sound and trusted core values, has never wavered, and we will continue to demonstrate this through an increased dedication to transparency and data-backed performance.”
Former Manassas National Battlefield Park Superintendent Brandon Bies called the Prince William Digital Gateway proposal “the single greatest threat to Manassas National Battlefield Park in nearly three decades.” Manassas Battlefield Trust President Joseph Eaves said: “It is a grievous insult to those who sacrificed – particularly when there is available land in Prince William County that is already allotted for data centers.” The Virginia Department of Forestry wrote: “we believe that converting the proposed Area from Rural, Non-Developmental will have a negative impact on the forest resources within the Proposed Area, the Bull Run Watershed, and the adjacent forestland in the Conway Robinson State Forest and Manassas National Battlefield Park.”
Even noted filmmaker and historian Ken Burns weighed in on the proposal, writing: “I implore you to seek more appropriate options for this planned development.” QTS’s tone-deaf, greed-centric response is: “This is a unique opportunity to play a role in what could be the most significant economic development initiative in the county’s history.” Uniquely bad.
QTS’ actions in pursuing this project in breach of established land use policies has poisoned the well and broken faith with the citizens of Prince William County. If QTS has any sense of corporate responsibility, they would abandon their current plans and seek a more appropriate site within the designated Data Center Opportunity Zone Overlay District.