Dear Supporter,
As we prepare to spring forward with the change to daylight saving time on Sunday, the Culpeper Town Council and the Culpeper County Planning Commission are at risk of taking a step back.
Next week, both will have the opportunity to choose: does Culpeper want to better protect residents from the impacts of data centers? Or does Culpeper want weaker protections and lots of data centers with all the heavy impacts on the community and environment that they bring? But this decision shouldn’t be made by council members or commissioners alone; it should be made with input from you, the residents of Culpeper.
I hope you can join us at the upcoming public hearings or write in to let your local decision-makers know that it’s time to stand up to the data center industry and start saying no to projects that will harm our communities.
March 11: Town of Culpeper Considers Weakening Data Center Noise Standards
On Tuesday, Mar. 11, the Culpeper Town Council will decide whether to accept changes proposed by the developers of the Culpeper Technology Campus. This 2.1-million-square-foot data campus, which will be operated by STACK Infrastructure, is adjacent to multiple residential areas, including Madison Crossing Town Homes, the East Historic District, and a planned low-income apartment complex.
After initially agreeing to the Town’s current noise standards in 2023, STACK is now asking for some major changes that will negatively impact these nearby homes. Their proposed changes include:
- using weaker noise standards previously granted to the adjacent Copper Ridge data center campus — standards about, which we had serious concerns.
- removing all noise restrictions for construction which could be ongoing for a decade.
- removing all noise restrictions for backup generator testing even though generators are the loudest piece of equipment in a data center campus and must be run regularly for maintenance.
A recent report from a sound engineer hired by the Town actually showed the data center developer’s proposed standards would allow “a noticeably higher volume of noise” in residential areas compared to the current standards.Allowing more noise pollution in Culpeper neighborhoods will significantly impact public health and quality of life. We think this is unacceptable under any circumstances, but especially given that data centers in the Culpeper Tech Zone stand to get a 40% break on their taxes.
It’s worth noting that the Town does need to update its noise standards, which we support. The current standards use an outdated method of measuring noise and need to be strengthened. The Town should take this opportunity to proactively address data center noise pollution to protect residents.
Tell the Town Council to Put Residents Ahead of the Data Center Industry
Town Council Meeting
Tuesday, Mar. 11 @ 7 p.m.
302 N. Main Street, Culpeper
We hope you will join us in asking the Town Council to push for better standards and not accept any amendment that stands to flood Culpeper’s homes with more noise.
If you are unable to attend Tuesday’s Town Council meeting in person, please email your concerns to [email protected].
March 12: County Planning Commission Considers Substation for Proposed Data Center
A real estate investment firm is asking Culpeper County for approval to build a 300-megawatt substation to power a data center campus proposal, called the DARLO Project, outside the Culpeper Tech Zone.
Unfortunately, data centers can still be built by-right on Culpeper County’s existing industrial land, which means developers do not need approval from the Board of Supervisors. However, the Board does have the authority to deny new substations that would be excessively impactful on the surroundings.
A new transmission line will also be required if this substation is approved. Due to the location of existing transmission lines and substations in Culpeper County, the line to connect DARLO may come close to or interfere with important public resources like Eastern View High School, the planned elementary school at Greens Corner, and even the new community pool being built at the Culpeper Field House. Many farms and local businesses could also be impacted depending on the routing of the line.
There’s also a risk that a transmission line near Bel Pre Road could breathe new life into the stagnated XX Tech Park data center application in Brandy Station.
This substation would accommodate the construction of the DARLO data center campus, on which no public information exists about the size or number of buildings, their location or the amount of water this campus will consume.
During the last data center rezoning, the majority of the Board of Supervisors said they would not support data centers outside of the Culpeper Tech Zone. However, they have not changed the zoning language to reflect this, leaving the door open for by-right projects like DARLO and new transmission lines and substation proposals like this.
Planning Commission Public Hearing
Wednesday, Mar. 12 @ 7 p.m.
302 N. Main Street, Culpeper
We encourage you to come to the hearing and ask that the Planning Commission recommend denial of the proposed DARLO data center substation. If you cannot attend in person, you can email your comments to [email protected].
Thank you so much for your support and for taking an active part in steering the future of Culpeper County. I hope to see some of you at the upcoming Town Council meeting and County Planning Commission public hearing. Please reach out if you have any questions.
Sincerely,
Sarah Parmelee
Land Use Field Representative
Culpeper County
[email protected]
(540) 347-2334 ext. 7045
