The people of Prince Willam County are at a critical crossroads.
GET EDUCATED! (Learn more here)
Understand why the 2040 Comprehensive Plan advocates hidden data center and residential sprawl – which are losing propositions for citizens. Citizens countywide are the most important stakeholders for the future of where we and our families live. The past is a predictor of the future, and right now, we can plainly see process is being ignored, citizen concerns are being marginalized, and false promises are being made by developers and bought into by this Board. With their plan, we are facing increased traffic, increased school crowding, and the impacts of industrial development (years of construction, loss of trees and natural areas, transmission lines and substations, massive water demands, noise, and huge industrial buildings) throughout our critical green spaces and our neighborhoods.
Here is a tangible example of what we all are facing with countywide industrialization:
We have heard this board banter around the term ‘transformative.’ If this is their vision of transformation – NO. THANK. YOU!
The Village Place data center buildings will be almost 9 stories tall, 88 ft. to be exact. They will completely dwarf the surrounding residential townhome community. All of the mature 100 ft. tall trees have been torn down. The proffered landscaping will be a mix of 5 ft. tall trees, with some 9 ft. trees included. There will be dozens and dozens of diesel generators that will be run monthly, spewing out particulates. The four data center buildings will guzzle millions of gallons of water, in spite of the unsubstantiated assurances of how ‘efficient’ the behemoths will be. The original zoning for this parcel was quality mixed use development near existing shops and sidewalks and walkable infrastructure. Now it’s blight. Wait until the ugly substations and big power towers are installed…….
The threats we are facing across our county are getting national attention:
“The prevalence of anti-data center campaigns across Northern Virginia is also lowering the barrier for new groups to pop up, providing information and talking points about data centers for residents who may have little familiarity with the industry, and presenting a model for how to build a successful campaign.”
Read the entire article here: BisNow – All is Not Well (And It Could Get Worse) at the Center of the US Data Center Universe
This is the kind of industrial development that YOUR board of supervisors is trying to convince the community is a great deal. (Read here breaking news – InsideNoVa: Citizens file lawsuit against Prince William County chair, supervisors over Digital Gateway vote) And the threats are countywide.
Here are the true but hidden details about data center complex water consumption, which a citizen was able to uncover:
This Board is simply developer-owned. What is transpiring in our communities is being arranged behind closed doors. They are simply ensuring that residents are completely unaware of the depths of their awful intentions. Developer dreams = citizen nightmares.
The passage of these data center complex CPAs, which are clearly pre-ordained outcomes, demonstrates that this Board majority refuses to believe the science of their own watershed management, the unrelenting denial of the application by their own Historical Commission, and the clear and unambiguous warnings from Fairfax County Water Authority.
What is at stake for all of us? The future of our county.
Do we want to be imagining something different – something better for everyone – instead of planning industrial blight and residential sprawl on every bit of remaining green space countywide?
The Developer influence in this county just represents more of the same, but at a level we have never experienced – from data center and residential developers. Smart Growth Policies are embedded in our county’s long term strategic goals for a reason: to ensure sustainable quality communities countywide. That is NOT what we are getting with this plan.
In spite of the community raising the alarms about Village Technology Park on the edge of the town of Haymarket, here we are with ANOTHER mess. There is NO available power, NO water, and the complex is totally incompatible with surrounding land uses. Heard this story before? THIS is what happens when YOUR county board makes decisions based on developer desires – and NOT considering community concerns. This is further proof that industrial blight is spreading.
The scam we are being sold is that citizens will experience a windfall of money if the developer wish lists are built. Didn’t your mother teach you better? If it sounds too good to be true, it is. What we really have is huge corporations get a 60% tax break, while our taxes keep going up!
This Board is trying to develop throughout the entire county – from east to west – as though our strategic plan guidelines are nonexistent. They call mixed use development ‘Hamlets’ and ‘Villages’ – but when studied, those are just old-fashioned strip mall shopping and high density housing in the middle of nowhere, increasing more driving, and taking us further away from reaching carbon emission goals. This is exactly why our own county Sustainability Commission outlined multiple concerns with the Comp Plan update!
The expansion of sewer and water, along with the removal of thousands of acres – nearly 9 thousand – in our critical remaining drinking water supply watershed has triggered a clear warning from Fairfax Water Authority (read here). They took this unprecedented step after seeing the residential sprawl outlined in the 2040 Comp Plan update!
This Board has turned common sense smart growth policy into some ‘magical’ thinking, under the power and influence of developers and landowners.
Smart Growth Protects What We Have – YouTube
Take action now to impact the discussion and decisions at the Dec. 13 Board of Supervisors vote on the 2040 Comprehensive Plan Update
Attend this virtual town hall next Monday, December 5, 7 PM.
Sign the recalls for Supervisor Candland and Chair Wheeler (access here).
