Three hours of public comment and stacks of information containing research by the planning commission were not enough to convince a majority of the Stafford County Board of Supervisors that it had sufficient details to move forward with proposed data center regulations.
Near the conclusion of a more than six-hour meeting Tuesday night, the board voted 4-3 to hold a work session next Tuesday to further discuss the potential regulations.
Board Chair Deuntay Diggs of the George Washington District, Vice Chair Tinesha Allen of the Griffis-Widewater District and Pamela Yeung of the Garrisonville District supported Aquia District Supervisor Monica Gary’s substitute motion to delay making a recommendation on the regulations until the entire board comes together for more discussion.
Allen said that while she took six pages of notes based on research and public comments, she didn’t have time during the meeting to address all her concerns. Supervisor Meg Bohmke of the Falmouth District, the longest-serving member of the board, said Tuesday was the time to have the discussion and decide.
“If you have six pages of notes, I’m ready to roll,” Bohmke said. “Let’s make it happen. I’m not tired. I’m ready to go.”
Supervisors Crystal Vanuch of the Rock Hill District and Hartwood District Supervisor Darrell English were prepared to move forward as well. English made the original motion to advance proposed regulations, including 1,500-foot setbacks from residential property lines, and 500 feet from childcare facilities, nursing homes and creeks.
Vanuch argued that board members in search of additional information could hold two-on-two meetings with staff or planning commissioners. Vanuch noted that she and Bohmke met with Planning Commission Chair Kristen Barnes for several hours last week, scouring through massive amounts of documents.
“So, there’s no reason none of us should be [unprepared] or need another meeting to be able to discuss how to move forward,” Vanuch said.
On May 20, the board of supervisors requested that the planning commission study existing data center regulations and provide recommendations by Aug. 19. On May 28, the planning commission established a data center subcommittee that met five times in June and July. The planning commission voted to send the draft amendments of the comprehensive plan and ordinance to the supervisors for consideration during a July 23 meeting.
Bohmke said the planning commission did its job, and now the board should be ready to act. She noted that a developer recently brought forth the 17th data center application in the county, a 443,000-square-foot project called Market at Austin Ridge, in the Hartwood District.
“My point is we need to move forward. It’s time,” Bohmke said. “The subcommittee, in my humble opinion, this whole thing ruined their summers, and I know a lot of people in this room that are sitting here, and people at home, have done a tremendous amount of research.”
Still, Allen, Diggs, Gary and Yeung said they would like to hear more.
Diggs said he’s concerned that the 1,500-foot setback proposed by English is an arbitrary number not backed by scientific evidence. Vanuch and Bohmke stressed that the number would be a starting point and could be lowered. The Spotsylvania County Board of Supervisors voted to recommend 1,000-foot setbacks from residential property lines, schools, churches, daycares, hospitals and parks last week.
“The question becomes, ‘Are we doing this off of feelings or are we doing this off of science and facts?’ Diggs said … “If we say 1,500, everybody’s happy, but what is that based off of?”
Gary said her hesitation comes down to a desire to strike a balance between the well-being of the residents and bolstering economic development. English said if data center developers want to do business in the county, they’ll abide by whatever regulations are in place.
Many of the speakers who addressed the board cited concerns about water usage, electricity and noise.
Other recommendations from the planning commission for data centers, which will be limited in Stafford to 65 feet in height, were included in a presentation from county staff.
“We’ve got a lot of these coming in here, and we’ve got to look out for the residents and everybody,” English said. “We’ve got to make this concrete.”
