HANOVER COUNTY, Va. — The Hanover County Board of Supervisors voted 4-3 to deny a proposed data center development Wednesday night, with the decision coming just before midnight after hours of testimony.
The Denver-based company Tract was seeking to rezone nearly 430 acres of land along Route 33, just north of Interstate 295, to allow for a technology park called the Mountain Road Technology Park. The proposed campus would have spanned more than 400 acres off Mountain Road near the Henrico County line and was expected to use hundreds of thousands of gallons of water per day once fully built.
Cheers erupted at the end of the meeting as opponents celebrated the board's decision.
"We beat them, and it's not going to be there because these people stood up and fought for what was right," one opponent said.
The vote followed hours of debate that night and months previously, as members of the community pushed back expressing concerns about the project's impact on the county's water, electricity, noise, and rural feel. The majority of public comments at Wednesday's meeting were opposed to the project.
"I am not here to argue against business or growth. I am asking for the right order. Standards first, approval second," one resident said.
Before the vote, a representative for Tract addressed supervisors, saying the company had worked to address concerns raised throughout the process, including promising to pay for water upgrades and conduct annual noise studies.
"We've heard loud and clear that keeping Hanover rural is really important, and we think that this project is going to actually help you achieve that goal. And this is consistent with the county's plan," said Erin Fosdick, Tract's director of entitlements.
Supervisors in favor of the plan touted its expected impact on the county's tax base to help ease the burden on residents. South Anna District Supervisor Susan Dibble, who represents the area where the data center would have been built, was among those who supported the project.
"I think Tract has worked extensively with the county and our regional stakeholders to deliver a project proposal that addresses constituent concerns, is consistent with the county's visions and goals," Dibble said.
Those on the board who were opposed echoed the concerns of the majority of residents who spoke.
"I also have concerns about this project, in regards to water, and specifically to the buffer on how close some of these buildings are to residential homes," said Supervisor Danielle Floyd of the Chickahominy District.
Families who came out to the meeting were frustrated but left relieved following the vote, with many saying they felt county leaders finally listened to their concerns after months of uncertainty surrounding the project.
"It just shows what you can do when people work together. It definitely brought a lot of different people out from different political positions," one person who voiced opposition and organized a protest against the project said. "Every spectrum of people realize this just wasn't really good for our community. So we're grateful for everybody's support that came together to get this done."
If approved, developers say the data center would have brought in about $900 million for the county over a 20-year period and created around 1,000 construction jobs.
Tract, which already has approval for a larger data center technology park north of Ashland, has not responded to a request for comment on what the company plans next.
The data center debate in Hanover County is not over. The county's planning commission is scheduled to take up a proposed 78-acre data center project in Beaverdam at its meeting in June.
This is a developing story. Email the CBS 6 Newsroom if you have additional information to share.
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