Prevent Data Centers in King William

Brenton Bohannon, District 1 Supervisor; Ben Edwards, District 2 Supervisor; Justin Catlett, District 3 Supervisor; Lindsay Robinson, District 4 Supervisor; Keith Fogg, District 5 Supervisor

On March 3, 2026 the KW Planning Commission recommended approval of a technology ordinance to the Board of Supervisors. The draft in its current form:

  • Lists data centers first as potential land use.

    "the proposed ordinance aims to encourage investment in technology uses, such as data centers, electrical component manufacturing, and energy storage facilities"

  • Bypasses citizen and future BOS input for large builds along Routes 360 and 30 by using the language of "by rights", which would enable data center builds to occur without additional scrutiny.

    "10 acres by-right along specified routes and in industrial zones"*

  • Provides the path for using water from our rivers, and does not mention drawing from our already strained aquifer, which is where King William well water comes from.

    "no water from the County's navigable waterways shall be utilized for any technology project unless the applicant demonstrates to the satisfaction of the Planning Director that all other water sources and cooling technologies have been thoroughly explored"

  • Does not regulate amounts or type of power used.

    Only says "mandates underground utilities"

  • Says nothing about potential contaminants or pollution.
  • Does not restrict dBC and only references impulsive sound for dBA limits. dBC is the continous sound comes that can come from cooling fans, chillers, and transformers. dBC sounds can often be heard inside nearby homes much easier than dBA.

*the specified routes would include any parcel of land that touches Routes 30 or 360, as well as current industrial zones and any future parcels that get rezoned

In June 2026, a citizen survey was posted on the County website and Facebook page that asked for citizen input on details about technology uses / data centers in King William County. Most of the questions were framed asserting that data centers in our area are inevitable, asking citizens to choose from options such as setbacks and size, without options to say "no thanks" for most questions.

In July 2026, many concerned citizens brought up their concerns about data centers coming to King William at the Board of Supervisors meeting. At the end of the meeting, the BOS stated that they would send the technolgy ordinance back to the Planning Commission for revision.

There are currently no protections at the state level, and federal protections will end on September 30th. It is up to US to protect our County.

To: Brenton Bohannon, District 1 Supervisor; Ben Edwards, District 2 Supervisor; Justin Catlett, District 3 Supervisor; Lindsay Robinson, District 4 Supervisor; Keith Fogg, District 5 Supervisor
From: [Your Name]

​We, the citizens of King William County, ask you to ensure that the technology ordinance proposed by the Planning Commission be revised to ban data centers and data center adjacent facilities from building in King William County.

With no protections at the state level and federal environmental protections expiring on September 30th, 2026, NOW is the time for you to establish local protections from technology growth in King William.

The technology ordinance in its current form is not sufficient to protect King William County from the harmful effects of hosting a data center. The draft in its current form:

1. Lists data centers first as potential land use.
"​the proposed ordinance aims to encourage investment in technology uses, such as data centers, electrical component manufacturing, and energy storage facilities"​

2. Bypasses citizen and future BOS input for large builds along Routes 360 and 30 by using the language of "by rights", which would enable data center builds to occur without additional scrutiny.
​"10 acres by-right along specified routes and in industrial zones"*​

3. Provides the path for using water from our rivers, and does not mention drawing from our already strained aquifer, which is where King William well water comes from.
​"no water from the County's navigable waterways shall be utilized for any technology project unless the applicant demonstrates to the satisfaction of the Planning Director that all other water sources and cooling technologies have been thoroughly explored"​

4. Does not regulate amounts or type of power used.
Only says ​"mandates underground utilities"​

5. Says nothing about potential contaminants or pollution.

6. The sound restriction does not restrict dBC and only references impulsive sound for dBA limits. dBC is the continous sound comes that can come from cooling fans, chillers, and transformers. dBC sounds can often be heard inside nearby homes much easier than dBA.

Although these facilities may initially bring property tax revenue to the County, there is no enforceable way to mitigate individual impacts residents will feel of this drain of our county's resources, which will ultimately outweigh any benefits advertised. We therefore are asking that you direct the Planning Commission to revise the technology ordinance so that it protects the citizens of this county. Since enforcement of restrictions and regulations is costly and depedent on the technology corporations' self-reporting, we believe the best way to protect King William from the adverse effects of data centers is to ban them outright.

Thank you for your attention to this matter.