The Spotsylvania County Board of Supervisors had many important items on its agenda Tuesday night, but two were of particular interest to residents and developers — a vote on whether to require a special use permit (SUP) for data centers and the advertised real estate tax rate for fiscal year 2027.
Chancellor District Supervisor Gerald Childress tied the two issues together after the board voted 4-3 to require an SUP for data centers and then listened to County Administrator Ed Petrovich lament the struggle to keep taxes low and still fund county services.
Childress said during Petrovich’s presentation that “this is where the rubber meets the road,” as the supervisor expressed concern that the decision about the data centers could discourage developers from pursuing projects in the county.
“I hope the decision that we made tonight is right, and we don’t push away one of the best economic development opportunities in this county, and up down the East Coast as well,” said Childress, who voted against the SUP. “But this is where it all comes out. I understand fear. I understand new things. I understand all that. But at the end of the day, we have to understand what Ed has to do to run our county.”
The board went on to approve Petrovich’s recommended advertised tax rate of 77 cents per $100 of assessed value, which is numerically the same as last year, but actually eight cents higher when taking into consideration property reassessments.
Petrovich was wary that the conservative majority on the board would lower his recommended amount. His recommended budget provides an additional $8.8 million for the county school division’s operational budget, but the schools still have a $5.8 million shortfall. School officials are hoping the state covers a significant portion of the gap.
“Folks need to understand that if we start tonight by cutting the recommended rate, I’ve got to start chopping that budget tonight,” Petrovich said. “Just so the board’s aware and the public’s aware, you’re going to see some significant reduction in levels of service, because I cannot continue to run this county at the tax rate that we’re on and absorb some of the costs that we have been absorbing over the past four, five, six years.”
Petrovich explained during his initial budget presentation that tax relief for disabled veterans and the elderly is costing the county approximately $20 million per year. He said without an increase in taxes this year, expect cuts to schools, public safety, convenience centers, and solid waste.
“Every penny in our budget goes toward providing a service to our citizens,” Petrovich said … “I’m just getting out in front of the fact that any cuts that I make this year is going to impact levels of service.”
The next step in the budget process is a work session on the budget and Capital Improvement Plan (CIP) on March 10, followed by a joint budget work session with the school board on March 24 and a public hearing on the budget, tax rate and CIP on March 26 at 6 p.m. at Courtland High School.
Board Chair Lori Hayes of the Lee Hill District, Davis Goosman of the Berkeley District, Chris Yakabouski of the Battlefield District, and Jacob Lane of the Livingston District voted in favor of the SUP for data centers.
The vote came just two months after the board voted 4-3 to approve design standards and leave development by-right in areas that are zoned Industrial. However, Goosman’s November 2025 victory over development-friendly former Supervisor Kevin Marshall swung the vote the other way once he took office last month.
Hayes said that, in her opinion, an SUP is the “most responsible way” to do business with data center developers because it gives residents a say during public hearings.
“I’m not against the industry. I know it’s coming. I don’t have my head stuck in the sand,” Hayes said … “But it’s incumbent upon us to do things that are responsible and respectful, and [an SUP is] respectful to those who put us in that seat.”
In other business on Tuesday, the board voted 4-3 to approve the Patriot Crossing project, which includes the rezoning of 47 acres from Rural to Planned Development Housing 4 and a rezoning of 16.9 acres from Rural to Commercial 3 Highway District.
Patriot Crossing will feature 101 single-family detached units and 77 single-family attached homes in addition to up to 108,000 square feet of commercial space. The properties are located on the west side of Patriot Highway (U.S. Route 1) at its intersection with Guinea Station Road in the Berkeley District.
Hayes, Lane, and Mullins voted against the project.
