GOOCHLAND COUNTY, Va. β Goochland County residents packed a town hall meeting Monday night to voice their opposition to a proposed technology overlay district that would bring data centers to their community, continuing months of heated debate over the development.
Diane and Lee Halvorsen, who moved from Northern Virginia to Goochland County seeking a more peaceful way of life, now find themselves joining neighbors in fighting against a proposed data center just feet from their homes.
"You could run a thousand feet and still not have enough to avoid the noise and the light pollution and the diesel generators. It's going to ruin our lives basically," Diane Halvorsen said.
Lee Halvorsen described the potential noise impact, saying the constant hum would reach 80 to 90 decibels from their home to the school.
The county says the proposal could boost economic development and bring high-tech jobs, as well as ease the tax burden on residents who currently generate 80% of the county's tax revenue. The county hopes to increase commercial tax revenues to 30%.
"If we can distribute our revenue portfolio in a greater way where we have commercial revenue in comparison to residential revenue, that allows us to continue to provide services by keeping tax rates low," said county administrator Jeremy Raley.
Supervisors have expanded the scope of what could be built in the area, including a small modular nuclear reactor facility, a natural gas peaking plant and a utility generating station to help meet the high energy demands of data centers.
After pushback from the community, the Goochland Planning Commission approved several recommendations at their Sept. 25 meeting:
- Make energy generating facility allowable only through a conditional use permit, both for primary and accessory uses
- In areas of the technology overlay district with current base zoning of A2, impose a 500-foot setback from residential property for a data center permitted by right and require conditional use permit approval for locating closer in those areas
- Limit by-right maximum building height to 80 feet for structures located adjacent to residentially zoned property
- Reduce the decibel limits lower than currently proposed 65 decibels in the day and 60 at night
Watch: Goochland Planning Commission approves data center recommendation after hours of public comment
At the town hall meeting, school and county leaders also updated Goochland residents on several economic expansion projects, including a 3.1 million square foot Amazon Robotic Fulfillment center in Rockville, the Axial Rockville 64 project and the Midpoint Industrial park.
While supporting controlled growth, some residents say they fear their requests for slower growth are falling on deaf ears.
"The county is going to do what the county is going to do and a lot of people feel it's a done deal already," Steve Levet, a Goochland resident, said.
While the town hall meeting covered the entire county, there is still time for public comment during the Board of Supervisors meeting on Tuesday. A vote is expected to take place on Nov. 6, but it's unclear whether that date could be pushed back.
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