CHESTERFIELD COUNTY, Va. — The Chesterfield County Board of Zoning Appeals has denied an appeal in a controversial case involving a proposed data center campus off Old Bermuda Hundred Road near I-95.
The central question before the board was whether the landowner has a vested right to build a data center on the nearly 90-acre property without getting additional approval from the county.
Last year, the Board of Supervisors changed the zoning ordinance, requiring future data center projects to get conditional use approval. Before that change, data centers were allowed by right on the light industrial property.
The landowner argued the project should still be allowed under the old rules. The county attorney disagreed, saying the property owner cannot rely on the previous zoning alone and must show the county had already approved the project. County officials say that never happened — there is no approved site plan for the data center.
Many residents showed up to the meeting to speak out against the project. The board made clear, however, that comments about water use, noise, and environmental impacts were not part of the issue being considered in the appeal.
One staff member said she had collected significant community opposition to the project.
"I've shared 97 emails in opposition," she said.
A resident raised concerns about the precedent the decision could set.
“I know there’s a neighborhood on my street that’s been in the works for 20 years. How many exceptions are you willing to make if you make this one?" she said.
The landowner also challenged who made the original determination. Attorney Clark Lemon argued the ruling should have come from the Zoning Administrator, not the Planning Director, saying the Planning Director does not have the authority to make that type of zoning determination. County staff disagreed.
Near the end of the hearing, board member Graham Daniels said he supported the county's position.
"I understand the arguments of the owner whether the process went the way it was supposed to by statute sounds like they got some arguments there before the circuit court and that’s all for the circuit court to determine. I'm inclined to uphold the determination of the Director of Planning," Daniels said.
After hearing arguments from both sides, the board voted to deny the appeal.
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