Data Centers are everywhere in Northern Virginia and more are coming. In 2018, the Loudoun County Board of Supervisors voted to approve a data center complex directly on Goose Creek, a state designated scenic river, despite enormous opposition from preservations, environmentalists and voters. In December of 2022, the Prince William Supervisors abruptly eliminated their “Rural Crescent”, a sacred protected space they established in 1998 as a permanent Urban Growth Boundary. The reason? To allow a 2,100 acre Data Center Complex next to the Manassas National Battlefield Park. And last week, the Warrenton Town Council voted to allow a data center in their historic town despite a year of well-organized, loud and overwhelming opposition from local citizens and preservation organizations. Why is this happening? Why are our representatives approving these colossal industrial structures all across our treasured landscape? Why can’t they be stopped by protests and resistance? What is the scale of money involved? The answers to these questions - and some solutions - are available in Episode 4 of Piedmont Crossroads - The Path to Preservation presented by the Virginia Piedmont Heritage Area Association. This release of the podcast address the environmental, financial, political and historical issues surrounding the data center crisis in the Northern Virginia Heritage. On the VPHA website, you also will find long versions of the original interviews with participants and drone footage of the Warrenton center site. An earlier version of this podcast was released prior to the vote by the Warrenton Town Council permitting a Data Center in that town’s gateway. This version is updated and expanded. Here is a link to a video of the proposed site.
