The Prince William Digital Gateway development would allow construction of 37 data centers on 2,100 acres beside the Manassas Battlefield. At the National Trust for Historic Preservation, attorney Elizabeth Merritt recalls the last public hearing on the subject.
“My testimony was delivered at 8:20 in the morning, and this was after being on Zoom all night.”
Despite massive opposition, the board of supervisors approved the rezoning. Then, opponents took the matter to court, arguing developers and the county failed to provide the public with adequate notice. Merritt says the proposal was repeatedly modified.
“The fact that so many aspects of the plan were being changed, right down to the last minute, made it incredibly difficult to testify, because you weren’t even sure whether it was still the same proposal.”
Supporters of the development argued it would provide the county with millions of tax dollars, but Merritt said it would forever damage the experience of visiting the historic Manassas Battlefield and strain other local resources.
“The impacts on the power infrastructure and the use of water and electricity that these data centers consume – that is a huge problem.”
The county has already set aside $1.6 million for legal fees to appeal the court’s ruling.
“It’s our assumption that the data center developers and/or the county itself will seek Virginia Supreme Court Review, but it obviously would send a message to the court if the county itself decides not to pursue the defense of this decision," Merritt says.
Today a coalition of civic and environmental groups is asking the supervisors to withdraw from any defense of the Digital Gateway Project.
