Virginia: 1.8 million-square-foot Data Center Campus Planned on RV site in Gainesville, Virginia
May 31, 2023 | Posted by Abdul-Rahman Oladimeji
Prince William County, Virginia, is considering the development of a new data center park. A developer has submitted designs for an 82-acre data center campus in Gainesville's Hillwood Camping Park. The 'Gardner Property' development could bring up to 1.8 million sq ft of data facilities and an on-site substation to the site, which has 14 parcels between Routes 29 and 55 at the junction of Nolan Drive, Gardner Manor Place, and McGraws Corner Drive. Uncertainty surrounds the number of buildings and intended power capacity of the site.
Approximately 140 trailers occupy 15 acres of the Hillwood property, which is presently a residential recreational vehicle (RV) community. According to InsideNoVa, the majority of the properties are owned by various private companies, individuals, and land trusts, the majority of which are associated with the Charles V. Gardner Estate. The park reportedly has a contract with Delaware Land LLC, which is owned by Chuck Kuhn, the landowner, and CEO of JK Moving Services. Additionally, Kuhn is affiliated with JK Land Holdings LLC. A Kuhn-affiliated firm has already filed proposals with county officials to rezone the land parcels from agricultural, everyday operations, and residential to light industrial. The developer is also attempting to incorporate the site into the county's Data Center Opportunity Zone Overlay District to expedite the approval process.
The development is requesting a waiver to increase building heights from 60 feet to 80 feet, as well as a dispensation to increase the floor-to-area ratio (FAR) from 0.5 to 1. The PW County Staff has designated the FAR request as "problematic."