Coraggio Consulting
Prince William Board of County Supervisors Meeting, Tuesday, November 28, 2023

Date: Tuesday, November 28, 2023
Place: Prince William County Board of County Supervisors, Virginia
Length: 11h 32m (video)
Official meeting video (Prince William County, Granicus): https://pwcgov.granicus.com/player/clip/3398
Official Board of County Supervisors page (Prince William County): https://www.pwcva.gov/department/board-county-supervisors

Machine transcript (speech-to-text) produced by Coraggio Consulting. Not an official county record. Names and numbers may be misspelled; check the video at the timestamp before quoting.
Speech-to-text: whisper.cpp, model large-v3-turbo. Produced 2026-11-02. Timestamps are [HH:MM:SS] into the meeting video.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

[00:00:10] afternoon and welcome back after five weeks off since our work session last month. It is 2 p.m. on Tuesday, November 28th, and it's been a busy five weeks. I hope everybody had a great Thanksgiving. For those who wish, please join me in a moment of silence. Thank you. If we could

[00:00:36] all rise for the reciting of the Pledge of Allegiance. Thank you and welcome. We are now Now on to agenda item three, the approval of the minutes from the meeting of October 10th, 17th, and 24th.

[00:01:10] I'll entertain a motion to approve 3A, 3B, 3C. So moved, Madam Chair. Second. Motion made by Supervisor Bailey, seconded by Vice Chair Bodie. Any discussion? Seeing none, please vote. Vote unanimous.

[00:01:28] Thank you. We are on to commendations and proclamations. I'll point out, 4A, Mr. Carlos Castro couldn't be available today to receive his commendation. for 33 years of service to the community and toto service supermarket but we so that brings us on to 4b which is commend here for the commendation of mr. Walker if you're here for the commendation of mr. Walker please move to the front of the chamber here and I will ask supervisor Franklin to join me oh sorry

[00:02:06] I did okay sorry yeah can I get a motion for for a B and C second motion made by supervisor franklin seconded by supervisor bailey any discussion supervisor franklin sure yes just want to um again point out uh for 4a just want to thank um the totos community and mr carlos castro he had to unexpectedly fly out the country um but the work that they've been doing the community particularly in the woodbridge district um has been incredible and just want to make sure that we recognize him and we will deliver his commendation uh separately so thank you. Madam Chair. Supervisor Brody. Thank you. Just to ditto Supervisor Franklin's comments. Mr.

[00:02:44] Castro actually lives in my district so he's a constituent of mine and really proud of all the work that he continues to do to tackle all sorts of community issues especially as it pertains to hunger and making sure that folks are able to be fed during trying times like we are right now so again just wanted to know Supervisor Franklin's sentiments. Thank you Madam Chair. Thank you Vice

[00:03:03] your body. Okay. Vote. Vote unanimous. Supervisor Vega abstaining from vote. You know, I thought people would say, I would say over here because then they'll be on, where is it under here that

[00:03:40] they're on TV? I forget which one. Where do you see people when we're with the, right, so yeah, right there. I'll turn it over to Supervisor Franklin. All right. Good evening, everyone.

[00:03:58] Good afternoon, I should say. I just want to recognize Mr. Dominic Walker, one of my residents who has been through an incredible amount over the past several months. So I'll just read the commendation and then would love for you to make just a couple of remarks if possible. It doesn't have to be long, but I wanted people to kind of hear you.

[00:04:17] Whereas on July 17, 2023, Whitbridge Magisterial District resident Dominic Damo Walker displayed tremendous courage and strength of character by running into a burning house in St. Charles, Missouri, following an explosion, thinking of others before himself, thereby saving the life of his daughter and whereas he uses bare hands to remove the burning rooftop from his daughter and another child trapped by the fire and he found a pathway out of the burning home and whereas Dominic Walker's heroic rescue actions resulted in him sustaining third degree burns over 50 percent of his body and caused him to be hospitalized and placed in

[00:04:54] a medically induced coma for three weeks and whereas Dominic Walker has had numerous surgeries including skin grafts to repair his face and hands. He will likely need more surgeries. He is on the men and to the doctor's surprise is walking and talking.

[00:05:10] Now, therefore, be it resolved that the Prince William Board of County Supervisors hereby commends and celebrate Dominic Walker for performing heroic actions that saved his daughter's life and wish him well as he continues his long road to recovery. Thank you. I want to say, first and foremost, thank God for having me here today.

[00:05:50] And I'm very appreciative for the community coming together. You know, this is something very huge for me. And I just want to say thank you to you all, you know, for the commendation. Also, Mrs. Franklin, she's been a wonderful experience for this opportunity.

[00:06:07] So I just want to say thank you.

[00:06:08] Thank you, Supervisor Franklin, for bringing that to our collective attention.

[00:07:06] We are now on item 4C. With the McDowell's and everyone here to celebrate this commendation, please move to the front of the chamber. And before I read the accommodation, I would like to bring everyone's attention to a short video presentation that's been prepared for the occasion.

[00:07:24] You have nothing to lose and everything to gain by being a foster parent. Every day, you have the opportunity to spend time with kids and show them what love is.

[00:07:41] One of my biggest regrets about fostering is that I didn't do it sooner because I didn't think I was ready. I realized that I really did have everything I needed, so I just took the classes and went ahead and got licensed. We had a lot of love to give, and we thought the best way would be to foster.

[00:07:59] My heart has expanded 10 times. I didn't know how naturally parenthood could come to a person, and I'm just so grateful. This was truly a blessing to us. It's amazing to have kids in the house. It's not without challenges, but it's also rewarding.

[00:08:15] You know that you can help shape them, and you're able to love them, And that's what these kids need. They need stability. They need consistency. And if anything else, just love. Seeing the impact that you make on these kids' lives is absolutely amazing. How much you can give to these families, to these children, and what it teaches your own family and your own kids is just incredibly rewarding.

[00:08:40] My desire is to experience life. It's being there to support them as they grow. One thing they taught us is it's okay to open your heart. You can be everything that a child, to show them that they are worthy. We've grown as a family, and it has stretched our worldview in a very positive way.

[00:09:00] We're able to provide a loving home to whoever needs us. And as long as they need us. Each child.

[00:09:10] The kids out there in need of a safe, loving home, if you have the space and the availability, just do it.

[00:09:56] Thank you. And that was a video put together by COG, and we're recognized today, Mrs. Carly McDowell, on the occasion of their being named Foster Parents of the Year by the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments.

[00:10:13] Whereas Carly and Christy McDowell embarked on the noble journey of becoming foster parents, dedicating themselves to providing a loving and supportive environment for children in need within their community, and whereas their extraordinary commitment and tireless efforts have been duly recognized by the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments, COG, bestowing upon the McDowell's the esteemed title of Foster Parents of the Year in Prince William County, acknowledging their unwavering dedication and outstanding contribution to the welfare of foster children. And whereas the McDowell's exemplify the highest standards of compassion and care, have demonstrated an exceptional level of commitment by actively participating

[00:10:51] in reuniting children with their families, showcasing an unparalleled willingness to collaborate with various agencies and professionals to ensure the well-being and future success these children and whereas their unwavering support dedication and relentless efforts have been acknowledged and praised by professionals within the prince william county department of social services receiving high commendation for their seamless integration into their role as foster parents showing exceptional care and understanding of the children's needs and going above and beyond expectations and whereas carly and chrissy mcdowell's story serves as an inspiration to our community highlighting the importance of fostering

[00:11:29] children, nurturing their development, providing a stable and loving environment, and encouraging others to consider this selfless act of service to the community. And whereas there remains an ongoing need for individuals willing to step forward as foster parents, especially for older children, contributing significantly to the welfare of our community and the future of our youth, now therefore be it resolved that the Prince William Board of County Supervisors hereby commends and celebrates Carly and Christy McDowell for their exceptional commitment, selflessness, and invaluable services as foster parents in Prince William County.

[00:12:03] Be it further resolved that the Prince William County Board of Supervisors hereby presents this resolution to Carly and Christy McDowell as an expression of our sincere gratitude and admiration for their exemplary dedication to fostering children and offering them a stable and loving home.

[00:12:20] Congratulations. Thank you all for this wonderful honor. We never expected something to this magnitude when we embarked upon fostering.

[00:12:41] We just knew that we wanted to provide love and care to some children that had need in the county. And so we are more than gracious to accept this and just happy for everyone who's helped us be who we are as foster parents, especially the ladies and gentlemen of DSS.

[00:13:04] They have been wonderful and supportive to our needs, always there whenever we have questions or needs. And so we're just happy to be a part of Prince's. Oh, I can do that for a long time.

[00:13:30] She said a couple words about the importance of fostering. I'm going to turn around then. I'm just kidding. I can't say enough about first. They are awesome, to say the least. You know, you hear people say those pat words, but they are because they have not only fostered children, they have fostered the children's parents.

[00:13:53] And that's what we want. I was just laughing with Ms. McDowell saying to her, I know that you were doing some stuff you weren't supposed to be doing, but it was good stuff. It was good stuff. It was being with families and helping families. And if there's anything that you ever want to do to give back, fostering is one of the things.

[00:14:11] and do we need foster parents absolutely for all ages but especially older kids who you'd be surprised they're not all that difficult they just need some love i always tell people that foster children are not bad children they are children who've had bad things happen to them right so sometimes you'll see bad behaviors but that's our hope that they find mrs and mrs mcdowell to take them into their home and help them so we want to thank them so much you thank them thank and we're glad we're not losing them.

[00:14:42] They're actually going to be likely adopting the two little ones that they just had in their home. Yes. And so they're excited about that, and we're looking forward to many, many, many, many years of them working with us and taking our children. Thank you.

[00:15:07] Now on to the consent agenda today, which consists of 18 items.

[00:15:51] Are there any items that anyone wishes to remove from the consent agenda items because they have specific questions or concerns that haven't been able to be answered before today manager supervisor angry five charlie please five charlie supervisor bailey thank you madam chair I'd like to pull item 5 H and R please and supervisor Lawson and as in Nancy

[00:16:29] and oh and supervisor weird was that M as in Mary okay that's already been pulled and O was already pulled also supervisor Vega madam chair can you

[00:16:56] please repeat the ones that have already been pulled uh b c h j k n o and r thank you okay could i get a motion to approve a d e f g i l m p q so move madam chair second motion made by supervisor bailey seconded by vice chair bode any further discussion on the ones that weren't pulled Matt, Chair.

[00:17:31] Supervisor Bodie. Yeah, I just wanted to highlight 5I for just a moment. That's the Prince William 311 Digital Services. We really appreciate Rob Mancini and the team that's working on that. I know that as local governments and, you know, the corporate sector begin and continue to digitize and make their services more electronic, more accessible to folks, so should local governments like ours.

[00:17:54] So I know that a lot of work is being done to help make lives easier, both from business partners and for our constituents and residents. So I really wanted to just highlight that as a good step forward in regards to making the lives easier for the folks that we serve. Thank you. Thank you, Vice Chair Bodie.

[00:18:10] Any further discussion? Seeing none, please vote. Vote unanimous. Thank you, Ms. Madden. We're going to go through them methodically, but I didn't write down who pulled all of them. 5B, who pulled 5B?

[00:18:28] Supervisor Weird. Madam Chair, I've raised this issue with the powers that be, and this is putting the cart before the horse in my mind. It is, there is the potential that this recovery of the fees in this are not possible, given my conversation with both transportation and economic development.

[00:18:57] It seems like this is being pushed forward in this manner is because the applicant, or in this case, whoever is the party, failed to execute in a timely manner, and, you know, that really doesn't constitute an emergency on my part, and we're artificially resuscitating a project at $140,000, that there is a good chance we will not recover.

[00:19:22] I don't think this is ready for prime time, and I will not be supporting it. Understand. Let's go on with further discussion. Supervisor Bailey. Thank you very much. Thank you very much, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, I just want to thank Christina Wynn and her team for the great work that they've worked with me over the past four years to make sure that a project of this magnitude comes to fruition.

[00:19:47] This is a project that when we look at the comprehensive plan, assemblage is the biggest opportunity here in our community when we look at land use. And so I want to thank Christina for working with the applicant as they were diligently working with her to make sure they were moving in concert with the comprehensive plan as we go forward.

[00:20:08] So thank you for your support, Christina and team, and to the applicant. I appreciate you bringing forth a project that has been in the hopper for 20-plus years because of assemblage. So just wanted to say that. Thank you. Seeing no further discussion or comments, would you like to move that for?

[00:20:28] Madam Chair, I move 5B for approval. Second. Motion made by Supervisor Bailey, seconded by Vice Chair Bodie. Any further discussion? Seeing none, please vote. Motion passes, 4-3.

[00:20:47] Supervisors Lawson, Vega, and Weir voting nay. Supervisor Franklin absent from vote. Okay, that moves us on to 5C. Who pulled 5C? Me, Madam Chair. Supervisor Angry. Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, 5C is the Homeless Navigation Center Assemblage of Parcels, and so we just have one line to add to that, and that line would read, Authorize the county executive to sign the consolidation plate and deed on behalf of the BOCS.

[00:21:15] Okay. Would you like to move that as amended? Yes, ma'am. Move forward as amended. Second. Motion made by Supervisor Angry as amended through his comments, seconded by Supervisor Bailey. Any further discussion?

[00:21:32] Madam Chair. Supervisor Bodie. Just very quickly, appreciate this, and this is obviously an important policy step towards continuing to make sure that the new Homeless Navigation Center is a reality. I know that a lot of folks have been looking forward to this project for a long time, I'm glad that we're continuing to move forward with it.

[00:21:49] I know it's going to help a lot of people when it's done, and I also continue to look forward for us to find ways to have a similar facility on the western of the county. Thank you, Madam Chair. I'll just add in, yes, it's a great facility that's being built in the former site of our homeless shelter, so kudos to the county, and we've invested a lot of money in this.

[00:22:05] It's going to be a great facility to serve the community. Seeing no further discussion, please vote. Vote unanimous. Moving on to 5H.

[00:22:21] Who pulled 5H, please? I did it, Madam Chair. Supervisor Bailey. Thank you very much, Madam Chair. I just wanted to note to Rick Conosalos and his team, Apollo, and all of the team, for your focus on this piece of extension for the raised pedestrian crosswalk, which is one of the newer subdivisions, but not so new.

[00:22:45] And so you got right on it when the request was made, and so we really appreciate your forward thinking and making sure that this comes to fruition. We really appreciate it. So saying that, I move this forward for approval, Madam Chair. Second. Motion made by Supervisor Bailey, seconded by Vice Chair Bodie.

[00:23:00] Any further discussion? Seeing none, please vote. Vote unanimous. Okay, 5J. Madam Chair, I think I big-footed Supervisor Vega, so I'll defer to her.

[00:23:19] Supervisor Vega. Say that again. He thought you pulled 5J. No, I asked which items had been pulled because I couldn't keep track. Okay, so 5J, back to you, Supervisor. Okay. i still have a problem with this particular thing i've had an issue with this allocation year in and year out and now we're increasing it by another 230 000 and encumbering next year's budget already on what i believe is a flawed community pro community partners program that i thought we were going to review and this will diminish other community partners opportunities

[00:23:55] and other tax benefits for non-profits so i will not be supporting this supervisor vega thank you you madam chair I didn't pull it supervisor we're but I did have comments in regards to this I take issue with continuing to subsidize a organization where the bulk of the taxpayers of this county don't even use which is this facility right here and to echo supervisor we're point at what point do we say enough is enough again it's not to the benefit of the majority of the taxpayers of this county therefore I will not be supporting this as well I normally wouldn't say anything but I feel a need to step in and say in other

[00:24:34] years past I believe they've discussed the fact that over 95 or 98 percent of the people who use the Freedom Aquatic Center are county residents it's not George Mason it's basically the West End Rec Center and we happen to do it under a tripartite agreement because when it was going to be built no one wanted to do it and George Mason stepped in and brought everybody together so to say that the majority of the county residents no one uses it if you go through they have studies about the people who use it and 95 percent of the people are county residents i just want to correct that would someone like to move that for approval madam chair i have

[00:25:11] a follow-up to that sure um just curious have you have you been there have you attempted to get a membership do you know what the availability is of the rec center for county county taxpayers so i used to go all the time when my kids were little i played i played racquetball there i played pickleball there i've used the pool there um i've been in there have you had trouble scheduling it. Is that your issue? When your kids were little, that's a long time ago because your kids are no longer little. Mines are 14 and 15 and having access to that facility is incredibly difficult even when you are a member because they rent those facilities out to other groups who use, whether it's the swimming pool or the courts or whatever it is. So the point is, is that the bulk

[00:25:48] of the taxpayers of Prince William County don't use this facility and continuing to throw their money into a facility that should be able to fund itself, in my opinion, is not being good stewards of the tax dollars of county payers. So having a problem with the facility is one thing and having someone look at that and look into the operations is another.

[00:26:05] Madam Chair, that's your opinion, and my opinion still remains that I'm not going to support it because I don't think it's fiscally responsible, and we can agree to disagree. Very good. Madam Chair. Supervisor Angry. Okay, and to your point, because I think the issue here is if there needs to be a deeper dive into the operation of it, that's one thing, but, you know, I do know I've been by this facility, and there are a lot of elderly that use this.

[00:26:28] There's folks that really use it, and I just don't want to cut something that people are using. Now, I get the total numbers, and maybe that's something we need to look into, but I would say that's the discussion that we need to get from this and not simply just want to not fund this or continue this operation, but find if there are better ways that we can do this.

[00:26:47] In the end, we may find out that there isn't, but the fact of the matter is if we're going to lose funding and folks are using the facility, then, honestly, we may have to come to a place where that's acceptable because folks do use this facility, And I know there's an elderly population that really take advantage of this.

[00:27:03] And so I would hate to throw the baby out with the bathwater, if you will. But maybe if there's operationally something we can look into, then let's find out what that is so we can have a discussion about that. Madam Chair, Supervisor Weir Lawson. Supervisor Weir?

[00:27:19] Thank you, Madam Chair. To Supervisor Angri's point, I mean, that's kind of the issue here. This thing was renewed automatically without review by this board. There hasn't been any real oversight that I'm aware of for years, despite questions with respect to the operational aspect of it.

[00:27:34] And I think that's long overdue. I mean, how long do you continue to support capital infrastructure? And what sort of precedent does this set? You know, we're looking, you know, the additional funding is to recover losses due to, or allegedly due to COVID.

[00:27:51] You know, what are we going to do in future years when other fee-paid or fee-based facilities don't earn up to snuff? How much more money are we going to have to throw at him? How many years does this agreement run where we're throwing another quarter million dollars at him?

[00:28:11] I just can't support that kind of poor fiscal planning. Supervisor Lawson. Thank you, Madam Chair. I'm looking for Seth or anyone from Park and Rec. Are they in the building? There he is. I don't anticipate that you're going to know off the top of your head what the breakdown of percentage of uses, but I do know that a lot of county residents and swim clubs do use it.

[00:28:43] So what's the breakdown, and when's the last time that we basically analyzed what the membership breakdown is? Thank you for the question, Supervisor Lawson. Seth Handler-Voss, honored to serve as your Director of Parks and Recreation.

[00:29:00] Madam Chair, the breakdown as of a few days ago is as follows, and this is membership breakdown not usership breakdown 63 percent memberships are held by county residents 11 percent are held by gmu students and faculty and staff 26 percent held by city residents okay and i appreciate you bringing up the membership versus user because i'm not a member but if i went over there and wanted to use the swimming pool i would pay a fee to use it yes ma'am as a county resident or anybody i believe can go use it they could

[00:29:35] they host swim meets from around the commonwealth and whatnot but um i just wanted to make sure because it was my understanding that it was definitely the majority of county residents that that are members um i have i have absolutely told the university i'm not supporting financial requests that they have made at different times throughout the last nine years i've been serving on the principal's seat I absolutely believe that there needs to be a deeper

[00:30:10] dive into financial planning of the facility but it's certainly going to be something that maybe the county executive and the future board can look at but I do know that the facility is is you utilized by a lot of different people in the county thank you supervisor Lawson with that can someone move five j please second motion made by supervisor lawson seconded by supervisor bailey any further

[00:30:44] discussion seeing none please vote motion passes six to two supervisors vega and we're voting nay thank you five k madam chair i just want to voice my uh concern and uh opposition to spending eighteen thousand dollars on facilitating we re-emphasize that facilitating a retreat i just think it's a little bit egregious. Would someone like to move 5k? Second. Motion made by Supervisor

[00:31:24] Bailey. I'm sorry I keep toggling back. Well you can say something during discussion. Okay. Motion made by Supervisor Bailey seconded by Vice Chair Bodie. Discussion. Supervisor Vega. Thank you Madam Chair. Because of the holiday I've been out and so I haven't had a chance to reach out to you Mr. Shorter but could you refresh my memory and past times I mean for the general public that's here and for those watching at home when Supervisor Weir said retreat this is a board retreat that we're being asked to spend $18,000 on for a two-day board retreat.

[00:31:54] Has the board in the past done this, and if so, could you refresh my memory as to how much has been spent in previous board retreats? Thank you for that question, Supervisor. I'm actually not sure if the board has in the past allocated funding up to this amount.

[00:32:12] I will say that this work, this partnership with UVA and the Weldon Cooper Center, And by the way, the Weldon Cooper Center also provides for training to supervisors via VACO. They will be working with us and do pre-individual one-on-one meetings with our board and with senior staff to make sure that the retreat agenda is appropriate and that we are actually able to get good business done.

[00:32:40] So it is not just the two-day retreat facilitation, but the sort of the work of making sure that they are curating the kind of agenda that would be helpful to us as a board. I don't know if that answers your question fully, and I may ask for some help if we have dedicated funding in the past to the board's retreat.

[00:33:04] I will say that I have heard from almost all of you that there is a need for us to set aside time to work together as a board to make sure that we get off on the right foot starting in the next term. This is an attempt to do that. And so I would say that this is critically important for our board and for our county to make sure that we are able to get together this two days. And it is by way of planning our rules of procedure and a number of other very, you know, important issues

[00:33:41] as we get started as a board so I'll leave it there and certainly if there are any other questions I'm happy to answer those thank you for that and I and I don't disagree that we could use a little bit of help I just don't know why we can't just rely on the great staff that we already have they're the subject matter experts they know how to run this county they know the ins and the outs and so not sure how we connect bringing an outside group and spending $18,000 on helping us prep for the upcoming new board justifies us spending that kind of money.

[00:34:13] So, in part, you did answer my question. Thank you. Supervisor Bailey. Thank you, Madam Chair. First of all, I want to thank County Exec for having the foresight to put forth something of this nature. I think that, just to end my remembrance, we have had retreats before.

[00:34:33] They were not as in-depth or robust as I know that this organization can offer. and that this organization also does a major training for Virginia County's organization. I think that as we go forward, in terms of professional development, there needs to be an enhancement as we go forth with a new board to make sure that we're all on the same page as we govern.

[00:34:57] I applaud you and your staff for coming forth with this. I see it as an investment in how we govern and how we serve the citizens here in the county. And so I don't have a concern with the dollar figure.

[00:35:13] I would request that as we go forward that the agenda is shared with us in advance, if possible, if this is approved, so that we can get off on the right foot and make sure that we are in concert more as we govern and go forward. Thank you.

[00:35:29] Supervisor Angry. Thank you, Madam Chair. The last four years has been a reality TV show with this board. I will just simply say that. I believe in outside mediation, and I think, honestly, for a reset of a new board coming in, this is a good start.

[00:35:52] Now, what happens with that has to be seen. And, yes, we did do a hodgepodge half-day retreat at the Chen Library, I believe that was. That didn't go anywhere.

[00:36:08] And so all I'm simply saying is this. You have eight bodies up here that have, and I said this in 2020, that lead as a dais, as one voice. But that hasn't happened not a lot. And I think, honestly, we need this opportunity to at least put it all out there on the table.

[00:36:30] And a retreat allows that, whatever you want to call it, because I know the word retreat sounds like it's a resort. But the fact of the matter is we get to get together and actually have some open and honest conversations and really see then where we can go from there. Because, honestly, I don't want to repeat the last four years for the next four years.

[00:36:47] And I think this is a good thing, you know. And so I support it, and I hope that we can actually benefit from it, would be my take from this, that we actually benefit from having this time to really have some open dialogue. Supervisor Bode.

[00:37:04] Thank you, Madam Chair. And just to echo some of my colleagues, I understand completely that the price tag looks a little bit jarring. But as someone who has looked at facilitated, organized two-day retreats, seminars, however you want to call it, that are done in the private sector, this is fairly common.

[00:37:24] And I would like to say as essentially the de facto board of directors for the second largest locality in Virginia, we could use some more professional help with how we organize our time, how we organize ourselves and conduct ourselves as a body of one, as Supervisor Ingrid just said, especially with a group as esteemed and as expertly trained as the folks that are going to be doing this.

[00:37:47] It could be nothing but a huge benefit to this body as long as we participate with an open mind and open heart. So I completely understand the concerns about the price tag. However, this is fairly centered in the private sector, especially with larger organizations that have a board of directors as diverse as ours.

[00:38:05] So I'm comfortable with this, and I'm looking forward to it as well. Thank you, Madam Chair. Supervisor Vega, second comment. Thank you, Madam Chair. I just want to go on the record saying that I'm not opposed to the retreat. I think that we can benefit from it. But as you just stated, Supervisor Bode, the price tag absolutely gives me heartburn.

[00:38:21] $18,000 for a two-day retreat that we really don't know what it's going to consist of. We don't have an agenda. Do we have a venue yet, a location? We have a few suggested locations, but no, we have not settled on them. And I hope you're right, Supervisor Angry. We only have two new board members coming.

[00:38:37] The rest of us are coming back. So if we can't get our act together in this two-day retreat, then. And Madam Chair, if I could just reiterate, we plan to, with this partner, meet with each board member before the retreat and that you will have a very clear say in what this retreat agenda ends up looking like.

[00:39:03] So none of you will be surprised at all by what we come up with with the partner and what we end up doing over that two-day period. and before i ask for a motion to move this item because i don't have a dog in this fight i will just say that you know um our last retreat one person didn't show up another one left halfway through it really wasn't as productive as it could be there are so many topics that could be so useful going forward for the next four years for a new board to make the operations of county government more efficient if nothing else and it would be nice if everybody could also

[00:39:42] get along better so that would be great too and perhaps a retreat will facilitate that you get out of a retreat what you put into it so hopefully everyone will attend move for approval madam chair yes what night which one was it five k okay okay second second motion made by supervisor bailey seconded by vice chair boat any further discussion seeing none please vote motion passes five to one supervisor vega voting nay supervisor lawson and supervisor we're abstaining from vote um if

[00:40:22] we go on to five n who pulled five n and as in nancy i did all right you know what okay uh seth i know you're here and i appreciate the briefing that you gave me over the phone maybe it was before thanksgiving i think so um i'm not i'm not uh ready to endorse this to

[00:41:01] continue to move forward so i'm not going to support it but frankly i'm a lame duck so it'll really be dependent upon my replacement and um and i don't want to speak for him so i'm not going to support it but i'm also not going to grill you with a bunch of questions i'm just going to I pulled it because I did not want to support it with the rest of the consent agenda.

[00:41:29] So move, Madam Chair. No, Supervisor Weir has a comment or question, sir, or you want to save your comment for discussion. Can I get it moved then, Supervisor Bode, and seconded by Supervisor Bailey. Second. Discussion, Supervisor Weir.

[00:41:47] To continue with Supervisor Lawson's comments, Seth is well aware of all of my issues with the contract and the viability of this project long term. I do not believe that the public has been given the opportunity for enough scrutiny of this project as it has been done largely behind closed doors and closed session.

[00:42:10] I believe that this should be the next board's decision before we saddle them with a couple of hundred thousand dollars more in expenditures. Why can't this wait a month would be one of my questions, and I base that on the capital costs in the out years, the unknown operations cost, The Virginia Beach example, which does not bode well for us, for anybody that's unaware, they're operating at roughly a $2 million deficit right now, annually, just in operational costs.

[00:42:38] We have a much different dynamic here in Prince William County. We do not have the TOT base, transient occupancy tax base, that Virginia Beach does, that Virginia Beach uses to offset both the capital and the operational costs. We are a mere fraction of what Virginia Beach has.

[00:42:56] is doomed for failure. From a fiscal standpoint, I also have quite a few issues with the draft contract and the underlying principles in the contract regarding who's paying for the employees, how they're being paid, issues with respect to the nature of their employment, whether they can become county employees or not. Essentially, you're adding FTE without adding FTE. I don't know of a manner in which this could be fully funded. I'm also skeptical of this N5O, where

[00:43:32] we've come down to a single site and purchasing an additional site, which is left out of the cost estimate that you provided earlier, which adds several million dollars more. We've got an application coming up this afternoon that proffers a different site. We have land next door to this building that we already own. I kind of have a problem putting it on the Route 1 corridor. If going to build a facility like this, it should be located where all county residents can get at it with easier access. Putting it on the Route 1 corridor does not facilitate use by a majority

[00:44:06] of the county, or at least makes it very, very difficult. Above and beyond that, if you look at the long list of community partners, and I believe Supervisor Vega just brought this up in terms of the aquatic center. Given the long list of community partners that would potentially use this facility and the vast number of different types of facilities and accoutrement courts and otherwise other uses that you would put in this, I don't think the model of operating this as an

[00:44:41] indoor track as its primary function is going to comport with all the demands that are going to be placed on it. In fact, I would suggest that instead of being an indoor track, more often than not, that track's going to be down for other uses, be it basketball, picketball, or pickleball, volleyball, whatever, because you've got a long list of stuff here. This needs a lot more work.

[00:45:06] It needs a lot more public scrutiny in terms of land acquisition and operational costs, And I don't think this board should be encumbering the next board with $310,000 in expenditures for a further review that they may view differently in 33 days.

[00:45:29] Supervisor Bode. Thank you, Madam Chair. Just wanted to first clarify that Telegraph Road is not on the Route 1 corridor. It's in the eastern part of the county, but it's not on the Route 1 corridor. So just wanted that to be clear to everyone in the room. This is not on the Route 1 corridor. More specifically, though, all your concerns are well-founded, Supervisor Weir.

[00:45:50] However, this is just an interim agreement to do all the due diligence and look at everything you just talked about. Feasibility of the site, study costs, study impacts, study and engage with community what they would like to see to get that scrutiny that you just talked about very well in depth. So, again, I hear everything you just said.

[00:46:06] However, this interim agreement that we're talking about very much goes at the heart of looking into all those things. So I understand that folks may get a little heartburn over the projected costs of some of what we've seen previously on what this could end up costing.

[00:46:22] However, we wouldn't even know fully what that cost would be until we do a step like this and allow staff to work with this partner to look at what those different funding mechanisms could be, those different partnerships could be to help fund this facility in the long term.

[00:46:39] So that all said, I look forward to, if we pass this right now, to continue to engage with community on this issue. I know there's a lot of interest among a lot of different constituencies all throughout the county about this. I've talked to folks that live in the Western, that live in your district as well, Supervisor, that want to see this.

[00:46:58] So I'm really looking forward to that. I continue to be on record of pursuing this agreement. indoor sports complex with the right locations, specifications, programming would benefit Prince William County residents of all ages and grow our local economy. Plan properly, it could also become a venue for conferences, corporate events, and restaurants, hotels, and other businesses could flourish, generating prosperity and creating hundreds of more jobs here at home in Prince William County.

[00:47:23] Ideally situated, this site, which again is not on the Route 1 corridor, is in close proximity to I-95, Prince William Parkway, transit and existing parking infrastructure, Hotels, restaurants, Totemills Mall, other supporting amenities, and a number of middle and high schools, including our slated 14th high school just up the street.

[00:47:40] An indoor sports complex could be something that would bring an anchor to the landing at Prince William, which is a small area plan in my district on this corridor. Local families and coaches have been advocating for this for years.

[00:47:57] You know, just a month and a half ago, we had folks in here lamenting the fact that there's difficulties in securing indoor practice space and long hours spent traveling to tournaments in other jurisdictions. You know, people talk to us about this, real live anecdotes about this. As the father of one of those athletes myself, I'm the father of competitive cheerleader, we always have those discussions about how we're going to somehow plan to go to other parts of Virginia, other parts of the region, for just practices, let alone tournaments, things like that.

[00:48:25] That money for those practices, for those tournaments, could be spent right here in this community if we do it right. So I'm in full support of this. And, again, I understand that folks may get a little bit of heartburn about what this could mean in terms of fiscal impacts. But until we go through the due diligence of even understanding that, we won't have a community conversation to have around this.

[00:48:45] So I'm not ready to kill this on arrival, and I'm proud to support it, Madam Chair. Thank you, Supervisor Bodie. Supervisor Franklin. Sure. I just want to point out that this has been a discussion since before I arrived on the board, which is, what, four, probably, what, three and a half, four years ago.

[00:49:01] I remember running for the board of supervisors the first go-around, and people asking me, do you support an indoor sports facility because we need it. Okay, people have been talking about this for years now. I've always said that we have to figure out in local government how to move faster on things, It's not in a way to where we're not being thoughtful or doing our due diligence, but we've been talking about this for years.

[00:49:25] We've gotten to a good place where we've done a lot of research. We've done some analysis. We're looking at some sites. This site in particular, I think, is a decent site to start with. At some point, we have to stop going around in circles and make a decision.

[00:49:42] We're decision makers, and I think we should move forward on this because our residents have been coming to these meetings, for years asking us for an indoor sports facility now it is true that some other facilities and other locations have had challenges but I think we're in a position where we can learn from those challenges do things a little bit differently and figure out how this can be the economic driver that we need I mean there are other land use cases that have been very controversial here in this county and people say well we need to move around or move away from some of those items well this is another way that we can do that if we're smart about it so i support this we've been talking

[00:50:21] about it for years residents have been asking for it for years and this is our chance to actually act on it thank you thank you supervisor angry thank you manager what i have three minutes you have five twice but we do want to go on we have a lot of people here waiting for other things that are on the agenda my my fellow board members let us not forget how we got here i and i don't say that often have been talking about this facility since 2020 because in 2019 the previous board went through and held that I don't know whether it's a charrette or whatever it was that

[00:50:59] Hilton Performing Arts Center that identified all of these things that the community wanted the citizens wanted the one that we could not stick was an indoor sports facility so we literally sent Seth out to do a whatever you did to figure it out and find out how we could bring this and there's a whole book on this so i want to thank you for the work that you have done for the last four years getting us this far where we are right now is not even step one but i'm going to thank you for here for being here because we are at the end of a full four-year term and we are just now getting something together to even look at to answer all those questions y'all just discussed that means

[00:51:38] the new board is going to have to take up action on this which i will be pestering this new board the same way because there are track stars in this place right now and across this county who were looking for this facility and there are young people who could not leave Prince William County to go to these races abroad because they didn't have the funding to do so no matter where this is in the county and I said this earlier it doesn't matter where it is in the county as long as it's in the county because at least it gives our youth an opportunity to be here in the county and perform and they have a better chance of it and we've got a once again I'll end by saying we

[00:52:17] got a gold medalist Benita Fitzgerald who is number one at pushing for this facility and I will push for this until it is done and it is actually shovels in the ground and we're going to do a ribbon cutting at some point to allow this opportunity to exist so I am excited about where we are now thank you Seth I do feel we're a little bit behind but we're here and I'm just happy about it so if i could move this forward we still have people or just we're in discussion you can't do it yeah okay we've already had it moved haven't we already had it okay so well okay i'm just going in the order of people who signed up supervisor weir your second time for discussion

[00:52:54] want to set two of two madam chair i'm sure that the virginia beach city council thought the same thing several years ago when they authorized their facility and they were not prepared for these losses. That being said, I think both the board and by that I mean the next board and staff need to do a little more work on the scope of this before expending another $310,000 on item N and another $550,000 on item O. I'm not opposed to such a facility. I'm opposed to the scope and I'm opposed to the manner in which this has been brought forth. This needs a lot more public

[00:53:32] vetting, a lot more public vetting than has been done. People sitting behind this dais have all kinds of information on it. In fact, I've even got the contract that you didn't want to provide the other members of the board with, or you didn't want the other members of the board to keep. You know, if we're going to paint this as an opportunity for the athletes, and I don't, and I don't disagree with that, then let's make it, then let's do it, let's make it what it is, an athletic facility, but to sit here and paint it or disguise it as an economic development

[00:54:07] driver is foolish. Experience dictates that, not just in Virginia Beach, but in many other jurisdictions. If we're going to fund this and support it and expend millions of dollars annually, both in operational and capital costs, which are hidden from the public, at least in this discussion. I think we owe the public the opportunity to comment or to review how much we're going to be spending on an annual basis, what is and what is not going to be available, how the availability of a number of different types of facility within that one facility

[00:54:44] may diminish what we're actually building it for. I can see the indoor track people coming at us in two or three years after it opens and complaining that they can't use the indoor track because it's it's been lowered all the time to facilitate a basketball tournament or a volleyball tournament let's get our priorities together um let's flesh this out fully uh and that includes the scope of what we're doing um you know it's been asserted that we should be learning from other jurisdictions apparently we don't do that very well supervisor lawson thank you i'm not

[00:55:22] going to belabor it. The concept of an indoor rec facility is great. It's the fact that we have to weigh priorities and certainly balance needs and wants. And we also have to spend $320 million on a judicial expansion. $320 million, by the way, the public's paying for it. So it's not that I don't want an indoor rec facility in this county someday. I want to make sure that we are not getting ahead of ourselves and all of the competing needs that are going to come from the tax dollars

[00:56:00] from the taxpayers so as as much as i like the idea of it and i actually think the site is a decent site for me it's it's the financial side of it and as supervisor weir said learning from virginia beach who right now is having to take a six million dollar is that right six million dollars to to basically save the the indoor rec facility is am i right is it six million i think it's two million a year okay it's a lot of money to bail out this same type of venture so you know for for

[00:56:36] me it's it's it's not that it's the concept of it is a bad idea it's a great idea it's just weighing the financial needs of this county who by the way in the spring the future board is going to have to decide how serious they are when they're looking at setting the tax rates which is obviously very public anyway i'm not going to go on from there but i like the idea but not the timing and the cost supervisor vega thank you madam chair uh spot on supervisor we're in supervisor lawson um supervisor franklin is right we've had this discussion for quite some time now in regards

[00:57:15] to an indoor facility but to supervisor angry's point i'm not forgetting how we got here um some track athletes and coaches and parents made a request. It was a simple request. I couldn't even keep up with the list that Supervisor Bodie was reading off of as to what it's going to entail, what it's going to be. And so a simple request was made, and now it's formed into what? Something that is going to cost you, the taxpayers, anywhere close to $100 million. And going back to Supervisor Franklin's point, previous boards tried, and I say that term loosely, tried to get on a bond referendum what does that mean that means that you the voters the taxpayers of this

[00:57:54] county decide whether or not you want to go ahead and fund something of this magnitude i would have loved to have seen it when you go to the ballot box you vote on whether or not you want to fund something that is going to have that type of a price tag and so the reason why we keep talking about it is because we don't believe that it's been uh thorough thoroughly vetted and that we can do some work and that i have yet to see a proposal of this magnitude and the four years that I've been on this board be walked back once you let the horse out of the barn it's out folks and we're not going to bring it back so they're going to find a way to make it happen one way or another so I think that it's up to us to be diligent in what we do and how we do it to ensure

[00:58:32] that we're looking out for everyone's interest while also you know mitigating the concerns that have been raised by the athletes of this county do we need a facility yes do we need this facility with all the bells and whistles, I would argue not. Supervisor Bode.

[00:58:48] Thank you, Madam Chair. I'll just tap this dead horse a little bit. At the end of the day, all that we're approving today is an interim agreement to look at this, and including that interim agreement is to ask all of you the scope that you want to see. We could do the Taj Mahal like it's been discussed, some of the opportunities and prosperities and prospects that I talked about, or it could be a slimmed down one, which is simply an indoor track in some other fields.

[00:59:12] We don't know yet because we haven't fully engaged the public. There is, in this board document that we're looking at for this, almost two full pages of stakeholders that we'll be talking to. Sports teams, schools, principals, youth leagues, the whole nine yards of folks that may potentially want to use this facility for something or another.

[00:59:33] Yes, there could be logistical issues with just a sheer amount of demand here. But to me, that speaks more and more of why we need to at least look into this to see what the community wants to do. So again, yes, there could be some concerns sometime down the road about the scope of this.

[00:59:49] But we won't know what you all want until we make this step and have a facilitated, full-on community conversation with all of you on what you want to see in a facility like this and see what that costs. Then we can make more decisions from there. Thank you, Madam Chair. Thank you. Supervisor Bailey.

[01:00:05] Thank you, Madam Chair. Seth, if you would, please. I just wanted to, if you would just kind of help us remember, you came to this point.

[01:00:21] What were the other facilities that you compared this to before we vote to send this to MEB? There were other opportunities that we looked at, and you came back and reported back to us. Could you kind of give us a review of that? Yes, ma'am, Supervisor Bailey, Madam Chair, Seth Hendler-Voss, honored to serve as your Director of Parks and Recreation.

[01:00:40] We received an unsolicited proposal from MEB, and we advertised it for upset proposals, competing proposals, and we did not receive any competing proposals. So this is the only, the sole, full proposal that we have received. Now, upon receiving this proposal, we have, as part of our due diligence, before engaging with you all and providing guidance to you all, we did do some benchmarking to see how this facility compared to other facilities throughout the area, and that enabled us to determine what type of facility was being proposed whether it's more of a community 100% community

[01:01:16] focused facility local facility whether it's a facility focused totally on bringing folks from the outside in or whether it's a hybrid of the two we looked at different operating models we looked at at capital costs and we took all that information into account when we made the recommendation to the board to consider this proposal and take it to the next step which is the interim agreement. Okay and I trust your judgment because that's your level of expertise but why MEB? Is that what they do? You know what I mean? Yes ma'am. Yes ma'am. So MEB is actually

[01:01:53] the contractor who developed the Virginia Beach Sports Center. And that's what you're familiar Yes, ma'am. And because we asked for the Board to express interest in a facility of similar size to that of Virginia Beach, particularly the hydraulic indoor track, MEB, given their experience, went ahead and submitted their unsolicited proposal to partner with us to develop practically an identical facility in concept.

[01:02:21] This next stage of work will allow us to fine-tune the concept and determine exactly what goes in it and what size it is. But basically what MAB has proposed is an identical facility with an indoor track wing and a basketball court wing for a total multipurpose experience, depending on what needs the community has.

[01:02:42] And I recall when we ran in 2019 that this was on the ballot, but it was pulled along with Van Buren Extension, but we won't go there. But it was pulled. So based upon then 2019 and now 2023, do you think that this is something that, well, obviously you do, but I want to hear why you think that this is something we need to bring forth to the community now as it relates to the needs coming out of COVID?

[01:03:11] Because I always look at that. That was the break that we had. Could you kind of explain that and educate us in that regard? Yes, ma'am. Thank you for the question. And so, yes, the board at the final moments of finalizing the 2019 bond referendum list took this project off of the list and directed staff to seek a partnership with the private sector to effectuate the project.

[01:03:34] COVID came, stalled everything out. There was a time when no one knew whether there would be a market for indoor sports competitions at the scale that we experienced pre-COVID. Now we're seeing it's all picked up again. as if covert never existed the demand for indoor competition space which is the primary driver this facility it's practice and competition space that's why we're calling it a sports facility is as strong as ever this project is also in the 2020 parks recreation open space master plan which the board adopted so we're delivering on an existing priority in your guiding documents

[01:04:14] it's in the comprehensive plan also isn't it or is it it's it's not skeletal yes ma'am okay so last question if i may madam chair that i have is economic impact how will this aid us from an economic impact standpoint thank you it's a very very good question and it's important that when you look at the facilities like this you look at more than just the cash coming into the facility itself from the patrons a lot of jurisdictions take into account the ancillary economic development benefits that come from folks coming into the community and spending money

[01:04:50] outside the facility and then the induced impacts of the money being spent in a community how that impacts what the businesses who receive that revenue do with that money it's a it's a large ripple effect plus you also have to consider the incremental tax revenues that come in facility like this which is cash in the county's coffers and and then you're also looking at the the The ability of projects like this to catalyze other economic development, commercial growth, for instance, ancillary or supplemental projects that could actually multiply the tax, incremental tax advantages of a facility like this.

[01:05:30] And seasonal, it's not just one part of the time. Well, we're looking at a 365 economic impact for this facility, and we want to carefully design it and program it so it is filled 52 weekends out of the year. Thank you, Madam Chair.

[01:05:47] Thank you. And before I call for the vote, I just want to say, you know, we are a jurisdiction of half a million people. We have athletes, we have children, I don't know how many, 90,000 school children. And people have been consistently asking us for a venue. Whether it's money-making or not, it would be great to have something that would bring in economic development.

[01:06:05] But whether we have that or not, it would be great to have something for our youth and the people who, you know, achieve at sports in the area. And we've been, you know, half a million people. I think we can support a facility like this. With that, please vote. Motion passes, 5 to 3.

[01:06:26] Supervisors Lawson, Vega, and Weir voting nay. That moves us on to 5-0, which was pulled, which is the same exact topic. Would someone like to move 5-0? So moved. Motion made by Vice Chair Bodie, seconded by Supervisor Bailey.

[01:06:41] Any discussion? Supervisor Weir. I'm going to continue to beat this dead horse. Here we are, expending another $550,000 in the waning days of this board's tenure for a project of questionable viability.

[01:07:05] You know, I'm hearing ancillary benefits and ancillary taxes and T.O.T. It didn't work in Virginia Beach, which has significantly more opportunity than we do. Seth, last I checked, the county currently has about $200 million in unfunded capital projects for the park system, including ball field lights that have been promised at Long Park for the last 20-some-odd years, and I don't have at a fraction of the cost, when are we going to get around to all these other projects? You've got a whole bunch of other unfinished projects for a variety of sports,

[01:07:43] for a variety of parks, for a variety of recreational uses, both passive and active. And here we are dumping what, and let's be clear about this, the $100 million is likely a really low fee because it doesn't include land acquisition costs, which I'm looking at another 16 million here. Doesn't include the operational aspect. Doesn't probably include enough for the acquisition of all of the equipment, not to mention having to construct a parking lot and doing all of that. And here we are, we're going to drop another $16 million and we've got

[01:08:21] actual available space in the county that we already own that we could locate this facility on. You've got a parcel right next door to McCourt that I'm sure you could somehow configure for it. We've got a case coming up tonight that's proffering an 80-acre site for it, yet we're going to go and drop an agreement right now in the waning months before we even know what these other options are to engage another half a million dollars of taxpayer money.

[01:08:53] I think the other thing that we need to keep in mind is that a number of things that have been funded by CARES Act and ARPA money over the last couple of years have involved the Parks Department. Considerable number of capital projects. That resource is drying up.

[01:09:10] So the general fund is going to have to support more than it has in the past. And then last but not least, although you make great mention of the fact that the debt service for the partial year cost is $400,000 in FY25, the projected debt cost in the out years, FY26 and beyond, is at least $1.5 million.

[01:09:34] We've already dropped a half a million dollars so far, actually more than that, three-quarters of a million dollars, if not more, in spending on the consent agenda already today. we're encumbering future boards with that now we're going to encumber them even more again with 30 some odd days left in the term of this board i think this is a more appropriate action by the next board and not this one thank you seeing no further discussion please vote

[01:10:04] motion passes five to three supervisors lawson vega and we're voting nay uh five r who pulled five r i did supervisor bailey thank you thank you i had scratched her um i just want to uh bring to the attention i want to say thank you to the um to chief newsham and his team for bringing this forward on this afternoon one of the things that we are uh really working on is the public safety

[01:10:42] piece and making sure that our communities are safe and this is an ongoing grant that the chief and his and his staff applies for to make sure that we are always upgrading and looking at new opportunities as it relates to safety in our communities and so my in my discussion with him on this he will in the future be looking at other opportunities not just state but federally as well as we look at that and targeting that seven percent increase in crime that we've had here in our community only seven percent and so we don't want that number to go higher and

[01:11:21] And so I want to thank him for really focusing on the traffic safety programs, particularly with the fatalities that we've had in our communities. So thank you, Madam Chair. Supervisor Bode, or you want to move it and then discuss, whatever.

[01:11:38] So moved. Second. Motion made by Supervisor Bailey, seconded by Vice Chair Bode. Supervisor Bode. Just very quickly to echo a lot of what Supervisor Bailey just said, traffic safety is part of the holistic look at community safety, right? And so as we continue to see the reckless driving, the fatalities and injuries surrounded by traffic incidents, continue to support our police department, our transportation department, looking at ways to bring down those behaviors and those issues that lead to, unfortunately, injury and death of our residents.

[01:12:10] So, again, fully support this. Looking forward to continue to partner with our agencies, continue to move the ball forward on traffic safety. Thank you, Madam Chair. Thank you, Supervisor Bodie. Supervisor Weir. I'm not going to hold this up, and I'll actually vote in favor of it, But I just want to note that this adds another hundred and some odd thousand dollars to the spending for next year.

[01:12:30] There's a match. Supervisor Franklin. Okay, I just had a question. My apologies. If you all wouldn't mind, just a quick question to the police department. It's a simple question.

[01:12:50] I'm wondering if some of these funds can be used towards, because one of the things that I talked about in the past is that Supervisor Bailey and I share, I think, one or two of the, I call it the speeding board. that shows I think we share only like one or two of those for both of our districts.

[01:13:09] And I've been vocal in the past about purchasing more of those so that we can kind of put them in more areas. Is this something that can be used towards those efforts? Madam Chair, members of the board, John Peake with the police department. Yes, and actually we have reconfigured deployment of those.

[01:13:27] They're managed out of special operations. So whenever there's a need or a want, you can reach out to myself or the district commanders and we deploy those through various parts of the county. You see the speed trailers. We did utilize funds through the DMV grant to purchase two additional signs this year, along with the speed trailer.

[01:13:47] Those speed trailers are multipurpose now, not just speed, but it also puts messages on it. And we can do those remotely, so it's been working out really well. Okay, that's good. And so you purchased two additional. That's great. Did that add capacity to at least the eastern end? Yes. So we share them throughout the entire county.

[01:14:03] So we have various boards throughout each – we don't specifically assign them just to each area. We do have pretty much two or three in each district along with the trailers. So whenever there's a need, we just deploy it. We put them – we have a list and spreadsheet that we utilize those, and we deploy it as needed.

[01:14:22] Okay, that's great. And it allows us to run reports for traffic data and things like that as well. That's excellent. And so we have about two to three per district. Correct. That's excellent. Yeah, thank you. Thank you for that. Seeing no further discussion, please vote. vote unanimous great that will conclude our consent agenda items we now move on to public comment time we currently have two people signed up for public comment just as a reminder that public comment time is items for not already on the agenda if you are here to speak to Devlin Devlin Technology Park that will

[01:15:01] be heard during agenda item 13 a during the 7:30 meeting and not this afternoon with that I will call up our two speakers they get three minutes please tell us your name and generally where you live in the county or outside the county at the beginning of your remarks. There'll be a timer and the microphone is in the back. Our two speakers are Verndelle Robinson and Thomas Gee. And you can pull the microphone down because we won't be able to hear you if you don't. Thank you. Thanks. Hi, my name is Verndelle Robinson and I am a resident

[01:15:40] of the Potomac District. This comment is for Supervisor Bailey on item 5G while it was pulled I'd like to remind her on the Van Buren Road extension that during the campaign that she said that she would not be moving this project forward in any way And since there is a lot of contention with this project, we look forward to standing by your promises. Thank you Thank you. Next speaker, please. Mr. G. Feel free to go to the microphone and tell us your name and generally where you live and you'll have three minutes

[01:16:18] Hello, members of the council. Can you hear me? Yes, okay. My name is Thomas Gee. I live in Clifton, so just across the board from across the Occoquan from you guys. My comment is about an item that you may hear soon. Excuse me. This is about banning weapons in public parks here in the county. I would like to ask you to please not do that again.

[01:16:52] I'm going to put some common arguments on the board that I'm sure you've heard before. First, there's no compelling argument to ban the possessions, at this time anyway.

[01:17:10] Doing so does signal, along with the signage that must go into account with this, that this is a gun-free zone and it will put the people in the parks at more risk than they would otherwise be.

[01:17:26] It signals that they cannot protect themselves or their children from attacks, from forces that are greater than they are. And finally, in the common arguments, it's not going to stop any criminals at all.

[01:17:46] There are other reasons that this is not a good idea. Excuse me, I apologize for my voice. Local laws that are different from the state laws, they are non-uniform, add confusion.

[01:18:05] I volunteer for an organization called the Virginia Citizens Defense League. We work with many, many law enforcement agencies, and we give out documentation for both the officers as well as the citizens.

[01:18:24] One of those is a carry card. It says where you can legally and not legally carry in the state. I gave out 9,000 of these last year to law enforcement.

[01:18:40] So many people, especially the officers, will say, hey, you can't carry here. The first question that comes back is, where else can I carry? Every additional local ordinance puts a burden on not only the citizens but on the police.

[01:19:04] That's just my little anecdote. Another reason that I'm asking you not to do this is that many of these bans will see a judicial challenge. there are lots of them that are making their way through the courts the overwhelming majority of those are found not to be legal and i've gotten to the bottom of my list thank you very much your time is up thank you thank you that moves us on to um remote public comment time i do believe we

[01:19:41] have two people online supervisor bode or vice chair bode i'll turn it over to you thank you madam chair miss man shall we begin yes we have two remote speakers today your first speaker is Mike Kaczmarek. Mike Kaczmarek, Heritage Hunt, Gainesville. I'm totally opposed to the board

[01:20:18] approving any data centers during the lame duck period. Six of the eight members will be returning for another four years. You have no need or reason to rush a vote. The rush vote will only be a complete surrender to the developers and the data center industry. You have not negotiated the best deal for the county i cannot it cannot be done in the in these last meetings you will be surrendering all future prince william county authority to regulate data centers given the new

[01:20:52] give the new board a chance to lead on this issue the voters spoke clearly during the primary they wanted new leadership in the general election the voters spoke again wanting new leadership The two candidates most associated with data center growth will not be returning to the new board.

[01:21:13] Give DeShondra Jefferson a chance to lead Prince William County in a new direction. Democrats, I know you won your individual districts, but so did DeShondra. She may have even done a little better in your districts. She wanted to restrain data center growth, but you want more data centers.

[01:21:31] The voters sent a mixed message, except they made clear that they wanted Democrats to decide the issue. Give the new board the chance. Do not rest on your 2019 mandate that this board received, which never included data centers. Do not do what the Republicans did in 2019 when they rushed through Gainesville Crossing data centers on the last day. That decision started the process to approve data centers anywhere, anytime. Get the regulations in place before you consider any new data center approvals. Once approved, you will lose all leverage to get the necessary regulations.

[01:22:07] We had an election three weeks ago where a new mandate was given by the voters. Do not ignore the will of the voters. At early voting and on Election Day, I heard from many voters who said that it does not matter who you vote for. Nothing ever changes.

[01:22:24] You have to stop ignoring voters and slapping them down by just doing what big money donors want you to do. Do not reinforce what some voters think, that nothing will change. We will need those voters next year to save democracy in the country. Do not push them away now because they may not be there next year.

[01:22:44] You have four more years to do it right, so make that first step to respect the voters. Supervisor Bodie, you are not a lame duck. If you believe it is a good decision now, you should be able to convince the new board to support it in six months.

[01:23:02] Take the time to get it done right. This is not good government. This is not why I worked so hard to get Democrats elected. Respect the voters. Thank you very much. Thank you, Mr. Kashmirik. Next speaker, please. Your next speaker is Keith Snyden.

[01:23:28] Greetings. Greetings, Supervisor Angry Bailey, Franklin, Vega, Weir. I believe I've got everybody in there.

[01:23:44] And Chair Wheeler. In becoming an active citizen in this county during these last few years in regards to the development, It's easy to see that there are a great number of shortfalls as we move to this next term.

[01:24:22] It's nice to hear that there's some organization in, I don't know the term exactly, but that $18,000 project of getting people together.

[01:24:46] It sure seems like that workshop could take place being task-specific. In the number of things I've spoke about, there's been wetlands concerns in development.

[01:25:04] There's been endangered species concerns in development. This one is a large one, not to undermine any of the others. Electrical usage, electrical load. There's obviously a great lack of understanding of how electrical systems work, of how the electrical grid is functioning.

[01:25:33] I was just on the phone with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission about an hour ago to follow up with somebody who's speaking with the balancing authority and some people at Dominion. And it's very easy to see how our county board and our county's system is simply taking advantage of non-organization.

[01:26:08] We're putting our electrical grid in a reactive stance rather than proactively planning accordingly so that we can move forward together, blue and red, and look out for the safety, health, and welfare of everyone.

[01:26:28] Electricity, electricity bills, it all affects people's sanity and stability. Electrical power goes out, problems begin. Please keep it in mind. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Snyder.

[01:26:44] Are there any other speakers, Ms. Mann? I believe there is one speaker that is joining right now. Give me one second. Are you here?

[01:27:14] Your next speaker is Alan Gloss. Good afternoon, board. This is Alan Gloss, Coles District. I want to bring up a couple items today for you.

[01:27:33] Number one, I brought up some things in the past. I think it's time that we close some of these things out. So previously, I've brought up about the charging stations within the county being used by people who shouldn't.

[01:27:50] Namely, where I showed a picture of Ann Wheeler driving away from a county charging station, although we know she has plenty of money to be able to pay for her own charge. What has the county done to alleviate this concern that we have, where we have people who don't need it, but are using government charging stations needlessly?

[01:28:16] Why are taxpayers burdened with paying for Ann Wheeler's charge? Secondly, I want to bring up something that my wife had brought up previous, hiring outside of the county. Now, we have seen several times where the county has chose to hire people from outside of the county and bring them in and not offering promotions to those in attendance.

[01:28:42] I'm sorry, those in the county. So we have a system where there is no forward momentum, no upward motivation for employees to do the best skills that they can. We've been hiring outside the county with several higher ranking things, starting out with Mr. Short.

[01:29:04] We had an excellent candidate in my mind. Elijah was an excellent candidate for the county executive officer position, but he was not chosen. Mr. Shorter was. And I'm seeing a growing trend where we're seeing people being brought into the county that are coming from areas that don't belong to the county.

[01:29:28] And they're coming from areas that are already failed locations like Baltimore or Washington, D.C. or some other place like that. And they're bringing their policies into Prince William County, and they're not bringing any value to us.

[01:29:44] Now, are they the right candidate? I don't know. That's for someone to decide. But I'm noticing a growing trend with people being hired from outside of the county, and we need to take steps to rectify that. We need to find the best candidates, but we have to look from within before we go out from outside, outside of our jurisdiction. Thank you.

[01:30:08] Thank you, Mr. Gloss. Are there any other speakers for this afternoon? There are no more remote speakers at this time. Thank you so much. Have a great day, and back to you, Madam Chair. Thank you, Vice Chair Bodie. Thank you, Ms. Mann, as always. That moves us on to our public hearings.

[01:30:25] Item 7A was withdrawn at this time, but we do have other two public hearings this afternoon, 7b and 7c regarding Virginia Department of Transportation requests for no through traffic on Carver Road as well as Signal Hill with that I will open up the public hearings on item 7b and 7c miss Madden no no one signed up to speak on on these exciting items okay is anybody in the room I have to do this in room who hasn't signed up who wants to talk on 7b or 7c please approach the microphone in the back

[01:31:04] seeing no one approach the microphone in the back this will officially close the public hearings on items 7b and 7c do we have anyone online ms madden okay um with that i will entertain a motion for 7b and 7c moved second motion made by supervisor lawson seconded by supervisor there are online speakers for the public hearing for 7b or 7c further through truck traffic

[01:31:36] for 7b and 7c yes okay my apologies we will we will back up and uh redo the motion when we need to um consider the public hearing back open and Ms. Mann Mr. Supervisor Brody do you want to take the speakers for 7b and 7c sure shall we be yet who's the first speaker Ms. Mann your first speaker

[01:32:03] is keith snyder alicia can you go to the next beer are you not ready mr snyder i'm not okay you're the only speaker though gotcha all right through truck traffic

[01:32:44] mr snyder do you have any comments for us for these two items i simply wanted to uh apologize for not including supervisor bode and addressing everybody on my concerns with the uh thoroughness of our development in fact-gathering and planning that takes place with electricity as well as through traffic. Thank you. Thank you for your comments, sir, and no offense taken. Back to you,

[01:33:18] Madam Chair. We have a motion on the floor from Supervisor Lawson and Supervisor Bailey. Pardon me? This will officially close a public hearing again on items 7B and 7C. Do you want to make the motion again just for the heck of it? Thank you, Madam Chair. I'll move 7B and C for approval.

[01:33:38] second motion made by supervisor lawson seconded by supervisor bailey we wouldn't want anyone to come back and say we didn't do these things properly um seeing no further discussion please vote vote unanimous very good thank you that concludes our public uh hearings for the day we now go on to public hearings on our consolidated agenda for land use they are consolidated so we don't have any presentations we have a special use permit for a grace church led sign in the

[01:34:12] potomac magisterial district and we have a special use permit for liberty self-storage for the gainesville magisterial district with that i will open up the public hearings for 8a and 8b together right now um we have um we have one speaker signed up for 8a which is derrick greer hi good afternoon uh first uh well i'm here bishop derrick greer uh pastor grace church uh Great to be with you guys.

[01:34:49] This has been a very educational experience, so we're learning a lot. I'm standing here on behalf of Grace Church. Those of you from Grace Church, would you stand in this room? We just, yeah. Thank you for coming out with me today, and you may be seated. I just wanted to take a moment to thank the Board of Supervisors for your special attention, particularly Supervisor Bailey, who has met with me over and over again.

[01:35:14] If it wasn't a telephone call, it was a conversation walking me through many of the county requirements. Really, really quickly, I'm going to be very short, but our project started around 2016. We started construction in 2020. We completed in 2022.

[01:35:30] However, there's one piece, and it's our sign, that remains to be approved. And this is why we're here today. It's been a super long road, but I'm delighted that we're finally getting to the end of it. And my hope is that the board here supports us as we try to finish this project that has taken a lot of expense, a lot of energy from our congregation.

[01:35:56] But I do want to thank you again. I want to thank the staff as well. It's been an intense experience, but all in all, it's been a productive experience. So thank you all. Thank you. Okay, I'm supposed to know, but this is a good thing because it's a church thing.

[01:36:19] But, okay, we're not supposed to clap or boo or anything, even positive out things of support. So the 8A and 8B are still open. Is there anyone else who would like to speak on 8A or 8B? If so, please approach the microphone in the back.

[01:36:38] Ms. Madden, do we have anyone? Seeing no one approached the microphone, we'll switch to remote. Do we have anyone online? Ms. Mann, do we have anyone online for 8A and 8B? Can you see anybody online, Ms. Mann?

[01:36:57] Okay. Well, not hearing from Ms. Mann, no one online. Okay, so this will officially close to here at public hearings on 8A and 8B, and we're going to take these individually just for the heck of it because I know you want to move 8A. Supervisor Bailey. I do. Madam Chair, it gives me great pleasure to move item 8A forward.

[01:37:17] I want to thank staff and the church congregation and all concerned in helping us from 2016 to get to this point. So I move forward 8A. Second. Motion made by Supervisor Bailey, seconded by Vice Chair Bodie.

[01:37:32] Any further discussion? Supervisor Bodie. Just very quickly, and thank you, Sheriff Bailey, for your leadership in this. I know that there was one resident, maybe a few meetings ago, that had expressed a little bit concern about safety issues, but it sounds like staff has worked through all the concerns with safety and nuisance and distraction on the road.

[01:37:50] So I just wanted to highlight that and say that I appreciate staff working through that alongside my colleague, my seatmate, Supervisor Bailey. Thank you. Thank you, Madam Chair. Very good. Seeing no further discussion, please vote. Vote unanimous.

[01:38:16] And before everybody gets up and moves, we do have 8B. That's in the Gainesville Magisterial District. Supervisor Weir? So moved. Second. Motion made by Supervisor Weir, seconded by Supervisor Bailey. Any further discussion on 8B? Seeing none, please vote.

[01:38:34] Vote unanimous. Very good. Congratulations. Thank you for coming out today. Awesome. And we'll take a moment while people are going out.

[01:38:45] next item will be the county executive will give them a time hear me can you please come out shut

[01:40:03] down in 14 minutes and i don't know how to make it stop be fun that'll be fun won't it just hurry Yeah, I was like, you need to use it, but they won't even let me, like.

[01:40:24] I will do it from the back, but we have to, because it's going to restart. So should we wait? How long will it take to restart? Probably about.

[01:40:47] On December 19th.

[01:41:48] That report will include surplus savings, fund balances, reserves, and recommended uses, and it is consistent with what we've done in the past years, And it is after the sort of annual external audit and as that nears complete completion.

[01:42:08] On the 19th, consistent with that, Cherry Becker will present external audits for the FY23 detailed audit results to the Joint Audit Committee and then eventually to the board that afternoon.

[01:42:24] So we also plan to bring on December 5th to you the board's offices, surpluses, and recommended uses. Collective bargaining. So as you all know, staff reached tentative four-year collective bargaining agreements with both Prince William County Police Association and the International Association of Firefighters with the wage reopener at the two-year point.

[01:42:55] I'm certainly pleased to say that both unions have ratified those agreements. This is a very big deal for our county and a testament certainly to the hard work of our negotiating team, which included the unions, staff, and human resources along with the county attorney's office.

[01:43:12] Important to note that Prince William County is the only northern Virginia jurisdiction that has been able to successfully negotiate all those contracts without utilizing an impasse arbitration. again a testament to the staff and all the hard work that the negotiating team did now that the CBAs have been ratified the office of management and budget will prepare consistent with what we've what we've committed to a physical impact study for the CBAs for the board of county supervisors

[01:43:48] consideration we'll bring that physical impact back to the board for approval sometime in January If approved, we will be, certainly I will incorporate that into the proposed FY25 budget for the board, and the board will have an opportunity then to approve the overall budget with the CBA financial impact included.

[01:44:14] Earlier this month, Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments applied for, on behalf of the entire region, federal government's pathways to removing obstacles for housing grant. The submission included a $200,000 grant for Prince William County to further our work around affordable dwelling unit ordinance.

[01:44:36] This is consistent with the work session announcement I made a few weeks back and will help us with our own ordinance and trust fund implementation. We will certainly keep the board advised as we move forward, and certainly if we are able to win that grant and get the $200,000 allotment for the county.

[01:44:58] Wanted to also let the board know and make sure you were aware that we pulled together a staff task force comprised of county staff, staff from the service authority in the Fairfax County water to focus on identifying land disturbance activities along the Occoquan Reservoir and certainly the larger sort of Occoquan watershed.

[01:45:23] The group's first meeting is next week, and I'll keep the board advised as we move that effort forward at the staff level. Last but certainly not least, I want to congratulate Kim Stewart. Kim Stewart was earlier this month named deputy chief for our fire and rescue system.

[01:45:44] We are very proud of her and look forward to her leadership. She has a wealth of experience within the fire and rescue system and certainly wanted to make mention and lift up that announcement that was held earlier this month in her promotion to the deputy fire chief.

[01:46:02] So congratulations, Kim. And Madam Chair, with that, those are all my announcements. I'll ask Glenn to now stand for the legislative agenda update. Before he begins, Supervisor Bode wants to say something, and then I have something I forgot I was supposed to say that wasn't in my notes.

[01:46:19] So just a question on your update. Thank you for your update, County Exec Shorter. That second-to-last item that you shared in regards to a working group put together of staff and water utilities to look at land disturbance on the Occoquan shores.

[01:46:36] Now, will they also be looking at potential violations like RPA violations alongside that? Can you give a little bit more flesh to what that scope is going to be looking to? They certainly will be – I will tell you that the scope of the task force ultimately will come back to the board with – they will be looking at violations, but mostly opportunities for the various entities to work together to make sure that we are properly protecting the watershed and that any disturbances that are ongoing that we are aware of.

[01:47:12] I will say that we have, as you know, gotten great reviews from DEQ around how we provide for protection of the watershed. This is really just for us an opportunity to make sure that we are working together well.

[01:47:31] Violations, obviously, yes, that will be included. But this is really about making sure that we are working together well as separate entities. We've invited Fairfax Water into this conversation because obviously they are a stakeholder as well on the water, on the Occoquan Reservoir, and they will be actively participating.

[01:47:54] Appreciate that. Thank you. A few other items. I do want to recognize Supervisor Angry, who was made second vice president of VACO, which is another accolade for the county. Very good. And, okay, well, we're a lot of clap. And Anger and Supervisor Bailey went through the board member certification and graduated from that program also.

[01:48:19] And I do have one question, Mr. Shorter. Didn't you win some award recently for under 40 chief executives? I can't find it, and I was Googling it, but I know I read it somewhere. Could you just mention what that is? Sure.

[01:48:40] I know you did, and I should be prepared, and I don't, but I want to know what it is and recognize it. I appreciate that, Madam Chair. It is the MBA Diversity Executives Awards, a national award in recognition for the top 100 executives in the country, and under 50, not 40.

[01:49:03] Oops, sorry. Yeah, yeah, and a real honor. And it really speaks to what we are doing here in the county and not necessarily just to me. And so very happy to receive it and certainly happy to have gotten the kind of response.

[01:49:22] I've gotten a number of notes from staff and from others in the county. So appreciate you mentioning it. I apologize for just winging in on that, but I know it's important and I want to make sure that we did this. So thank you. We're very proud of you. Which brings us to Mr. Loop.

[01:49:40] Political hacks for over 60. You'll need to turn your microphone or no one will catch that joke. Ready? Thank you. Before we dive into the legislative agenda, I just thought I'd set the table with a few political legislative-oriented updates.

[01:50:02] First of all, as a result of the election, it's a new assembly. Combined over 625 years of experience evaporated on one night. And now there's 34 new members of the House and 17 new members of the Senate.

[01:50:20] And a lot of the Prince William delegation has changed as well. And we're having get-to-know-you sessions with those new members of the legislature for the county as well. The change also brought a changing of the guard, if you will. A delegatorian of Prince William will be back as chairman of the House Appropriations Committee.

[01:50:40] Senator Jeremy McPike will be chairman of the Senate Local Government Committee. and even though there's a new speaker which holds the destiny of committee assignments in his hands we would assume that the remaining incumbents for the county will keep their key committee assignments which includes county cities and towns and the education committee and one of the only members of the house finance committee so all in all a very diverse approach to this and we'll we look forward to working with our new members i'm meeting with two of them

[01:51:12] tomorrow. December the 4th, we will have our joint legislative agenda presentation with the school system. That's the first time we've done a joint presentation of the agenda to the delegation, and we're doing that 8 o'clock December the 4th. January the 10th, opening of the General Assembly session, where we anticipate 3,000 to 4,000 bills to be filed by that Friday or the Friday after.

[01:51:40] But both chambers will be doing legislative committee limits, legislation limits. And this Thursday is the deadline for drafting, making this an opportune time for this discussion. In December, it's going to be a happening kind of month starting Friday.

[01:52:00] First of all, JLARC will be meeting and selecting its 2024 study subjects. And one of those, to be sure, is going to be data centers. and on December the 20th the governor presents his one and only budget and it will have a profound impact on the destiny of the every dollar in the commonwealth for the next two years so with having delegatorian as chairman of appropriations at the same time the governor is presenting his one and only budget it's going to make for an interesting interesting time and then just to put on your calendars February 1st is VACO VML local government day where we would

[01:52:38] welcome any and all of you to Richmond to meet with our members of the delegation now to dive into the agenda at hand not many changes uh from from last year but a couple of several pieces of legislation that are being requested as a component of your approval of this document the first page hasn't changed at all the opposes and what we're for and what we're against show me the money and leave me alone I guess is the way I could put a synopsis on that The first section on transportation, we keep an eye out on any and all eminent domain legislation as it often appears.

[01:53:18] Transportation and mobility safety improvements is language that's carried over from last year's agenda. Restore NVTA funding, it's a noble thing to ask for, but I don't think it's going to happen. And there doesn't seem to be any real big giant appetite from the administration or the assembly for any major transportation package at this juncture.

[01:53:38] The next two items are technical requests from transportation. The first regarding abandoned property, allowing a landowner that's been subject to a takings of the first right of refusal, the opportunity to waive that first right of refusal to buy their property back.

[01:53:58] The second one allows the abandoned property regulations that are currently in code that apply to residential areas to also to apply to commercial and industrial areas. restore funding supplanted by the pandemic again it's a noble thing to ask for but again we'll keep an eye on any major transportation funding opportunities but i just don't see that in the future at this juncture uh an enhancement and funding of multimodal public transits i think we'll have a better idea on the transportation packages after friday when all of the major

[01:54:35] regional transportation groups the national the northern virginia transportation commission the Transportation Authority, VRE, are all having a joint legislative agenda presentation on Friday morning. I've reviewed each of their agendas, and it's pretty much status quo, and really protect what they've got. The major transportation issue, I think, for Northern Virginia in this session is going to be how does Metro close a $750 million budget gap, and that's become a major, major source of debate and discussion, and we will keep you apprised because I'm not going to be surprised if We're not asked to endorse some type of piece of legislation to help with that funding dilemma that they've got.

[01:55:14] Under health and well-being, the number one issue for the Crisis Receiving Center is ongoing operating funds. We've laid some groundwork with a request on this because of the anticipation of the need. It's been on your docket for quite some time, but there will be an amendment request for $2.4 million in operating funds for the Prince William Crisis Receiving Center.

[01:55:41] Likewise, we have also kept the juvenile justice services facility on the agenda because of how close that project is to design services and the opportunity to solicit state matching fund support for that. There's a lot of moving parts, including a joint study committee by the administration and the Virginia Commission on Youth on Proposed Consolidation of Juvenile Justice Facilities statewide.

[01:56:07] And we don't know how that could impact this center, But because this code allows for matching funds for those types of facilities, it's time to have that discussion. The remaining items in this area on behavioral health, the workforce crisis, which is still a crisis for community and social services, all of those items are reflective of regional priorities for community and social services and languages same as last year.

[01:56:32] A new bill that's being introduced, to our knowledge, would allow for an on-site pharmacy service to be allowed at the Crisis Receiving Center in Prince William County. That would require a statutory change. The contractor that's working with the county on the crisis receiving centers requesting this legislation, it's our understanding that Delegate Sickles is going to introduce it and introduce it with an emergency call so that it would take effect as soon as the governor signs it.

[01:56:58] And we're asking for your support of that legislation. Under public safety, all of those items are the same with the exception at the bottom, an item requested by Supervisor Angry regarding the regulation of speed, traffic controls, and areas of daycare centers.

[01:57:18] There's several different approaches to this type of an issue. It could be statutory, it could be legislative, it could be regulatory, it could be the county doing an assessment on areas that are of higher safety and hazard concern than others. So we're leaving this in the legislative agenda because it is a multifaceted approach.

[01:57:38] And we'd kind of like to have a placeholder, if you will, in case there's legislation. At the same time, the county may provide some study services and consult with you, Supervisor Angry, on areas of higher concern than others, given that there's over 200 such facilities in the county.

[01:57:55] Does that make sense? Gotcha. Under public education, the number one subject, I think, of, well, one of the number one subjects of this session is going to be addressing the JLARC study on funding K-12 and standards of quality.

[01:58:10] JLARC study came out and basically said, this was their terminology, that we're spending less than Mississippi per student, to the tune of about $1,900 a student. Matter of fact, JLARC staff just prevented the Chesterfield board supervisors and said if they were fully funded, Chesterfield County would anticipate getting about $212 million more than they're getting now, which kind of gives you an idea of where this is heading statewide.

[01:58:35] As a result of the JLARC study, during the special session in September, the House and Senate formed a joint study committee to study the study. But it's basically, and that's their terminology, they're going to study the study to come up with a plan on how to come up with that type of funding, which includes changing the funding methodology to meet the state's obligations for the standards of quality.

[01:59:01] It could be a $7 to $10 billion discussion. And given that the governor is presenting his budget on December the 20th, that makes it somewhat of an even greater moving target. But obviously you can't come up with that type of capital in a $155 billion state budget without getting creative on the funding department.

[01:59:22] So that's going to make for an interesting discussion. And that subject will also be addressed with the school system at the joint presentation on December the 4th. Really nothing's changed in the economy section.

[01:59:40] We want to bring up, really, as a result of the changing of the Guard and the General Assembly, I think cannabis legislation is back on the table in terms of legalization. There's a huge fiscal impact. There's a public health question.

[01:59:56] There's a public safety question. There's a lot of issues revolving around cannabis legalization, especially for recreational. And I would think that's back on the table with the 469-page bill that was introduced two years ago. But given the local impact of that issue, it's in the agenda.

[02:00:14] Likewise, with gaming legislation, that's a moving target. There's about to become a new Department of Gaming Services introduced. Given the Rosie's facility in Prince William County, that needs to stay on the table because of the debate about skills, games of skill. And lastly, housing and land use, probably the next dominant issue of this session.

[02:00:34] Probably anticipate about 33 pieces of legislation on the housing front from the Virginia Housing Commission, which is the legislature's side of that equation. They're pretty much all over the board, but we have to keep an eye out on encroachment on local land use decision-making authority when it comes to that type of legislation.

[02:00:53] So we will keep you diligently apprised of any and all bills introduced in that arena. And in the administration and government section, all those previous sessions parts there in blue are all the same from last year.

[02:01:09] And lastly, in that area, bill requested by our procurement staff to increase the contracting limits from 500,000 to 1.5 million these rates have not changed since 2016 our brethren over in Loudoun County are requesting the same legislation it will allow us for a greater level of leniency efficiency in contracting more reflective of what today's prices are for general types of maintenance and other types of operational services. So this would give the county a greater latitude to address that type of

[02:01:44] contracting authority statutorily. So with that, that's the nuts and bolts of it. As always with the General Assembly, it's all about what you don't know that you have to fear. And with three to four thousand pieces of legislation being introduced and not knowing where it's all going to be coming down, we do have the tools to keep you individually and collectively as a board apprised our policy engage system allows you to track any and all bills yourself on anything anything of interest to you personally also keep track of all those we keep track a bundle of bills

[02:02:22] that you'll see averaging 275 bills a session that are important to this agenda and the county as a whole so on a daily weekly real-time basis we will keep you apprised of what happens between january the 10th and march the 10th so with that i'd be glad to take any questions thank you mr loop any questions uh let's see supervisor franklin sure not really questions just want to highlight some things i think is of importance and i think they're kind of sprinkled throughout this document

[02:02:57] but transportation funding we've talked about this a lot um i think we do need um i guess greater resources particularly you know we'll have a omni ride budget that comes to us next soon I would say for the next fiscal year that will ask Prince William County for greater resources I think those type of resources coming from the state will be critically important and so that's just something that I think we should keep our eye on I will say at least speaking from VRE's perspective that the state did a really good job of stepping in and helping out when VRE was kind of in a tough

[02:03:36] situation. You know, we are slowly moving out of the economic challenges that VRE and really OmniRide as well faced during the pandemic and as a result of the pandemic. But those are items that I think we're going to have to continue to pay close attention. The discussion around Metro, obviously we don't have Metro here in Prince William County. We'll love to have that expanded, But I look at that as really a problem for jurisdictions west and north of us, right?

[02:04:03] And so when we talk about transportation funding, I would much rather Prince William County continue to have discussions around local transportation resources. So that's one thing I'll say on that. The school funding formula, you know, that's something I expect to bring up when we meet with the school board.

[02:04:21] That's something that was very big, I think, across all the jurisdictions at VACO. And really that's a nonpartisan issue, knowing that a lot of school systems are not getting the type of funding, particularly per pupil, that they would get if we were using different types of funding formulas here in Virginia.

[02:04:42] We're one of the few that does not use kind of what most states already use. And as a result, a lot of our jurisdictions are not getting the amount of money that we should be getting for our students. So that's something that I expect to come up. And then the Child Advocacy Center, I don't think we've talked about that, but you all may have gotten word that there will be a reduction in funding for child advocacy centers across the region.

[02:05:05] That's something that is of great concern. I hope that that's something that we include in our legislative package here to talk to the state about giving additional resources, even if we need to elevate that discussion to our congressional delegation. That's something that obviously I let the effort on the CAC, but to think about resources for child abuse services to be reduced, that's of grave concern to me, and I hope that my colleagues feel the same way about that.

[02:05:31] So that's something that I want to see explicitly written out in our legislative agenda. And then just a couple more things, affordable housing resources. We can't just say that we support affordable housing. We need actual resources that come from the state to do affordable housing. We've talked about an affordable housing trust fund here where we're going to have to find the resources to do that, and I'm sure that we will, but it will be great for the state to actually make investments into our local programs that we're looking to set up.

[02:05:57] That will be very helpful. And then lastly, public safety. I saw the slide on public safety, but we've had a robust discussion here in Prince William County and amongst ourselves. All of us, Dems, Republicans on this board, have talked about the importance of public safety, And so it would be good for our General Assembly to bring us real resources, real dollars here to kind of fight some of the challenges that we've been seeing in certain areas, whether it's traffic mitigation, speeding challenges that we've seen, or with regards to violent crimes.

[02:06:30] Our police does a good job, but quite frankly, they could use some additional resources, not just from the county, but from the state as well. So those are just some of the things I want to point out. And then lastly, I'll just say that I do think that we need to continue to push for the CTB to look at how they do some of the formulas for how we do our traffic studies.

[02:06:50] That is the number one issue I get in terms of calls to my office besides housing assistance. Every single neighborhood has a speeding issue, and they're saying, Supervisor Franklin, what are you doing about it? And I have to explain to them why it's so hard to actually do mitigation work on these issues.

[02:07:05] So at some point we have to actually not just say that we care about the issue, but I like for the county to actually have some meetings with CTB, have some meetings with VDOT, and say this is a challenge and how can we move forward and not, if we're going to lower the standard so that we can trigger more projects to be mitigated, some alternative.

[02:07:24] But we can't continue to have our hands tied and tell our constituents that there's nothing we can do because VDOT says that we can't. And that's all I got. A couple of, I'm sorry, Chair. Just a couple of things. Courtney and I were trying to break down the TANF question and the children's services question before this meeting.

[02:07:44] It is a state and federal question, and I think we'll have to be able to provide greater clarity on that after the governor releases his budget December the 20th, and we see what direction the House and Senate are going. But we'll keep you apprised on that specific issue because it seems to be more of an issue in 2025-26 than right now under the current fiscal budget.

[02:08:04] But point taken. Supervisor Bailey. Thank you, Madam Chair. Glenn, thank you for your presentation. Thorough and makes a lot of sense and easy to follow.

[02:08:20] I wanted to ask you three things. One is, does the $2.4 million ongoing funding for the CRC, does that include the pharmaceutical piece? I don't think so. Or is that an additional? Operating of it, the operation of it.

[02:08:38] The operation is the $2.4 million, correct? I don't know if that includes the pharmacy. Okay. My understanding, Supervisor Bailey, is it does not. Okay. And the $2.4 million is specifically for the youth component of the CRC. Only?

[02:08:53] Only. Okay. All right. I need to know that. Okay. Thank you, County Exec. And then the other question I have, one of the things being important. Hi, Lisa. She heard me ask you. One of the questions I had being a part, a member of the Health and Human Services Committee with VACO, we've been really focused on the workforce for the behavioral health entity and for the sub-german experts.

[02:09:24] And so my question is, do you think that there will be, in terms of the representation, in supporting the expediting of credentialing and the decreasing of regulatory requirements, Will that be a mainstay as we go forward as it relates to behavioral health?

[02:09:46] Or do we need to speak to that more? That's the impression I've gotten from the commissioner. And you and I have met with the commissioner for the Department of Behavioral Health Services. And I think on the credentialing and regulatory side of the equation, they're working diligently with that. Now, the compensation question is one that I would defer to Lisa.

[02:10:03] But apparently there's still a lot of shortcomings in that arena. Yeah, because I think if we have an audience to speak to the 2.4, we also need to speak to that. So I'll rely on Lisa for us to dialogue about that in the future, if I may, before the GA.

[02:10:21] Yeah, you want to speak? Please, please. Yeah, we were having the compensation question discussion before this. Yeah, yeah. And I just wanted to know if there's been a shift in that or not, or should that be a focus when we go to the GA? So the $2.4 million is strictly to complete the operations for the youth part of the CRC, and the pharmaceutical piece is a legislative change.

[02:10:48] It is not to do with any type of operational funding. It's a legislative change that has to occur for the medication to be on site. Okay, I just wanted to be clear with that. So is there an opportunity, Lisa, for us to, as it relates to our CRC, to negotiate for the salary piece, or should we just, you know what I mean, when we're at the General Assembly?

[02:11:16] Well, I think they're two different issues. I mean, the workforce crisis, I think, is always something to bring up, and the General Assembly is very aware from the region and from the ACSB about the issues, and there has been compensation considered and provided by the governor's budget.

[02:11:36] But specific to the CRC, it's the ongoing operational funding for the youth operations and then the legislative changes that have to occur. Okay, okay, that's what I need to know. And then, thank you, thank you, Lisa. And then, Glenn, the last thing that I had was for the gaming legislation.

[02:11:55] It was a small paragraph, and, you know, I just want to know, in terms of that, what should we look for that you've seen? I'm treading lightly. Well, the games of skill question is being addressed by the Supreme Court right now.

[02:12:12] Well, they have, and I think that'll compel legislation in this session. I think any time you're talking about broadening games of skill to facilities beyond the current convenience store market, for example, it'll take some serious legislative adjustments, and I'm not going to be shocked at all if there aren't bills to that effect come January.

[02:12:32] And I think Rosie's facility, I think they're monitoring any change to open up new revenue streams for their facilities. So that's going to be somewhat of a moving target, and honestly, I mean, I could see some bills getting out of the House and Senate and stopped by the governor's office.

[02:12:51] I could see them taking a more relaxed approach for the sake of, you know, creating new revenue streams. And I also think that subject is linked to the opening of new casinos in Portsmouth and Danville and Bristol.

[02:13:07] So I think it's a complicated question for this assembly. Is that enough of a non-answer for you? Yeah, it is. That was good. I followed it, though. That's the scary part. Okay. All right. That's all I have for now.

[02:13:22] Thank you, Madam Chair. So it's going to be Supervisor Bode, then Supervisor Angry, then Supervisor Franklin. Thank you, Madam Chair. Thank you, Mr. Loop, for your work on this, and Nikki, as well. And thank you for your very General Assembly-esque answer to Serena Bailey's last question. A couple points.

[02:13:39] I wanted to echo some of what my colleagues have said already. Schools, the big thing. You know, that JLARC study came out. We know that as a commonwealth, we are severely underfunding our schools. And as the second largest school division in the common of some of the biggest needs, whether that's your at-risk kids, kids from different backgrounds, what have you, we really need to work with the General Assembly to make sure we're getting those resources.

[02:14:00] So I appreciate that discussion point. Transportation. Supervisor Franklin said it very well. You know, there's a lot of challenges that we have here in Prince William County as sort of an exurb and suburban community as it pertains to traffic calming and traffic safety that other localities don't necessarily have.

[02:14:17] So it hasn't risen to the level of a lot of folks' minds commonwealth-wide. But even something as simple as the fact that in certain circumstances, if you don't have a direct driveway onto a residential street, you can't do anything. A lot of your options are tied, even though in some cases it's not a direct driveway.

[02:14:36] It's a driveway that goes to an apartment complex. And how different is that from a pipe stem that has a shared use of multiple residences, what have you? And sometimes they're in proximity to schools, but still because of that, we can't do very much. So there's things like that. There are technicalities that I know that Richard Weinman is here.

[02:14:54] He could speak to that a lot more extensively than I could. But some of those nuances that we, frankly, our hands are tied because of the VDOT standards that exist. Transit funding. Supervisor Franklin said it very well. We're in a place where, as a regional hub of transportation, where we, especially in our space as PRTC, OmniRide, VRE, are servicing not just our own residents, but folks that go out much farther than us.

[02:15:21] Fauquier, Stafford, Culpeper, Fredericksburg, a lot of folks rely on Prince William County, and us basically shouldering the burden of funding a lot of those transportation needs for the region, but we don't get that same level of support from the state as a regional hub should. so that's definitely something that i think that should be discussed as well um taxes i know that earlier this year we had a large discussion about the diminution of the personal property tax relief act as it pertains to vehicles and vehicle tax relief um i think that's obviously something i know we discussed that when i met with you individually but we have a lot of folks out

[02:15:55] there that are feeling the the the pinch on their pocketbooks every year as that diminishes down and hasn't been reformed in a decade or so, a little bit more than that. So it's definitely something that Lean Deep looked at as well. Water supply and water quality, I know that there are folks in other parts of the region that are looking at resiliency from spill events as it pertains to water quality.

[02:16:23] I know that Virginia has a one-size-fits-all drought response plan. It doesn't look at uniquely some of the water sources, some of the other regional players we have in Northern Virginia on how we respond to droughts and what have you. I also know that PFAS salinity have been looked at as a regional thing, but not necessarily at the general assembly level.

[02:16:41] I know Zella Krezek and some other people had looked at that in previous years, but hadn't really gotten a lot of momentum. So water quality is also top of mind. Traffic safety, we talk about it all the time. You know, there are a lot of pots of money for traffic congestion relief and getting throughput improved, but there still aren't a lot of substantial equivalent pots of money for things that do the opposite, where it's bringing speeds down to improve traffic safety. And I know that we have some members of our General Assembly delegation that have looked at that, but again, there hasn't been a lot of forward movement on that, so I think that that needs to be a coalescing point as well.

[02:17:20] I know that we as a board, especially with the passage of the comprehensive plan update back in December of last year talked about bi-directional I-95 um I think there needs to be a regional look at that because again um COVID has changed a lot of traffic patterns and we know that even before COVID happened there's a lot of folks that are traveling southbound during the day and there's no way for them to get uh back down here in a reasonable way because the uh the hot lanes are going in one direction or what happened we know that it's gone it's gone very very well on the

[02:17:55] 66 corridor or there's bi-directional movement there and we really need to look at that and i know glenn it's in the the um it's alluded to in the uh the the agenda but looking at the next steps from that drpt quantico to springfield feasibility study and sue raster franklin talked about you know metro regardless if we think it's possible not is a far off decades long plan but we have other things that we can institute now that came out of that uh that study bus rapid transit express buses more vre uh light rail other things that have been looked at in that study but how do we go

[02:18:30] from a feasibility study to a planning study and i think that's something that we really need to look at in terms of our our next step there and i the last one i will talk about because i know i've done a lot of time here is clean energy um i know that um a lot of localities especially loudon has looked in the past at community choice aggregation and municipal aggregation But there hasn't been a lot of movement there, and there's some barriers there.

[02:18:57] And I know that Delegate Sewell, in particular, has looked at different ways in order to look at barriers to municipal aggregation. But we haven't quite gotten there yet. So allowing localities to at least look at a JLARC study or some sort of commonwealth-wide study to barriers to communities being able to do community choice aggregation, Renewable aggregation, what have you, would really, I think, move the ball forward in some of our clean energy and our greenhouse gas emission reduction goals.

[02:19:26] Thank you, Madam Chair. Supervisor Angry. Thanks, Madam Chair. I'll be brief. I want to really emphasize, and really not just to you as legislation and really Richard Wyman, who's here, but really to the board, on really what Supervisor Franken talked about, which is our public safety.

[02:19:49] Like, I have, it seems a little odd that literally in the last four days I've gotten four separate people and four separate parts of NEASCO concerned about speeding, you know, driving through the neighborhood.

[02:20:04] And so, you know, right now I see we were discussing on the email with someone that you're working with right now. I imagine if you're dealing with one from me, you're probably dealing with ten more from each of these offices. In other words, folks, board, we have a real issue here. Like, we're going to have to do something significant to really curb the behavior of speeding.

[02:20:23] The point of the daycare centers and the school zones is because if I just pinpoint Cardinal Drive, there's nothing on Cardinal Drive that I can do with a school zone speed camera or a red light camera because there's nothing there.

[02:20:40] So we have to be creative and look and see if we can extend that legislation to include high-impact daycare centers such as Miniland on Cardinal Drive to try to put something in place to curb the behavior of folks.

[02:20:56] But I'm saying to this board and this next board coming in, we're going to seriously have to do something significant because the calls are coming in, and we don't have answers. We don't. And people, for whatever reason, no one's using their blinker anymore. No one stops their red lights anymore.

[02:21:14] exceeding the speed limit at least minimally by 20 miles an hour. I'll just go there. It's way more than that, but I'll just stop at 20. So there are some significant concerns and issues that we have. We've already wrote down everything we can about it. I just want to go on record as talking about the significance and something probably that we need to be doing or can do here in the county.

[02:21:36] I know that's going to involve our police officers because that's number one. I'm starting to see more of the, what am I trying to say, the catch the speeders, the cameras, the zone, the radars. So I'm starting to see more radars now.

[02:21:52] But, I mean, we just kind of have to come up with something significant in this county to make a dent really quick and significant to help improve this or curb that behavior. Thanks. Supervisor Franklin. Sure. Just very quickly, I'm wondering if, without objection, if we can add language to the legislative agenda about the CACs.

[02:22:15] And, I mean, you guys can, you know what the issues are. If you can just come up with some language. I just want to make sure that it is explicitly in our legislative packet that we give to the General Assembly. Microphone, you're not speaking into a microphone.

[02:22:33] I'm so sorry. No, that's okay. Sorry, Nikki Brown, Director of Communications and Engagement. Would you be comfortable saying something fairly more generic, but just about supporting ongoing funding or continued funding for the CAC. And that way we can, as Glenn said, that's obviously that's federal and a state issue, but we can make sure that we continue to support then the funding that is already occurring and obviously opposing any decrease in that funding.

[02:23:00] Yeah, I think that's good. And then the last thing I'll just say is, I think we have a meeting next week with the General Assembly or incoming members of the General Assembly. I do think that rather than just making that an exercise, We should try, and some of this may have to happen just in one-on-one conversations, but we should get some commitments from some of our members on some of these items, and we can kind of pick and choose what we want those items to be, but we should get some real commitments from them.

[02:23:26] Thank you. I can start that in the morning when I'm meeting with a couple of new ones tomorrow. Any further questions or comments? We have one change so far to the legislation we have to vote on, style with a proposed legislative agenda that we have to vote on.

[02:23:48] Okay. Well, would someone like to move item 9A? So moved, Madam Chair. Second. Why, I heard a motion made by Supervisor Bailey, seconded by Vice Chair Bodie. Any discussion? Seeing none, please vote.

[02:24:08] Are you going to be able to vote, Supervisor Ingrid? You can give me a yes or no, sir. Okay. Madam Chair.

[02:24:26] Supervisor Lawson. Thank you. I didn't comment, but I'm just abstaining because I'm a lame duck, and frankly, I just don't feel like I should be weighing in on it okay well that moves us on to item 11 supervisors time if I could get 11a the resolution to madam chair oh I'm so sorry miserable the floor is yours thank you madam chair excuse me this afternoon for closed session we will have consultation with legal counsel and briefings by staff members pertaining to the discussions or considerations of the disposition of publicly held real properties to include right-of-way in

[02:25:05] park lands where such consultation, discussion, or briefing in an open meeting would adversely affect the bargaining position, negotiating strategy, or litigating posture of the public body. We will have consultation with legal counsel and briefings by staff members pertaining to the discussion concerning an economic development item regarding an expansion of a business or industry where no previous announcement has been made of the business or industry's interest in expanding their facilities in the county, along with the related discussion or consideration of the investment of public funds for the economic development matters, where competition or bargaining is involved, where if made public initially, the financial interest of the county would be adversely affected,

[02:25:44] and where discussion in an open meeting would adversely affect the litigating posture, bargaining position, or negotiating strategy of the public body. These items are appropriate for closed session pursuant to 2.2-3711A 3, 5, and 6 of the Code of Virginia.

[02:26:00] Madam Chair. Supervisor Brody. Could we also add an additional item to talk about the proffer concerns that were listed in the memo in regards to tonight's public hearing? Madam Chair, Supervisor Bode, are you requesting consideration of legal advice with regards to land use law and the Devlin rezoning?

[02:26:22] Yes, ma'am. That would be consultation with legal counsel and briefings by staff members regarding specific legal matters requiring the provision of legal advice by such counsel pertaining to legal advice regarding land use law. And rezoning 2022-00022 Devlin Technology Park, where consultation, discussion, or briefing in an open meeting would adversely affect the bargaining position, negotiating strategy, or litigating posture of the public body.

[02:26:49] Therefore, all items would be pursuant to 2.2-3711A356 and 8 of the Virginia Code. So moved. With that, I'm ended in adding. Second. Motion made by Vice Chair Brody, seconded by Supervisor Bailey. Any further discussion?

[02:27:05] Seeing none, please vote. Vote unanimous. Thank you, Ms. Robel. My apologies. Then we will move on to Supervisor's time. But before we begin with individual updates, we need to vote on an appointment.

[02:27:23] Can I get a motion to approve Agenda Item 11A? So moved, Madam Chair. Second. Motion made by Supervisor Angry, seconded by Supervisor Bailey. Any discussion? Seeing none, please vote. Vote unanimous.

[02:27:41] Okay, thank you. We're going to go around the horn today. I'm going to begin to my left with Supervisor Bailey. Thank you, Madam Chair. Good evening to everyone and good afternoon to everyone. On October 25th, I attended the Potomac High School Academic Award Ceremony.

[02:27:57] Thanks to Transportation for providing updates on the Stockbridge lights signal and Tallent Drive light signal in the district. We've been waiting for that since 2021, and so I'm happy to say that it's done.

[02:28:14] CWC, the Great Big Kid event, had its kickoff on the 25th. And then on the 26th, I participated in the Route 1 ribbon cutting. And congratulations to Supervisor Franklin and Madam Chair for a wonderful program. On the 27th, thanks to the Dumfries Town Vice Mayor, Monet Nickerson, and Chair Pro Tem, Salonia Miles, for hosting the Pink and Purple Brunch, bringing awareness to an end to breast cancer awareness and domestic violence.

[02:28:44] I attended a wonderful retirement ceremony for our own Captain Tina Laguna for her dedicated law enforcement service for over 29 years to Manassas City and Manassas Park, and we're going to miss her. On October 28th, we had a great time participating in the Dumfries Fall Festival.

[02:29:02] The weather was great, a lot of nice vendors and hay rides also. I want to thank our own Mayor Wood and the Town Council for acknowledging fall was here. On the 29th, myself and my colleagues participated in the Central Baptist 60th year anniversary with Dr. Brad Winogar, who's the pastor there and provided a proclamation to him in honor of his service to the community.

[02:29:27] And later that evening, Grace Church celebrated their 25th church anniversary. And it was so, Grace Church is just a growing entity in our district and we really appreciate it. But congratulations to the 25 wonderful years. On the 30th, I had an opportunity of closing October with our own Chair Wheeler and Nakia Durham, and they were so gracious in a podcast sharing their personal journey with breast cancer awareness.

[02:29:56] November 1st, my team and I had a wonderful time at the Prince William County GovFest, and I think that was an exception that I did. There were some departments I didn't even know we had, so we had a lot of fun with the departments and the county employees, and they were so excited. On the second, thanks to Seth for coming and enlightening us again about the indoor sports facility.

[02:30:16] I think we had a robust conversation this afternoon. Much appreciation to Transportation for the Spotlight Town Hall for Stockbridge community just to get them prepared to receive their traffic light. On the ninth, I attended the Veterans Day Ceremony honoring those who have served our community.

[02:30:34] We honor all of you. On the 11th, I participated in the Big Kid event for the Boys and Girls Club We held a ceremony, a final ceremony at the Amazon headquarters in Alexandria, and the mentors and mentees were so excited, and I want to thank our own County Exec, Chris Shorter, for coming, and as a big kid himself back in the day, under 40, thank you for coming and enlightening the kids, and congratulations to our big kid winner, Reverend Cozy Bailey, and his mentee, Malachi, in Prince William County.

[02:31:10] November 12th through the 14th had the opportunity of again attending the VACO conference, the 89th VACO conference, and it was entitled Cultivating County Government in a Culture of Change, and I think the state of Virginia is in a culture of change, so we want to thank you for that, and also congratulations to my colleague, Victor Angry, and to myself for finishing the supervisor certification program.

[02:31:34] We had a great time, I would say. We had a great time and made some new friends outside of Prince William County. November 16th, thanks to Principal Bowles and the teaching staff for honoring the first quarter rising stars at Potomac High School. On the 18th, as our commitment to serving the community and providing an opportunity for our families to experience the great joy of holidays,

[02:31:58] My office parted with Harvey Lee of the Knights of Israel Lodge 001 to pass out Thanksgiving turkey boxes with all the trimmings to the Oaks Senior Citizen Apartment Building and Grand Park Middle School and Potomac High School families.

[02:32:19] And I just want to thank Mr. Lee for always keeping us in the fold of where we need to serve at a higher level. He's a great citizen resident in the Potomac District and devoted to serving the community. I was honored to be the keynote speaker for the 20th Culture Pearl's Debutant Patillion for Alpha Kappa Alpha in Fredericksburg.

[02:32:40] And that was, it just reminded me of why I sit in the seat and it's to leave a legacy for young folk to see that they can too become a supervisor. So that was a lot of fun. Lastly, but most importantly, I would like to take this time to thank all, and I do mean all, of the Potomac District citizens and supporters who thought it not robbery to re-elect me to the supervisor's seat.

[02:33:06] I am very humbled by your vote, and I embrace it readily, and I want to thank you for a way to go forward in uplifting the Potomac District. That's all I have, Madam Chair. Thank you, Supervisor Bailey. Vice Chair Brody. Thank you, Madam Chair.

[02:33:21] I will be very brief back on the 18th. My family and I attended the annual Occoquan tree lighting. My eight-month-old daughter, Jemison, got to participate in the actual tree lighting. I think she has probably held a record of the youngest person to ever help plug in the Christmas tree in the town of Occoquan.

[02:33:42] It's always a fun time, and I really appreciate Mayor Porta and the rest of the town council of Occoquan for inviting me to that. And looking ahead on, making sure I have the right date here, on December the 7th, my office will be co-hosting with the Parks and Rec Department, the Occoquan Greenway Section 3 bridge ribbon cutting.

[02:34:06] The Section 3 bridge is a major milestone in the advancement of the Occoquan Greenway, which I know is a project that is in long time coming and a big project of interest for especially the Lake Ridge community. We are slowly but surely hammering down and getting more infrastructure into that greenway.

[02:34:25] The Section 3 bridge actually replaces three different creek crossings along the greenway. So instead of having folks sort of have to play frogger and jump on stones and stuff like that, get across the waterways in that particular part of the greenway, they just go over the Segment 3 bridge.

[02:34:42] Again, we will be having the ribbon cutting on the 7th of December at 11 o'clock, and more information on that will be given by my office. Thank you so much, Madam Chair. Thank you. Supervisor Lawson. I don't have anything. Thank you. Supervisor Weir. Thank you, Madam Chair. Two things real quick.

[02:34:58] Through the 4th of December, my office will be collecting, on behalf of the Sweet Julia Grace Foundation, any arts and crafts materials or activities that can be done from a hospital bed for pre-K through high school students for the holidays. And since apparently my request to speak wasn't noted, I would just ask that the county exec update the rest of the board on the status of the directive from September 12th regarding the impact of refunds on personal property taxes as the extension is running out in a month.

[02:35:33] That's it. Supervisor Angry. Thank you, Madam Chair. The Neabsco District Office is partnered with Virginia American Water for Toys for Tots. Toys presents can be dropped off at my office.

[02:35:49] 2700 in the obstacle commonplace suite 125 and that operation is going to work from 9 30 to 4 p.m from december 12th to oh actually december 12th is going to be the last day so that'll be monday tuesday thursday and friday between 9 30 and 4 swing by drop off for president we'll get those out on december 13th um also on november 30th at 12 30 i'm going to be hosting a town hall with Delegate Sewell over at the River Runs Apartments.

[02:36:20] And so I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving. We're in the holiday season. Get those trees up. Get those lights out. Remember, be safe. And I will say congratulations to all the candidates on their elections and their wins. Thank you, Madam Chair. Thank you, Supervisor Angry.

[02:36:35] Supervisor Vega. Thank you, Madam Chair. It's been a busy time indeed. On October 29th, I attended the 60th anniversary celebration of Central Baptist Church, where I ran into Supervisor Angry. in your district but i have a great relationship with folks at the church as well so it was an honor to present them with a proclamation as well on november 9th i was honored to speak at the osborne park national honor society induction ceremony thanks so much to the nhs group there at op for the invitation it was a very fine group of young men and women who have demonstrated what it's what it takes not just to excel but to go above in their academics on november 11th we

[02:37:15] We had our annual Coles District coat drive with firefighters and friends, where we handed out over 80 coats for children here in Prince William County to ensure that they have a warm coat this winter season. On November 14th, I popped into the Friends of the Horticultural Therapies Craftsdale here at McCourt.

[02:37:30] Some of you may recall that this was the organization that we allocated around $400,000 to for their therapy programs, helping those struggling with mental illness. I'm really excited about this program, and we're working with Seth and with these folks to provide further information for those that would like to know more about it on November 17th I was excited to partake in the stakeholder kickoff with the Yorkshire transportation land use connection group we all know this is an area that needs a little bit of TLC and I'm hopeful that the folks we're partnering with will be able to help us achieve prudent land use and transportation decisions for the betterment of the Yorkshire area I'd also be remiss if I didn't acknowledge all of our veterans including my husband Renee in honor of Veterans Day which

[02:38:10] fell over our break. Thank you to all those who have served and to their families. I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving with your friends and loved ones. There's so much to be thankful for, not just on Thanksgiving Day, but every single day of the year. And finally, coming up, my favorite event of the year, December 9th, is our annual Coles District Christmas Tree Lighting at the Lucasville School off of Godwin Road. The event will begin at 4 p.m. with the tree lighting taking place right around 5 p.m. We will have a special guest who arrives every year, thanks to our friends over at the lake jackson volunteer fire department to include the cub scout pack 1355 and

[02:38:47] a little bit of singing by colgan high school's very own uh uh chamber ensemble so we're really excited about that it's always one of my favorite events of the year because we get to come as a community together and i hope i hope that we have good weather that's all i have madam chair thank you. Thank you. Supervisor Franklin. Sure, thank you. October 26th, we celebrated the ribbon cutting for the widening of Route 1, the completion of that, and so very happy to have that done. I know our residents are as well, and so thank you to the Prince William County Department of Transportation,

[02:39:21] VDOT as well, as well as our county staff who helped to organize that event, and thank you to my colleagues who attended. On Thursday, November 9th, I co-hosted the Whitbridge Potomac Community Civic Association Woodbridge International Festival. This was in the Fralazo building and we transformed it with entertainment from different cultures around the world represented here in the Woodbridge district and so that was a wonderful event and thank you for those that came out. We have not had that event in several years and so we were happy to work with the Civic Association to bring that event back so hoping to see that again next year. Also attended the

[02:40:00] VACO conference with several of my colleagues. And I just want to again congratulate Supervisor Victor Angry on becoming second vice chair of VACO. In a couple of years, he will be the chair of VACO. And so hoping that we can continue to support him. And then also had a couple of different HOA meetings, including the Ripon Landing Master HOA, as well as the Dawson Landing in Newport Estates. And then some upcoming events, we will be having our annual senior luncheon at the Woodbridge Senior Center on Friday December 8th at noon hope to see Chair Wheeler there she's there every year and Elijah Johnson he goes and he dances with all the ladies there and so that'll

[02:40:36] be fun maybe Chris Shorter will show up this time so we'll have to see but hoping my colleagues can come as well as we always have a great time with our seniors and they actually enjoy coming out I think we've had about 100 at the least at that event probably about 200 at most and so it's always a great event and then also the lights at the neapsco boardwalk will be back again this year will run from december 1st to december 23rd and so we invite all of you to come out and we will have a opening ceremony this friday as well weather approving so hoping my colleagues can come and join that as well lastly i want to give a quick directive for the pickleball courts at

[02:41:14] veterans park as a follow-up to directive 23-27 i would like to direct staff to bring back a resolution to transfer, budget, and appropriate $25,000 in Whitbridge proffers to convert a single tennis court at Veterans Park into two permanent pickleball courts. Without objection. Okay, well, Ms. Rosariega will have to answer to the pickleball community. No, but no, I invite you all out to Veterans Park to play pickleball in the spring. Thank you. Thank you. Before I begin, I have three notices of intent two of them are to renominate paul chamberlain and travis goodman to the board

[02:41:53] of zoning appeals and then it goes to the circuit court so we're as a board we'll just vote on nominating them next week they're on there now and we know that the bza has issues with making sure we have enough people on board um also a notice of intent report marcus thomas of potomac valley church one of the leads on the music to the hilton performing arts center executive board and that will show up next week on november 5th on wednesday november 1st i attended the route 28 widening project ribbon cutting in centerville um it's made a lot of progress looked really great litter that day i was able to attend the county's first gov fest congratulations mr shorter on a

[02:42:31] great event and starting that that was wonderful november 2nd i got to attend the boxes of basics ribbon cutting at its new headquarters in manassas up and coming um really up and coming nonprofit in Prince William County. On November 3rd, I got to speak at the Mighty Meals Ribbon Kiting Ceremony for its new production headquarters in Gainesville. It was great that they located here. On November 9th, I got to participate on the Prince William County Veterans Day Ceremony. On November 14th, I was interviewed by a Northern Virginia Community College student to discuss voting rights in Prince William County. And later that afternoon, I also got to attend the Friends of the Horticultural Therapy, Inc.'s 22nd annual craft sale and

[02:43:11] got some wonderful things for the house. Finally, on November 19th, I was able to attend the National Adoption Day ceremony at the courthouse. Always a wonderful time in the courthouse every year that we've been doing. I forget, it's been about 10 or 15 years, I said. Wonderful ceremony. And later that day, I was able to perform a ceremonial swearing-in of the new leadership at the Dale City Volunteer Department. So thank you very much, Supervisor Angry. With that, we will go on to our

[02:43:40] closed meeting it is currently 5 45 uh 4 45 and um if we could take maybe a five to ten minute break and move back in the potomac conference room for our closed session then we will report out of that um and then be on recess so we are back from closed session if i could get a motion to certify please second motion made by supervisor bailey seconded by vice chair bode um he just

[02:44:20] closed the door but people are allowed in i don't want them to think that they aren't allowed in okay thank you um uh seeing no discussion please vote vote unanimous we have two issues to report well we have two things to do i'll turn to supervisor bailey first thank you madam chair i'd like to offer a directive to authorize our public hearing without objection i'd like to issue the following directive in support of the development of a new public elementary school within the potomac shores community county staff is directed to set and advertise a public hearing

[02:44:58] for december 19 2023 at 2 p.m to consider the conveyance of real real property and other property interests located along cherry hill road near its intersection with thorough thorough good Drive, and River Heritage Boulevard, located at 1800 Potomac Shores Parkway, Dufferys, Virginia, 22026, to the Prince William County School Board.

[02:45:22] Any objections to the directive? Okay, we'll move on. Next is Supervisor Franklin. Yes, I'd like to issue a directive without objection to staff to set a public hearing on December 19th to consider the disposition of real property for the Jefferson Plaza redevelopment as contemplated in board-approved rezoning case 2022-0003 on august 2nd 2022 any objection to that no and i think that's it is that correct

[02:45:55] okay with that we will recess at 6 15 and we will good evening it's now 7 31 on tuesday december 28th we welcome back the public back in the board chambers for the evening portion of today's meeting we are now on to the standard agenda item 13a which is the rezoning 2022-00022 of devlin technology park in the brentsville magisterial district i believe we have an applicant short applicant presentation and then a presentation by staff is that correct yes do you need to lower

[02:46:31] that sorry i'm really short i need a mouse that's fine good evening my name is jonelle cameron with with Walsh-Kaluchi Lubelai in Walsh,

[02:47:09] here tonight on behalf of the applicant, Stanley Martin. With me is Truett Young with Stanley Martin, Marion Harder's also with Walsh-Kaluchi and our civil engineer team with LDC. As a roadmap for this evening, I'm going to give you a presentation outlining the history and zoning of the property and the proposal, which includes mitigation measures, including larger than required buffers, community design elements, sound and noise mitigation measures, as well as transportation mitigation measures that the applicant has proffered.

[02:47:40] The applicant is seeking a rezoning from PMR Plan Mix Residential to M2 Light Industrial to allow for a little over 3.5 million square feet of data center uses. The property is located at the west side of Devlin Road between Linton Hall Road and the proposed University Boulevard extension, and is approximately 269.85 acres in size.

[02:48:06] For reference, here is Layton Hall Road, here is Devlin Road, and here is University Boulevard. For context, the property is effectively the transition area between the previously approved data centers to the north and west and the residential communities to the south and east.

[02:48:26] These communities here are located here and here. There are several data centers that have been approved surrounding this area, again, to the north and east that are shown on your screen. Again, the applicant is seeking the rezoning to M2 light industrial.

[02:48:44] The applicant received a positive recommendation from the Planning Commission and a 5-1 recommendation of approval from the Planning Commission back in July of 2022.

[02:49:04] We came to the board in September. That hearing was deferred. We came back to the board in February, and that hearing was deferred. We then have provided additional changes to address the board's recommendations from that hearing in February.

[02:49:23] The property is comprehensively planned I-3, and data centers are primary uses in the I-3 district. This proposal is consistent with the I-3 comp plan designations. The data center overlay was established in 2016 and was created to promote the development of data centers in the area where existing infrastructure could adequately support the use.

[02:49:49] Since that rezoning occurred, the surrounding areas on the west and north sides of the property have been developed with data centers and included in the data center overlay district. On your screen in blue are the areas that are within the data center opportunity overlay district.

[02:50:05] As such, the applicant is seeking this rezoning to M2 and the inclusion of the property in the data center overlay district. The county initiated a Stantec report, and what that Stantec report did is it identified options to either add or remove properties from within the data center overlay district.

[02:50:29] This Stantec report suggested the removal of several properties within the overlay and had the inclusion of two specific properties within the overlay district. This property is one of those that the Stantec report, which was a third-party consultant hired by the county, suggested to be included within the data center overlay district.

[02:50:50] As you can see, the property is traversed by an existing 500 kilovolt overhead power line. In addition, there is existing high-speed fiber optic communication network and existing public water and sewer in the vicinity of the site.

[02:51:11] This slide is a slide of an aerial of a portion of that data center overlay district. As you can see on this slide, the data center overlay district, adopted in 2016, has several transition areas where the overlay is adjacent to residential and schools.

[02:51:27] This scenario is not unique to the Devlin project. However, what is unique is how the applicant has gone above and beyond to mitigate any potential impacts, including community design elements, buffers, noise, and transportation impacts. In the next few slides, I will review with you the mitigation measures and also walk through with you the previous proposal and the proposal today.

[02:51:49] The property was previously cleared and graded and logged and timbered, but the area that you see in green are existing mature trees that will remain as part of this proposal. The previous proposal was 4.25 million square feet of data.

[02:52:13] There were 100-foot buffers adjacent to Linton Hall Road in the residential areas. There was also 100-foot buffer adjacent to Linton Hall Road. There were 50-foot buffers adjacent to University Boulevard, the Montessori School, and this area here and here that will be near the adjacent University Boulevard Extension Road.

[02:52:37] There was a 30-foot buffer adjacent to the adjacent commercial. a no-vertical build zone adjacent to the Chris Young Elementary School, sound walls as part of the previous proposal, and the access was from Devlin Road and University Boulevard.

[02:52:58] At the Board of County Supervisors' public hearing, the feedback we received was to amend the application to only have data centers and associated uses located on parcels B and C, to increase the buffers to 200 feet adjacent to Linton Hall Road and Devlin Road, increase the buffer to 100 feet adjacent to University Boulevard and the commercial center, and proffer that data center buildings should use a closed-loop system.

[02:53:25] This slide shows the existing proposal. The applicant has proposed to dedicate Land Bay A to Prince William County for Parks and Rec as outlined in the Parks and Rec Master Plan. The Parks and Rec Master Plan specifically identifies the need for both indoor and outdoor commercial recreation facilities and planning park district four which is where this property lies it is our understanding that there may be a concern regarding the timing of the park dedication and the applicant is willing to amend the park dedication to move up the timing so that land bay

[02:54:03] a is dedicated as a conditional as a condition of the first final site plan approval on land bay b in addition supervisor lawson requested that the park deed of dedication have a restrictive covenant that the land may only be used for park and recreational purposes, and the applicant is also willing to that proffer.

[02:54:24] As part of this proposal addressing the input heard by the board, the applicant has proffered 200-foot buffers adjacent to Devlin Road and Linton Hall Road. The applicant has proffered 100-foot buffers adjacent to the commercial center, the residential area to the north, and University Boulevard.

[02:54:45] The existing sound walls will remain, And the applicant has proposed a no-build area that requires that the primary data center building be at least 500 feet from any existing residential and 2,250 feet from Chris Young Elementary School.

[02:55:04] The applicant has also proposed to reduce the height. The previous requested height was 80 feet plus 15 feet for mechanical equipment and rooftop screening walls, which would be a maximum height of 95 feet. The applicant has reduced that height to 81 feet in total.

[02:55:24] That includes the rooftop equipment and the screening walls. This is an overall reduction of 14 feet. Access will still be from Devlin Road and University Boulevard. The previous transportation proffers remain.

[02:55:40] As you all are aware, the applicant has proffered several transportation improvements on University Boulevard, Devlin Road, and Layton Hall Road, including providing right-of-way for the University Boulevard extension and right-of-way for the widening of Devlin and Linton Hall Roads, providing the fourth leg of a traffic signal at the intersection of Devlin Road and University Boulevard, if it is not done by others, providing turn lanes into the entrance on Devlin Road, extending the existing southbound turn lane and eastbound left turn lane on Linton Hall Road at its intersection with Devlin Road.

[02:56:15] The applicant has also proffered a five-foot sidewalk along its Linton Hall Road frontage and has proffered $2.50 per square foot of building area constructed on the property, a bicycle rack, and a bus stop. In the next few slides, I will briefly review with you the line-of-sight exhibits showing the view sheds on the property.

[02:56:37] A majority of these line-of-sight exhibits were previously shown to the board at the previous public hearings. The applicant conducted two balloon studies and had two balloon test sites. The original balloon study had heights of 105 feet for the balloon and a flag marked at 80 feet.

[02:56:56] To be clear for this project, the applicant, again, is only proposing a maximum of 81 feet, inclusive of rooftop mechanical equipment and screening walls. This view is from Devlin Road, including the 200-foot buffer.

[02:57:13] From this viewpoint, the building is about 482 feet away from the car that's located in here. From this viewpoint, between the trees, the building would not be visible. You would be looking up through the trees to the top of the building. This is the line of sight from Victory Lakes.

[02:57:34] This does not include the additional 100-foot buffer. From this image, somebody standing here, they would be looking through the existing vegetation on their site, and then they would be looking at the existing vegetation on this site.

[02:57:50] It's about 1,000 feet, a little over 1,000 feet away from the property. This would be the intersection of Devlin Road and the new University Boulevard extension.

[02:58:07] On the right here, there is a retaining wall due to the grade, and on the left would be the buildings. This does not take into consideration the proposed 100-foot buffer along the University Boulevard. This is the view from Linton Hall Road.

[02:58:28] So if you're looking here towards the building, and this area in here, it's about 486 feet away with the 200-foot buffer. So the person would be looking, again, up and maybe be able to see the top of the building.

[02:58:43] We previously had 3D modeling done in which somebody went behind the trees. This is only 100 feet, so this building would be 100 feet further. So they went behind the trees 100 feet.

[02:59:00] This shows the modeling of where the building would be on the site, and the blue in these areas in here show the visibility of what you would see on the building. The applicant has proffered additional architectural measures that I will walk through with you later for buildings that are visible from the roadways.

[02:59:23] And this is the view from Dennis Court. If somebody is here looking at the building from here, it is 1,064 feet away from when you get to the building here. There's existing vegetation that will remain on the HOA property, the existing power lines, the 100-foot buffer, the substation, and then the building.

[02:59:52] And this is the image from Dennis Court. So, again, somebody would be able to see the top of the building. And we do have enhanced architecture from any vantage point that is visible from the residential communities. As we are going through this process, we realize that noise was a community concern that needed to be addressed and mitigated.

[03:00:18] The applicant, to their credit, has provided proffers that no other data center has previously proffered to address input pertaining to potential noise concerns. This slide is a good illustration of what sound implement various noise levels. The applicant in this case has proffered the noise ordinance with more restrictive carve-outs to address concerns.

[03:00:43] Specifically, the applicant has proffered that heating and cooling systems shall be included within the noise measurement requirements. Between the hours of 7 a.m. and 10 p.m. during the week, which is daytime hours, and 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays, the noise generated from Land Bay B cannot exceed 60 DBA from the property line of which it's received for residential and mixed-use zoning districts, 65 DBA for the property lines for which it's received for commercial districts, or 79 DBA for industrial zoning districts.

[03:01:20] For evening levels, these levels are reduced by 5, so it's 55 DBA for residential and mixed-use districts, 60 DBA for commercial districts, and 72 DBA for industrial zoning districts. In addition, the applicant has proffered a limit to the prominent discrete noise, also known as tonal noise.

[03:01:43] This is like a constant hum noise and required to be 3 decibels less. Prominent discrete noise is an instance when one-third octave band sound pressure level and the band with the tone exceeds the arrhythmic average of the sound pressure levels of the two contiguous one-third octave bands.

[03:02:03] The applicant has also proffered sound studies to be conducted and reviewed during the site plan stage to confirm that the sound measures can be accommodated. And if there are any suggestions to mitigate noise, either by the building design or site layout, the applicant will make those revisions prior to site plan approval or building permit approval.

[03:02:24] The applicant has also proffered six months after the issuance of an occupancy permit that they would do another sound study to ensure that the predictive modeling is accurate and the DBA levels are being met. In the next few slides, I will review with you the architecture.

[03:02:42] This architecture is the same architecture that was previously proposed and shown to the board. The applicant has proffered general conformance to the building architecture and in addition requires building materials for the buildings on the property, requires four of the design materials listed in the principal building facades facing or visible from Amberley Station and Silverleaf Station or Silverleaf Communities or University Boulevard.

[03:03:10] These are the other angles of the standard building architecture. The applicant has also proffered enhanced architecture for buildings visible from and facing Amberley Station or Silverleaf Communities or University Boulevard.

[03:03:31] The applicant requires four of the design criterias outlined in the zoning ordinance for data centers and 20% fenestration on any building facade. The applicant in this case has mitigated all of the potential negative impacts.

[03:03:47] From a community design and buffer perspective, the applicant has proffered screening of loading and service areas within 200 feet and visible from Devlin Road, Layton Hall Road, and University Boulevard, screening of ground-level equipment if visible from Devlin Road, Layton Hall Road, or University Boulevard, prohibited outdoor storage within 500 feet of residential, provided a no-build area that requires the primary data center buildings be at least 500 feet from the existing residential, and 2,250 feet from the existing Chris Young Elementary School.

[03:04:24] Lighting fixtures that should be energy-saving and include focus-sharp cutoff design to direct light downward and interior to the parking lot. They've proffered sustainability measures. They've proffered 200-foot buffers along Lanton Hall Road and Devlin Road, which is 170 feet more than what is required.

[03:04:42] They've proffered 200-foot buffers adjacent to most of the residential subdivisions, which is 150 feet more than the required buffer. They've proffered a 100-foot buffer adjacent to University Boulevard to match the buffer provided by the adjacent data center development.

[03:04:58] This is 70 feet more than the minimum buffer requirement. They've also provided noise mitigation measures and provided several transportation mitigation measures. And Chair Wheeler, you said quick, so that concludes my presentation, and I can answer any questions you may have.

[03:05:19] Thank you very much. I know we've gone over this, and people have had the information ahead of time. I also know we have a presentation from staff. Why don't we hear from staff and then make sure we can get to the public hearing in a good amount of time.

[03:05:37] Madam Chair, I do have questions for the applicant. Do you want to wait until after staff? I would rather wait until after staff. We'll do them all at once. No problem. Good evening, Chair Wheeler, members of the board, Scott Meyer in the planning office.

[03:05:52] Good to see you all. So Janelle went over a lot of the details here. just to recap real quickly, you've already been oriented where the site is. There's a two-part request to rezone, excuse me, to rezone the 270 acres, and then the applicants also asking to amend the delineation of the data center overlay. So with this rezoning, you have the actual zoning district changing as well as the extent of the data center overlay. This site right now is not

[03:06:30] included within the overlay. So just to clarify that, staff is recommending approval. The land use is I3, which again, this type of use is one of the primary uses. Right now, currently, it is zoned plan mixed residential for up to 516 houses. The applicant about four years ago applied for that they are now changing the entire product to for the data center use I extracted this from the application materials just this is showing again the current data center overlay district as you'll see the site delineate to the

[03:07:09] right is not within it with this application the request is to rezone to m2 light industrial as well as include the entire meets and bounds of the property within the data center overlay this is part of the plan outlined in yellow is the entire site parcel a is the 82 85 acres to be dedicated to the county and then what is parcel c and b is essentially land bay b you've already seen you know this before but land bay a again there's to

[03:07:45] be no development on that um and the building is to all be included on land bay b they are proffering to a limit of a 0.30 floor area ratio in the data center overlay you could go up to 1.0 but the applicant is proffering to limit it to a maximum of 0.30 again this is showing there's also up to three substations that's on the northern portion above land bay b that is shown the approximate location and the applicant is proffered that that is to be the intended area

[03:08:23] for the substations from the environmental constraints analysis i included this as well it's showing that you know there's some wetland environmental features there are some limits of clearing grading which staff still has some remaining concerns on but overall we feel the applicant has you know done as best they could to stay out of those environmentally sensitive areas again this is also just showing the environmental constraints analysis we've already seen the elevations the height is proffered up to 81 feet finished including the the rooftop equipment with

[03:09:01] the history with this there was a previous comprehensive plan amendment when this initially went to planning commission for those who have been tracking this we now have a new comprehensive plan obviously so the cpa is no longer relevant because now we have a like or compatible land use designation which the zoning will be implementing staff is recommending approval for the main reasons that this directly implements the i-3 technology flex industrial designation it abuts other

[03:09:38] similarly zoned properties we feel that the extension of the data center overlay is consistent with the area there is infrastructure the overhead power lines are right on the site and with that staff is recommending approval based on the proffers dated uh november 6 also want to draw your attention to page 36 of my staff report under proffers um when staff was preparing um the board report we realized there were a few other ancillary buildings on land bay a we think it may be a good idea for the applicant if they're willing to do so to

[03:10:15] actually proffer to remove those extra structures they mentioned that they will do that but uh i know we had met janelle mentioned earlier a few other um items but this is on the bottom of page 36. Just wanted to bring that to your attention. With that, I'll be happy to answer any questions. All right. Thank you. Thank you very much, Mr. Meyer.

[03:10:35] So, Supervisor Lawson, you said you had questions for the applicant. Okay. Do you want to do them? Let's start with the applicant since Scott drew attention to page 36. Is that what you said, Scott? So, Jonelle. Yes, ma'am.

[03:11:02] Good evening. Good evening. We haven't spoken about this project since the end of October I know your proffers are November 6th a couple things that that have transpired since we spoke that I want to ask about and I'm looking for page 36 do you want me to read it to you so water I got him I got him thanks so I think I'm assuming he's referring to well the first thing I want to bring up is the watershed request those are not on page 36 of

[03:11:40] the staff report those are on page 25 and the staff report yes those are three specific things that watershed management staff has recommended the applicant address to ensure conservation of natural resources as a long-term use on land bay a that's the land bay that you are proffering to dedicate for park and rec correct correct okay so will you consider proffering tonight to rezone that land from M2 to A1. The second request from watershed management is to not include it in the

[03:12:18] data overlay. So remove that. You'll have to modify that. And then last but not least is, I think Scott just touched on it, the small paved areas with storage containers and land bay A return to a natural state. Can I start backwards if you don't mind? Okay. So we are willing to commit to removing all of the structures that small paved area actually would likely stay paving because it allows for it to be a construction site during the construction of the park what

[03:12:53] what exactly are the structures this is new to me truett young stanley martin homes sorry i just figured i'm good uh the structures are actually just two c containers and a trailer that will absolutely be removed and it's not a paved parking lot it's just some uh actually ground up asphalt that's being used for a temporary staging area so was this just a simple oversight that water watershed management is asking for something that y'all haven't agreed to do to this date it wasn't ever brought up until recently and we said absolutely we would but i think the

[03:13:33] proffers have been in at that point so we have no problem doing it okay that's easy so so i'll take the the last which is that and when i say remove removing the sea containers and the structures leaving the ground up asphalt for use later is that okay what did you say what is it it's it's called millings oh ground up asphalt okay i'm mumbling um i just want you to do what staff wants so uh it sounds like that's something it's not paved it's just a pile it's essentially when they're doing construction so when they were doing timbering of the site

[03:14:07] they put ground up milled asphalt down in order to park things in a flat area okay so that we would keep because that could be used later for construction because it's the staging for construction site ultimately okay but the sea containers yes okay we could proffer that that be removed all right so we got the easiest out of the way talk to me about the other two so rezoning the land to a district more suitable for passive parks there is a discrepancy between what watershed wants what the park has parks master plan has said is needed in this area and what

[03:14:46] parks have commented on so parks and rec commented that they appreciated the park dedication for active recreation so we would keep the proffers the same um i will have you all defer to michelle roble but what was advertised for this hearing tonight was the rezoning to m2 so so you you're saying you don't want to take out m2 for land bay a correct we would keep it as parks and open space the only uses are parks and open space but we don't need for park and open space we don't have to have m2 correct and if the concern is that it could be something else you requested that the deed

[03:15:23] of dedication specifically limit so it would be a restrictive covenant for i know you know this i'm sorry but everybody you remind me yeah say it for everybody else in the audience to understand we would limit this to just parks and rec and well and to be clear and i appreciate you doing that but that doesn't forego it from becoming something else down the road it's just another layer of a hurdle the deed restriction but what i'd like you to do is proffer that uh you would do you would remove the m2 from that to to meet your request for we are unwilling to do that and that was a

[03:15:58] watershed request only well that was not a request from parks and recreation and i understand now that it's your request as well it absolutely is because i think it it addresses your purpose for the natural resources and the park and rec well natural resources for the watershed but um and then what about the overlay we would like to keep that as well interesting michelle roble tells me that removing this from the over or not me because well yeah she's my attorney she's your attorney

[03:16:34] right but does removing the overlay is that considered a substantial change well she doesn't want to give me advice in the public. Okay, so let's move on. So that's yes to the EZC containers and no to my other two requests. Yes, ma'am. Okay, interesting. What about general conformance on the, I think it was the architectural? Are you looking for substantial conformance? You know I am.

[03:17:05] Can you give me a second and I can get back to you on that one? Yep, and I also am looking for more than 20% fenestration. What are you looking for? So we came up with this 20% to be fair working with your office early on because you really wanted it to look like an office building or if it's visible to make sure that it looks nice. And it still doesn't. And we that's how we came up with the 20% but if you give a different percentage we can ask and get back to you. So you're right I've pressed you but you're not you haven't satisfied me. Okay if you tell us what the

[03:17:37] percentages we can ask and get back to you um 75 you asked for a number there it is okay i'll ask and get back to you okay um okay what else do i have jonelle actually i'll i'll i'll give you a break because i'm gonna guess that some of my colleagues have questions and i have some questions for staff but i'll i'll defer to a couple other board members right now supervisor weir do you have questions for the applicant or staff as long as jonelle was up there hi supervisor

[03:18:13] Weir. As long as Janelle is up there, we'll start with Janelle. You just asserted that you didn't want to remove Land Bay A because it's your impression that that would constitute a substantial change in the application? Can you talk into your microphone? People can't hear you. I thought it was on. So you just asserted that you did not want to remove Land Bay A from the overlay because that would constitute a substantial change in the application? I asked the question because that is not what was advertised for this public hearing. So is that the reason for not removing it from

[03:18:47] the overlay that's the i'm asking the question yes we i'm asking the question and then i can ask my client okay uh because i would i would suggest that a number of the changes since the deferral could also be considered substantive in nature we'll have that discussion later um i've got a couple of questions for staff and i'll keep it to a minimum and let everybody else have a chance but I do have a long list of questions, Madam Chair.

[03:19:23] Let's start with the elephant in the room. Mr. Meyer, one of the first things I noticed about this application was that unlike recent applications we've seen come before the board in recent months, we've returned to the on-balance determination?

[03:19:41] That is correct, yes. Is that just for this application or any of your applications? Are we going to be doing them differently going forward? Going forward, we are. we're in that transition of starting to take another look at our staff report structure all right with respect to on balance i'm sure you're aware i've always had issues with the use of the phrase on balance um so i'd like to know how do you determine whether or not a particular aspect of an application is on balance in concordance with a particular chapter um of the of the comp

[03:20:20] plan. You know, is there a matrix you've got? Do you assign a percentage to each one? How is the calculus? And does on balance mean that if it's 55% in favor versus 45, it's a good thing? Is it 70-30, 80-20? Where is that? Because, I mean, for example, I'm looking at this section on, pardon me, on page 18, proposal strengths. You've got land use and zoning capability, You know, located next to an industrial site zone, Dem-2, and abutting the data center

[03:20:59] opportunity zone, and then you go on, it's got use restrictions to eliminate incompatible industrial areas, incompatible, or incompatible industrial uses, incompatible with what is what I would question. And then the last strength is that the existing infrastructure is there, and that the expansion does not appear to cause the extension of power infrastructure that would impact existing residential neighborhoods.

[03:21:22] So you've got those three things, but you've got one proposal weakness that appears to be rather large, and that's the extent of surrounding existing residential to the east and the south. Any industrial development needs to be sensitive to the proximity to residential. So how do you explain that on balance, the strengths in terms of its industrial zoning and the neighboring industrial properties outweigh the impacts to the residential?

[03:21:51] Is there a matrix you use? Do you have a calculation? Anything that you can show us? Sure. Thanks for asking that, Supervisor Weir. So we look at every application stands by its own merits, and we look at important components to every application.

[03:22:10] We identify the surrounding land uses. We look at, of course, the comprehensive plan. We look at the prescribed land uses. We look at basically when developed, when the application goes forth, how will it impact the surrounding area.

[03:22:28] We can't always go by just the number of issues. I mean, by looking at this, I mean, obviously, for an example, if I go, you know, forward here, you see we look at the surrounding zoning, okay? Of course, you know, you have M2 zoning on the right slide, if you will.

[03:22:45] M2's light industrial. We look at also all the intact residential on the eastern side. So in terms of weakness, we felt that where this is being located, considering the large, large swath of residential to the east and the south, that certainly is a negative aspect.

[03:23:06] However, we look at, we have a new comprehensive plan. We look at how it's planned. We look at the existing land uses and we look at all those elements in total so i know i know unfortunately i'm probably not directly answering the question but we have to tell all sides of things and in our best judgment we weigh different factors so would it be safe to assume that this is a subjective determination on your part uh it is to a point but we are um tasked with telling all sides of

[03:23:40] things and representing the application for the greater public interest and that we do our best. I'll belabor this just one little bit further and that's that on two sides or almost a little more than two sides you've got residential uses. Yes. And on the remainder you've got relatively similar industrial uses if not identical uses and one of your strengths is proffering out industrial uses next to industrial uses. I don't really see that as a strength. But again, this appears to be a subjective determination. This is my issue with the use of the words on balance, because it sort

[03:24:20] of paints us into a box based on what you're giving us in the staff report. And I think I've made my feelings known on that and the issues it creates for us as a legislative body. We'll go on to the next thing.

[03:24:36] Turn to the park proffers, or the park analysis, excuse me, on page, starting on page. I had it marked, and I blew it.

[03:24:54] Here we go. Page 27. Starting on page 27. Yeah, on the bottom. I see a variety of things in here, talking about the public park dedication, the parks and recreation, monetary contribution, provisions for trail easements, all being, but the only thing that's being listed as a strength is a provision for trail easements, and then nothing being identified as weakness.

[03:25:21] Given the nature of the monetary contributions and the public park dedication and the issues that that raises, is it fair to list this as having no weaknesses within the parks chapter?

[03:25:43] Well, we acknowledge it, but we also look at what is the most relevant aspects of the application. We felt that under strengths, the provision for trail easements, to have that connectivity linkages with adjacent trails, we felt that that was a crucial part of the application.

[03:26:06] Dedicating the park site or the land for active park uses, that's certainly a positive attribute, but we look at what is most germane to the application. And that's why, specifically, we didn't really feel that it rose to the level of strength. It's certainly a positive asset to the project.

[03:26:24] We're also acknowledging the monetary contribution, but when we craft this, we have to tell all sides of things. So we didn't feel that it rose to an isolated level that we would want to call it out as a strength. We also have to look at the direct impacts of the application, too, And there always needs to be a proper relationship between what we're able to ask for and what the applicant is willing to give us.

[03:26:52] So there's always a balancing act. A couple of things. One, I'm not arguing that the dedications of the monetary contributions are a strength. I'm actually arguing that it's a weakness in this particular instance. I know I'm going to get yelled at for saying this, but I will say it nonetheless.

[03:27:10] I question the viability of those proffers. I question the legal enforceability of the proffers, and I think many share that. There's significant case law on those types of things, so I think that the weaknesses involved in those particular proffers should be pointed out as part of the analysis of the parks plan, and I would suggest that the dedication of a trail pales in significance and pales in terms of value to the other proffered park conditions.

[03:27:45] And I'm also looking at the applicant's narrative with respect to those particular things, and I note two things. Some of the uses that are suggested for that park proffer, for the land dedication itself, are a USTA facility.

[03:28:09] They've already moved on to another jurisdiction, so that's not a possibility. and the second major component of the applicants narrative was an indoor track well we just voted two hours ago to put that or to at this point in time plan for it on the east end of the county and not over here so it's interesting that you brought up the issue of the nexus where is the nexus between park usage or park park proffers at a data center can you explain what the nexus

[03:28:43] between the dedication of 80 acres and $5 million versus the use that's entailed or the use that's provided for by a data center is? What is that nexus in your view? Because I'm assuming that was part of your review and considered in your recommendations. Sure. Well, I also want to draw your attention to page 36. 36, we talk about proffer issues and deficiencies, and that was a concern of staff. I would defer to the applicant because I will say that some of these

[03:29:23] things came from another time in the application that I was not directly involved with. So I would rather have the applicant address this. They can tell you their reasoning behind how they got there. To be honest with you, I'm not interested in that explanation. But it does raise another issue.

[03:29:40] You've got those issues raised on page 36 under the heading proffer issues slash deficiencies, but they're not listed as a weakness specifically with the proffer. And then I go to the bottom of that page, and the last line is striking. It says, due to time constraints, the applicant was unable to make this change with respect to a different proffer, even though the applicant had stated that all structures will be removed, the staff believes it will be beneficial, yada, yada, yada.

[03:30:06] What time constraints are we under? 36. What specifically are the time constraints? We received new information and updated proffers within a day for when we had to get final materials to the county executive's office.

[03:30:26] And we're under a timeline, and we were not able to. But what is that timeline, and how is it created?

[03:30:46] Because I'm assuming it's a county timeline. Yes, it is. But I'll let, actually, Janelle, did you want to shed some light on that? We received county attorney comments the day before additional changes and requests to our proffers the day before the staff report was due to the county exec. We made those changes the following morning and sent those changes in. This request had come after we had already left our office that day and your staff report was due into the county exec's office to be distributed

[03:31:25] before the holiday. And so when I said the time, there was a time restraint, it was because that request was literally sent and you needed it in two minutes and nobody in our office could make those changes. So we haven't, so the county hasn't been provided the opportunity to fully explore those changes or vet them? It was that specific proffer request that's in the proffer deficiency on page 35. Well, the reason I... 36, I apologize for that. If we could go back to staff further analysis on this. It's my understanding that several provisions of this were not reviewed

[03:32:04] by commenting agencies. And again, the reason, the rationale being there wasn't enough time. All of the changes that we made were specific changes that were sent to us in a red line of proffers from county staff. We did not make any additional changes. So the changes that were made were vetted by county staff and they were sent to us as red lines of changes to make and they were minor changes that were mainly grammatical in nature. I'm a little lost here because I'm looking at a blue line proffer statement dated November 6th so you're telling me that all of these

[03:32:44] all of these changes were made by staff? All of those changes were suggested changes from the county yes and we made those changes that were suggested from the county so we literally got those changes less than 24 hours before they were due and we made those changes and sent those changes into staff so all of those changes were requested by staff they weren't changes the applicant said they were making last minute they were we received these red line changes can you please make them madam chair yeah can i can i step in for a second sure i feel a need to defend

[03:33:19] staff i feel a need to defend staff i'm about to get to that listen everybody the planning staff of prince william county has been uh under a lot of pressure a lot of pressure they're and they're understaffed as well so i want to make it clear the applicant asked for this hearing date november 28th the applicant deferred this case back in february and sat on it for months and came in with

[03:33:51] their fourth submission with a lot of significant changes in September. And then as soon as the election was over, asked for it to be on the November 28th calendar. So everything you're hearing tonight is not because Prince William County staff, it's because they're under a lot of pressure, under a lot of cases and pushing things through. And I want to make sure that people don't think that it's Prince William County planning staff that is creating this

[03:34:27] difficult timeline. It's the applicant, and they know it. I was not blaming staff. We oftentimes, because we understand that staff is overstaffed and you all have more cases, I think, than you've ever had before in Prince William County, we weren't trying to blame staff. We often get last-minute proffer changes once the county attorney has a chance to look at it or once the county exec's office has a chance to look at it right before the staff report this is nothing unnormal but what i was saying is these weren't changes we made they were changes that were requested by us correct we were able to turn around correct but let's be clear miss cameron

[03:35:06] this this case was deferred eight months ago and a lot happened in the last few couple months when you had a lot more time where you could have been using that to advance this case and you chose not to that's not because of prince william county planning staff supervisor where your light is still lit do you have additional questions i just i'll follow up on this question and i'll defer to

[03:35:37] everybody else and pick it up later um mr meyer to supervisor lawson's point when was this when was the review of this project reinitiated subsequent to the deferral does that make sense to you yes um the last major submission i believe it came in uh september yeah september so you've worked on this since september and then you well we've been working on many other

[03:36:10] things i i get that but i'm just let's confine it to this one but the focus was uh i guess kind of reinitiated on this back in uh later september so you spent 60 days reviewing it give or take Yes. And you forwarded your comments to the applicant.

[03:36:28] That is correct. And then we literally had time for another final cleanup version. Not a lot of time. We had the clocks ticking, you know, with the schedule that was in place, and that's where we are. Well, that's sort of it. How did this timing happen? Was this set by you guys?

[03:36:44] Was this set by the applicant? This was not set by us. It was set by the applicant. It was not set by you. Okay, so the conditions and the position that they put you in, to be honest with you, does not constitute an emergency on my part.

[03:37:01] I'm going to continue to demand full review on anything that comes into your staff, and I'm not real happy that quite a number of things did not go through what appears to be a full review by the other agencies.

[03:37:17] And one last thing with respect to the parks aspect of it. Do you have an analysis from Parks with respect to the capital costs, staffing costs, operational costs, anything like that, that would be entailed by acceptance of these proffers if they could be accepted?

[03:37:37] We do not, but we have Seth here from Parks Direct. Go ahead, Seth. Good evening, Madam Chair, members of the board. Seth Handler-Voss, honored to serve as your director of Parks and Recreation.

[03:37:55] Supervisor, we were to answer your question. We have not run an analysis on operating costs for the park improvements because the park improvements would still need to be determined, which we would do through a public engagement process. If it's presumed that they are to be for some sort of active use, I'm going to presume that the capital costs and the operational costs will be significant, safe to say?

[03:38:25] It all depends on what the community desires to be. I'm talking about the costs. Are the costs likely to be significant? Capital costs across the board for any commercial construction are significant these days. Okay, I'll take that as a yes, which goes to the point that that should have been considered in the staff report and should have been listed as, at least in my view, a potential weakness.

[03:38:47] With that, Madam Chair, I'll defer to the other members of the board, but I will have other questions later. Supervisor Vega. Thank you, Madam Chair. This question is for the applicant. Talk to me a little bit, Jonel, about community outreach since this was last before the board.

[03:39:11] Good evening, Supervisor Rega. I'll field the question because I handle our community outreach. So since the last meetings back in January, I guess, beginning of this year, we had a number of community meetings, understood everybody's concerns, spent some time working on the plan to try and accommodate as many of those concerns as possible.

[03:39:36] We actually did set up a website that showed all the parts and pieces of the project that people could go to as well as pointed them to inside of that website a link to what was submitted to the county so there was you know anybody could go view what had been submitted to Prince William County at any given time and try and make it easy. So no town hall face-to-face meetings with a community justice website? No yes correct. Okay thank you. Supervisor Angry.

[03:40:09] Thanks Madam Chair. The elevation slide if you can go back to that I had a question asking me about the elevation, particularly, I think, from the neighborhood. Like, it's already kind of elevated there.

[03:40:27] So is that factored into the site distancing that you were? Yes. The line of sites included the existing grade of other properties and the proposed grade of this property. Okay. Thank you. You're welcome. Supervisor Weir. Supervisor Weir, you need to turn your microphone on, please.

[03:40:57] I'm sorry. I didn't hear what you said. sorry i was actually in the process of flipping to the section of the plan um now i can't find it go ahead okay am i am i good madam chair uh okay so i don't know where to start i've got so many different things i want to ask um let's go back let's go to the

[03:41:24] substations okay proffer 20 what is that proffer 27 and i don't know if this is for you or if this is for the applicant, but essentially Proffer 27 of the substations, A through F, are completely negated by Proffer E. So Proffers, I'm sorry, A through D. And then I'm going to read it

[03:42:01] so the public can hear it. Adjustments to the foregoing standards in this Proffer and or location, number, size, and height, because earlier Proffers say that they're going to have three substations and land bay B without a separate public facilities review.

[03:42:20] So it's essentially giving them permission to build these three substations and what the height will be and the fencing and whatnot. And then it says in E that the substations may be proposed by the applicant and allowed by the planning director without the need for an amendment to the proffers or the general development plan or approval of public facilities review.

[03:42:44] So the way I read proffer E, that negates everything proffers A and D set out and put those guardrails up. Then you read proffer E, and that completely forgoes everything that they had agreed to do, A through D.

[03:43:04] Am I right? I can see how you're reading it that way, Supervisor Lawson, but it does say it may be allowed. But yes, perhaps. That's concerning to me. Yeah. And I would like to think that it's concerning to the county attorney and to the protection of everybody.

[03:43:24] Profer E is a problem, so will the applicant remove Profer E? I could have Janelle come up to address that. Because, I mean, right now they're saying that they'll look at it.

[03:43:42] They'll look at it? Okay. All right. Well, while they're looking at it, do you want me to keep going, or are you ready to go back? I found my page because that's what I was going to talk about. That was a good filler. Thank you. Well, no, it just saves me some talking, but let's stay on that.

[03:44:00] In the analysis of the electrical utility services plan, I was going to bring that up. And again, you've got no, the proposal has no identified weaknesses. But in reading the proffers, and I know it says may, but, you know, given past history in this county, I have no reason to believe that the applicant wouldn't or couldn't make an application to the, or a request of the planning director, whomever that is, at any given point in time in the future, and essentially circumvent this whole process.

[03:44:36] And the reason that bothers me is, or particularly bothers me, is that in the analysis of the electrical utility plan, one of the strengths is you're limiting it to three electric stub stations. But that's not really the case. That's not what they're proffering.

[03:44:52] So if you're going to list that as a strength, but that strength is negated by proper 27E, is it really a strength? That's just a comment on my part. The other part of it is, in the analysis of this, there's very little, in fact, virtually no discussion of available electricity on that 500 kV line.

[03:45:23] There's no discussion of power, additional lines, impacts on other development and that sort of thing. And I guess one of the principal questions is, you know, where are they going to draw the power? Are they going to draw the power from that 500 kV line? And if so, how many masters can that line serve?

[03:45:41] Because that's the same line that runs through Pageland. So that's going to have to serve the gateway applications. It's going to have to serve the applications or the, excuse me, the facilities currently under construction on 55 and can harpen. The facilities that are going to get constructed on the other side of the road.

[03:45:59] the facilities that are going to get constructed on the north side of Wellington, and every other bloody data center that's approved within or without the overlay. So have you done any analysis as to what happens when that 500 kV line doesn't afford you the capacity to power three additional substations?

[03:46:24] Or was that analysis not done? And I'll forgive you if it wasn't, because I don't know that you guys have the expertise to do it, and that's not your fault. I'm asking staff. I don't have an answer for that.

[03:46:40] We don't do that analysis. I will speak for staff. They don't do that analysis, and I know that is something you want to have done. Staff is not, that is not something staff has ever done, and I think you probably know the answer to that question when you asked it. Do you have additional questions? Oh, I've got all kinds of them, but again, I will defer to the other speakers first.

[03:46:57] I have Supervisor Lawson still on here, but I also have Supervisor Bailey. Thank you. So let's talk a little bit about noise. The applicant, by the way, the applicant, you know, recognized that the data center industry has a growing problem right now with noises.

[03:47:32] And it's becoming, understandably, a very strong concern of communities because of specifically the Great Oak community. And we're almost a year and a half, two years into that problem.

[03:47:47] and it's still not resolved. So the applicant, to their credit, did more to proffer noise and how to address these concerns. Now, I'll be honest with you.

[03:48:02] Some of these proffers are very difficult to understand because it gets into very technical details related to noise. I would certainly rely on experts regarding this.

[03:48:21] So a few questions. Who in our staff is qualified to evaluate these proffers that are related to noise? Who has the certifications? Who knows, especially in the development services side, because a lot of this is, you know, pre-final site plan approval.

[03:48:41] Who can we be rest assured that they're going to be able to meet these proffer requirements? Well, it obviously would not be in planning. Yeah, Alex.

[03:48:57] Yeah, do you want to? Okay. Good evening, Board members. My name is Alex Venegas from the Planning Office. In instances like this where we don't have a subject matter expert, we would probably look to a consultant to provide us whether that study meets our needs and standards.

[03:49:18] So we don't have anyone on staff that can review a sound study, But we would definitely hire or reach out or procure a consultant to do that. Is that something that the county executive, I know that we're going through a lot of studies and considerations about a change to the noise ordinance.

[03:49:41] And is this something that we will have to procure or consider a full-time position, like contracts? How can the public be assured that this proffer is enforceable and, frankly, not just enforceable, but be confident that we have the staff to protect the interests of the community?

[03:50:11] Sure. Supervisor, I appreciate the question. And to Alex's point, we have in the past solicited and gotten support technical expertise from outside the county to provide support to our staff. and we are doing that in the case of sound as well.

[03:50:29] And so if and when there comes a need, we are certainly able to do that, and we will in this case if requested. Thank you. So would that be something that they proffered it, but we obviously need to verify on our end in development services who handles all the site plans.

[03:50:51] And is that something that would be from their budget, Or does the applicant proffer the money for, I know that they've proffered money for sound studies, but, you know, look, to me, it's trust but verify.

[03:51:08] And I just want to make sure that we're not getting duped by their consultants that they're hiring. And I want to make sure that it's objective professionals who, this is such a special expertise. How do we skin this cat?

[03:51:27] So we do have basic ordering agreements with several different firms. I know each department has their own BOAs, and we usually use those to verify, you know, designs and things and other plans like that.

[03:51:45] So that's something that we would definitely outsource. I don't know if we have a consultant now that does that, But I know a lot of these firms, they're pretty diverse, and they have people that do sound studies. Like for environmental safety, they do these types of studies.

[03:52:02] Right, like transportation does. But what we learned earlier this year is that those are different sounds and different transportation. I mean, the hum of chillers on top of a data center complex is different than the roar of a highway.

[03:52:21] That's correct. But, you know, we would look at it through our basic order and agreement to see if we can find a firm that offers that service. If not, we can. And that is not conflicted out because the industry has hired them all. That's a concern of mine is that it's a special expertise.

[03:52:39] And the proffer says any sound or noise measurement must be conducted by a professional third-party acoustical consultant who has knowledge and expertise taking such measurements. The consultant shall measure sound and noise with sound level meters, blah, blah, blah, prescribed by ANSI, A-N-S-I, which I believe is basically their industry association and best practices.

[03:53:09] I'd like protections in this proffer that it's a third-party consultant that the county can feel confident in. So what can we build into this to make sure that it's not? Because, you know, the applicants can hire third-party consultants for transportation, for cultural resources, for environmental constraints analysis.

[03:53:34] And we all know consultants who hire you, you know, are typically going to show favoritism for who they hired, for who hired them. Yeah, I believe in the principle of trust but verify.

[03:53:51] Yeah. So we would use our own consultant, I believe, would be the best approach to verify the information. And the development services department has the budget for that? I do not know about their budget, to be honest with you, but that's something we can explore.

[03:54:08] And, you know, we can talk to Mandy and see if that's something that we can incorporate. Okay. I think this is an important conversation regarding noise. All of us are concerned about noise. Don't know, Supervisor Lawson, I don't know that we are in a position tonight to talk about the budget for a potential consultant.

[03:54:32] Okay. I certainly understand the concern in us making any commitments tonight about spending additional resources on a third-party consultant to provide expertise. I just don't want to put the staff in a position that they are trying to sort of make a decision that the board would eventually make in terms of allocating funding.

[03:54:53] Yeah, it's just this is such an evolving industry, and for years noise was not a problem where it was, you know, emanating through several hundred, you know, feet of woods. And now it is specifically at a couple different locations, and we need to learn from it and make sure we don't repeat these problems.

[03:55:16] So I don't feel confident that these proffers are going to completely eliminate those concerns. And do we have equipment that measures tonal noise? I mean, look, if I have, you know, Saturday night parties that go late, the police department is going to come out and their officers trained with, you know, meters for decibels.

[03:55:44] But this is specific to tonal noise. Do we have and we don't have, you know, a noise police for data centers in the industry. So these are still a lot of concerns that I have and a lot of people have.

[03:56:01] How are we going to enforce this? We don't have a squad for this. I don't know if we have that type of equipment in any of our departments. I can ask and find out, but I don't have the answer for you at this moment.

[03:56:18] Okay, so I'm not confident that I appreciate their efforts, but I'm not confident that this experiment in these proffers is going to alleviate the noise concern. Let's talk about sustainability.

[03:56:37] Just a month ago, the board passed a Community Energy and Sustainability Master Plan. Everybody obviously wants to be environmentally conscious and do all we can to reduce our greenhouse gases and be very mindful about the environment and the growing concerns of climate change, everything.

[03:57:01] One thing is certain, the data center industry is a huge consumer of electricity, huge. The applicant said that they proffered some sustainability measures.

[03:57:24] Frankly, I think a lot of them they should be doing already. I was disappointed to learn that the sustainability office didn't even review this case. So please talk to me about that and why.

[03:57:42] We did not send this to the sustainability office. We had time constraints when we were reviewing this. We have the, on page, I want to point out, on page 37, we had the standard review agencies.

[03:58:01] We did not have an in-depth analysis with this. The applicant is saying that some measures may include, but are not limited to. This is template language that we've had from other data centers.

[03:58:18] And this was carried forward by the applicant, not by staff, by the applicant. And this is what we've been working with. Could it evolve? Could it change? Yes, it probably could. We do have in consultation with the county sustainability officer that, you know, this would be done in coordination with that individual to see what other aspects of sustainability could be applied.

[03:58:48] But this is just standard template language. So, frankly, it's hard for me to take it seriously when, A, the Office of Sustainability didn't even review the case, And, B, the proffers are things that they should be doing already.

[03:59:07] I mean, maybe if they want to proffer that they're going to recycle their, you know, water bottles and soda cans, that might make us all feel a little bit better. But the fact that they're proffering things that they should already be doing, like not pouring, dumping toxins in, you know, stream beds and things, well, yeah, great.

[03:59:26] Shouldn't we all do that? I just think it's lame, super lame. And I have a feeling that you're going to hear that from members of the community tonight, that this is certainly nothing to be impressed about.

[03:59:43] Okay, last thing I want to talk about is the overlay. So this is 270 acres that is not currently in the data center opportunity overlay, right?

[04:00:03] Yes, that is correct. It is currently not in the overlay. Correct. And the applicant's attorney referenced the consultant's report, the Stantec, I think it was Stantec report, is that right? Was it Stantec? That it was recommended to be added into the overlay, but that Stantec report is shelved somewhere, and the board has not taken up the countywide review of the overlay.

[04:00:31] It's been iced. So, in all intents and purposes, right now that property is not in the data center overlay. When the overlay was created in 2016, and I was on the board, and we did it for a lot of reasons, and it's not perfect, it is not a perfect, we're learning, and it's not a perfect overlay, but we did it as a reaction to that Haymarket case with the transmission

[04:01:05] lines, which we worked on for years. We made it very clear in the zoning ordinance that data centers would be by right with land in the overlay under certain zoning districts. And if a data center application was outside of the overlay, the applicant was required to do additional, go above and beyond additional applications for a special use permit or a zoning text amendment.

[04:01:45] And the zoning ordinance is very clear. So my question to you, Mr. Meyer, is why would we require Bristow Campus, Compton, Village Place Technology Park, I-66, Hunter, John Marshall commons and i could go on and on my aides made a spreadsheet all these yellow are outside the overlay and those applicants some of the a lot of the projects are approved some are still in the

[04:02:22] works they applied for a special use permit a court a you know companion special use permit to justify and they were following the zoning ordinance why is devlin technology park different and special when the zoning ordinance for m2 which is what the the zoning ordinance district specifically does not allow it there there are there's been several ways that we've done this i'm trying to i'm going to try to break this down and i appreciate you asking um

[04:02:57] so we've more often than not have seen where you have a rezoning and you have a special use permit if you're outside of the data center overlay say that again uh it's it's more common And we have seen a rezoning and a special use permit application together if something is outside of the overlay.

[04:03:17] Right. Just like here. But also the data center opportunity zone overlay in provision number two, it allows our board to amend or to revise that or look at adding land to that based on a case-by-case basis.

[04:03:35] Where is that? It is. I don't have the provision. Yeah. Okay. It's 32-509.02, Establishment of Data Center Opportunity Zone Overlay District. Yeah, and that's why...

[04:03:51] Number two, specifically. Yeah, I have it right here. And that's why some applicants outside the overlay have submitted a zoning text amendment for a map amendment. Okay, this doesn't have a zoning text amendment. This does not have a special use permit or a zoning text amendment.

[04:04:08] Matter of fact, M2 Light Industrial Zoning District has all the different uses, and then you go down to 32-403.23 special uses, and number three specifically says data center outside the data center opportunity zone overlay district.

[04:04:31] This needs an SUP to go with it, and it doesn't have one. So why are we treating this case different when all these other applicants outside of the overlay, whether it was for M2 or other zoning districts, followed the rules and submitted either a zoning text amendment, Hunter, which is very adjacent, had a zoning text amendment, Village Place, I-66, Bristow Campus, special use permit.

[04:05:07] the zoning ordinance is specific i don't i don't agree with you it literally says that the boundaries shall be set using a map just simply proffering it is is is not satisfactory this needs a special use permit why is this case different than all the other applicants that we

[04:05:32] have required special you uh sup or zta look at all of them i i hear what you're saying um this is one of the ways that you could do it um i disagree this the literally scott the zoning ordinance i did my homework on this m section 32-403.20 is m2 light industrial zoning district purpose and intent and it goes through all the permitted by rights but then the next a couple sections down

[04:06:12] point uh 23 says it's section 32-403.23 the special uses and number three it specifically says data center outside the overlay district this needs an sup well actually yeah david if you wanted to otherwise why did we have all these other why first of all why do we have it in the zoning ordinance and why do we make all these other applicants do the additional application

[04:06:45] requirements and pay those additional fees thank you uh madam chair my name is david mcgett again i'm the acting planning director from planning office um the the um 509.02 allows the board to amend the um overlay district and they can do that through a resolution or ordinance and that is what is being requested through approval of this ordinance uh which includes their proffers

[04:07:19] attached that they approve this amendment so it can be done this way under 32509.02 to that this overlay district can be amended by the board and it was uh similarly done in the i-66 front 29 technology park uh that was um say that no i-66 say it again that had an sup The Gainesville Crossing?

[04:07:52] Gainesville Crossing, no, he said I-66. That had an SUP. Gainesville Crossing is different. You know why? Because it was PBD, Planned Business District, which allows it. Go to Section 3240405, waivers and modifications within PBD, and it was specifically cited.

[04:08:14] It was PBD. Just like Youth for Tomorrow, PBD. this this needs an sup by your own zoning ordinance if you read two though that the board can by ordinance amend the map then mr mcgett again my question to you my question to the county executive the and my question to the county attorney is then how do we explain to all these other applicants that are outside the overlay district why they had to go through additional

[04:08:52] steps some of them as we speak because some cases are still pending some have been approved there's there's the difference here there is a difference here this does not have the special companion special use permit and it should it's in our zoning ordinance all right for for m2 if he if they had applied for planned business district then i wouldn't be making this argument but the zoning request is for m2 and it specifically says it requires an sup outside of the overlay district

[04:09:32] Correct and this is outside the overlay district. Not if this is approved by the board by ordinance that adds it to the overlay district. Do you do you do you have do you have a crystal ball time if there's a problem with people being unable to keep their emotions under control we will clear the chambers and take a recess or I'll ask the people who can't stop laughing or being rude to staff to leave. Please you know give some respect. Mr. McGettigan do you have a crystal ball do you know what the exactly what this board is going to do when the public hearing is over i don't the point is is that this should have a special use permit because that's what

[04:10:12] the zoning ordinance requires and right now at almost nine o'clock at night on november 28th this land is not in the overlay and everybody knows it correct that's correct thank you going on supervisor weird and supervisor bailey thank you madam chair i'm going to continue down that line. Mr. McGannigan, I've got a question for you. Given your most recent statement with respect to the overlay, would you agree that, generally speaking, within the construct of the

[04:10:49] zoning ordinance, the specific trumps the general? Yes, I would say so. Okay. So there's a specific requirement for M2 zoning for an SUP, and there's a general provision regarding amendment of the overlay. So since there's a specific requirement for the M3, wouldn't that trump the general in

[04:11:21] 509? I'm not going to. Okay, that's fine. I don't expect you to answer. I'm just going to point that out. The reason I ask this is that Supervisor Lawson raises a number of valid points and raises a number of valid concerns going forward in terms of the precedent that this sets. It also creates a problem for me in that some might view this as an arbitrary and capricious act by us.

[04:11:59] You know, I view this as nothing more than a way to circumvent existing provisions within the code. Now, I know a little bit more about this particular section of the code since I wrote it. You know that. You were there. And I know what the intent of it was.

[04:12:19] And I know why specific sections were written to require the SUP. And that was to protect against exactly this type of circumvention. With respect to the PBD, that happened as an amendment later by Supervisor Principe, I believe.

[04:12:38] And it came back and bit the county in the case of Gainesville Crossing. I'm really familiar with the legislative history of this particular aspect of the code. But getting back to that, you know, I'm going to maintain that the adjustment of the overlay should be a separate application and should be as fully vetted, fully supported as the rest of this application should be.

[04:13:02] And to simply throw it in there as part of a rezoning application saying, we want this designation, and oh, by the way, we'd like the overlay extended, doesn't meet the smell test for me. Again, I view it as nothing more than an attempt to circumvent the county ordinance, and it does present an issue with existing applications that are still before you that have done this, quote-unquote, the proper way and gone about it the way that's prescribed by the ordinance.

[04:13:30] I mean, I'm not going to presume to speak for the county attorney, but I suspect it's going to cause us potentially some problems with other applications that are already in the works or potentially other applications that are going to be filed. To continue on the overlay, you know, one of the things that is required in considering expansion of the overlay is minimizing the impacts on abutting residential units and being consistent with the goals of the overlay.

[04:13:58] you've got residential units right next door. How could this redrawing of the map possibly be in the interest of those abutting residential units without impact on the residential units?

[04:14:13] That's one of the considerations. Again, remember, I wrote this thing. I still have the original emails to Chris Price. So, I mean, have you factored all of that in? Have you factored in how this expansion will mitigate the impacts? I don't see it. And I think the language with the proffers that's already been raised with respect to the substations furthers that.

[04:14:44] The other thing I would note is that this particular parcel and, quite frankly, part of the Hunter parcel were specifically left out of the original map. They were left out of the original map to expressly protect the residential neighborhoods.

[04:15:01] That the map was redrawn a year later, largely by the planning director with no input from the rest of the working group. It's something that I can't personally forgive, but this remained outside of it. And I know that this was not a unilateral decision by staff to include it or not include it. It was not a unilateral decision by members of the public or any sort of concerned groups. You have to remember that when that map was drawn in its initial phase, it was drawn by a working group of all parties involved. Stakeholders involving the industry, the power

[04:15:39] companies, residents, staff, community organizations. This was a compromise. And now we're going to unilaterally take it out without asking any of the stakeholders to look at it, the ones that actually designed it? Does that seem like a rational way to approach expansion? And I know somebody's going to bring up the Stantec report, but I would note that the original Stantec report did not include these parcels. In fact, specifically said not to add anything to the overlay district, but rather to reduce it. And that report only changed in a second draft after the comp plan was adopted, and I believe after the contract had expired.

[04:16:20] And to Ms. Lawson's point, and I've raised this issue with staff, and I've raised it with executive management, that particular report has been shelved pending the data center working Group's recommendations, so it's irrelevant to this conversation. Mr. Meyer, I've got one last

[04:16:46] question for you. Page 31 of the staff report, where you're talking about the proposal strengths on potable water plant analysis. It says, one of the strengths is provision for data center cooling systems as proffered cooling systems for data center buildings located on land bay B shall be equipped with closed loop cooling systems or air cooling systems to provide efficient and optimized

[04:17:19] water consumption it's really nice to say in writing how does the county enforce that well this would be looked at um by the service authority when they review the application but let me have the applicant address that because this came from them and i don't want to misrepresent why they came to provide actually the question is i understand the applicant's proffer what i'm asking is how is the county going to enforce it these proffers are normally enforced because it's building requirement. These proffers are enforced during the building plan stage, so you have to

[04:17:58] show it on your building plan, and before you can get an occupancy permit, they confirm that the systems that you're required in, the proffers, have been met. So how do we know that an air cooling system is going to meet this, if that's all that's designated? Air cooling systems use a variety of different types of water consumption. I think the answer is they would look at it specifically for the efficiency aspect, so we would walk through that with the building department in the county and that's how it would be enforced what i'm saying is if if it's if an air cooling

[04:18:34] system is acceptable under the proffer yet is a system that consumes a significant amount of non or potable and non-potable water what does the proffer mean i'm gonna have truitt walk through that with you i believe the intent supervisor wears for the builder to work with planning not planning staff but the service authority and the building department when they're getting their permits and the buildings are being designed to be able to figure out what that threshold is going

[04:19:14] to be. So you're going to, so you would presume that the service authority would be monitoring and enforcing the water usage? I would assume the building department and the service authority together would be looking at the building plans for the building when the building permits are being reviewed. I would just note that in discussions with several other data center developers, I'm going to presume that Stanley Martin is not going to build this facility. Sure. I'm going to assume, probably correctly, that some other entity will actually do the construction and that such

[04:19:47] construction may or may not be to that contractor's model. If, for example, they contract out with a particular agent or a particular entity which has its own particular design and its own particular cooling requirements, air-cooled or not, or air-cooled or otherwise, the facility will then be designed to that system so I just find enforcement of this questionable and that staff can't tell me how we're going to enforce it gives me some pause okay again I'll pause for the moment

[04:20:25] madam chair I've got one more thing but I'll wait till everybody else has a chance your last supervisor we're then we're going to go on to the public hearing so we don't keep people here Oh, in that case, easy. Madam Chair, Section 32, 700.43, Section 2 of the ordinance, County Zoning Ordinance, provides that the time period for review and application shall not include, and I quote, any length of time an application for a zoning map amendment was deferred at the request of the applicant

[04:20:59] And further provides that the one-year period begins to toll anew upon significant changes to the application. And I would suggest that it's relatively obvious that at this point in time there are significant changes to the application since it was first submitted several years ago.

[04:21:20] Further, I would note that the Planning Commission similarly reviewed a significantly different application with significantly different proffers, significantly different FARs. significantly different impacts on the community and it's sort of gone back and forth a number of iterations of splitting the baby and we've got a variety of provisions that haven't even been fully vetted by staff so in accordance with both the allowance provided for in the staff report and in

[04:22:00] good zoning practice I would suggest or I would move that we remand the case back to the Planning Commission for review. That's a motion. Motion made by Supervisor Weir, seconded by Supervisor Lawson. Any discussion? None. Please vote.

[04:22:27] You didn't give us along. No one showed up on my speaker waiting to speak. Do you want to say something? Yeah I mean considering there there are considering there's a lot of things that we have raised that to me are very large red flags. One of them is my concern that this does not have a companion special use permit because it's outside the overlay

[04:23:00] another concern is that land bay a is a new park park and rec proffer that what definitely was not heard by the planning commission when the commission heard this case about a year and a half ago things have completely changed like dramatically changed in this case and and then there are other factors the the applicant had a series of meeting community meetings at the local

[04:23:34] Marriott and Gainesville and and I commended them for doing that that but that was over a year ago this application has dramatically changed with I would say very inadequate public outreach and public outreach is a huge piece of of rezoning cases land use cases it's a huge piece of it um i i think there are other reasons that i'm not going to spend more time but i absolutely support the idea of the planning commission this going actually i think it needs to go back to the

[04:24:14] planning staff and and address the the park proffer that i have very strong concerns very strong concerns that the park and rec proffer for 85 acres is is not enforceable there's a court case in charlottesville that completely turned proffers upside down and there's no analysis that an indoor rec facility 85 acres park land is attributable to a data center complex

[04:24:51] the trails yes we can get there but this land that that they are proffering to give us first of all we already have a lot of land sitting vacant that takes years to come to fruition for a park there's already there's still land sitting over by avondale community in bristo uh that was rezoned in 2010 and it's still untouched it's over by the grizzly complex this gentleman knows

[04:25:24] exactly what i'm talking about he's shaking his head um so to be clear 85 acres great but it could be 20 years before the county sees any park and rec activity there 25 years which is one of the reasons that environmental um the environmental watershed division wants that land to be protected and not zoned m2 because of those obvious reasons and take it out of the data overlay

[04:25:56] and the applicant you heard them they said no because they know that this proffer and the court of law is not enforceable for us it's not enforceable they know that the public knows that this is a very public case this is not ready to be voted on tonight or it's certainly not ready to be approved and in my opinion so i will support your offer to send this back and let the planning

[04:26:30] staff the applicant and the community and the planning commission see it seeing no further discussion please vote so i just saw it but did you just hit it just now okay supervisor vega thank you madam chair um before we take this vote um even though i suspect how the vote is going to turn out the reason why i support uh the motion to send it back to the planning commission is as supervisor lawson and supervisor we have stated this application is not ready for prime

[04:27:07] time folks. Why a residential developer is requesting to put in an application for a data center is beyond my understanding, but I just want to remind you all what happened with the preserve at Long Branch here in my district and in the Kohl's district with Mark Granville-Smith, who made a promise that he was going to be the one to build these homes.

[04:27:30] The truth of the matter is that he's not. Stanley Martin is now going to be building those homes. So the point that my colleagues here are trying to raise is the fact that these proffers really mean nothing. It's very easy to sell something based on promises, but there's no teeth to it and no guarantee to you, the general public.

[04:27:46] I speak to this issue with a lot of passion for the reason that I've been dealing with it firsthand with the folks of Great Oak and the Coles District. They know what it's like to have a data center in their backyard. They've been literally going through hell, been put through hell and then some with the issues that they've had, whether it be noise, whether it be the blasting that occurred pre-construction.

[04:28:09] And, you know, I wonder if my colleagues have gone down there, if they drove around, if they saw it for themselves, how many homes in the proximity, the school, just because they're promising now all of a sudden to give you all a park, it makes it better? No, it doesn't. It's not better.

[04:28:26] It's just another means to try to get this project to go through. And there's a reason why they sit on it. There's a reason why they asked for it to be put back on the agenda after the election. So make no mistake. And yes, I understand that the chair gets frustrated when you guys, you know, clap or make these noise.

[04:28:42] But we all see the obvious. And I know that my colleagues up here on this day see the obvious too. They see it. They know it. They hear it. And they have a decision to make. And they'll make that decision tonight. I don't think you guys have to wonder or question where, Supervisor, we are lost in our eyes stand on this issue because we've been firm.

[04:28:59] We've been cleared. It's not a political one. It's a quality of life issue. it's a quality of life issue that is going to impact your lives every single day that you decide to stay in your homes for folks that don't know a lot of my constituents from great oak moved out of the district moved out of this county because of that issue i've shared with my colleagues on this day is how nurseries had to be moved to the basement because of the issue stemming from the amazon data center and i if i were a betting woman i would bet a ton of money that none of my colleagues on this day would support this project if they were the ones living right around it and so for those reasons i'm not going to be supporting this i'm not um going to be um you know uh i'm

[04:29:38] going to support supervisor weir's motion and i'm not going to be supporting this because the obvious speaks and why we want to act like we don't hear or see what you all are saying and what's been brought to our attention is beyond me but again folks thank you for coming out i know it's not over we're going to have another round um to hear from you and then we're going to have additional comments but i just want to be very clear as to what's taking place here tonight no seeing no

[04:30:05] further speakers please vote motion fails three to five chair wheeler supervisor angry bailey bodie and franklin voting nay we are now going to open the public comment time on item number 13a madam chair yeah um to be clear i still have additional i'm waiting on answers from the

[04:30:40] so let's let's remember after the public hearing we we have more work to do I'm now going to open the public hearing on item 13a you said you gave that numbers miss Madden can I call numbers 1 through 5 5 through 10 each person has three minutes to speak please state your name and generally where you live in the county or your magisterial district at the beginning of your remarks there will be a counter you'll be able to understand you'll be able to see how much time you have left so I will call the first five speakers up one through five and please make sure you state your name and generally where you live at the

[04:31:20] beginning of your remarks and you need to speak into the microphone because we can't hear the projector please got it hey Mary Jo Howarth Victory Lakes not

[04:31:59] paid to speak I oppose the rezoning of the Devlin Road property retain the lands residential zoning status I'm sure the businesses in Bristow Commons expected that they would have residential housing in this area as its customer base data centers defeat your walkable Hamlet plan doesn't it industrial zones are not compatible with existing neighborhoods and schools before I retired I was a special education administrator I supported eight schools attended many meetings and sometimes a program for the student was

[04:32:37] not at their base school but another school supervisor Bodie would you want your child to attend a school knowing data centers will be nearby I don't think other parents do given technological advances these data centers may have an operational life of only five to ten years once they are no longer profitable they will cease to operate have you thought that far ahead my memory of visiting my grandparents driving past the factories located in residential areas near the bridge that says Trenton makes the world takes

[04:33:15] connecting New Jersey and Pennsylvania they were the booming job creating businesses until they weren't these buildings have been abandoned and and derelict for decades. They still are a real sad eyesore. Is that the legacy you want to be known for? If so, we will make sure there is a plaque engraved. Bristow sold out by Truett Young of Stanley Martin Homes, courtesy of Chair at Large Ann Wheeler, Neabsco District Supervisor

[04:33:54] Victor Angry, Potomac District Supervisor Andrea Bailey, Occoquan District Supervisor Kenny Bodie, Woodbridge District Supervisor Margaret Franklin, so future generations will know who is responsible for the destruction of the area's natural habitats.

[04:34:14] Nobody wants to live in an industrial zone. Chair Wheeler, can you explain your logic when you said, why would we build houses by data centers? Yet, you want data centers to be built by houses. Are you going to repeat the hunter property mistake?

[04:34:33] Supervisor Bodie, your last sentence in Supervisor Bodie discusses Devlin Road March 13th newsletter. I quote, it will take grassroots action to rebalance the scales so that local communities have a greater say in land use.

[04:34:51] We've been here and we are here tonight. Please follow the golden rule. Do unto others what you would want others to do unto you. Do the right thing. Vote no on the Devlin Technology Park rezoning.

[04:35:07] Thank you. Next speaker, please. Good evening. I'm Tom Howarth. I live in the Brinsville District. I oppose the rezoning application for the Devlin Technology Park proposed by Stanley Martin Homes. The site is currently zoned PMR, planned mixed residential, and should remain so.

[04:35:26] Our home is directly across Devlin Road from this proposed data warehouse site. Twenty years ago, we built our home in Victory Lakes because we love the quiet tree-lined neighborhoods. We never could have anticipated that we'd be here today imploring our county supervisors to save Prince William County from encroaching industrial blight.

[04:35:44] We've seen a lot of change to the Brentsville District over the past 20 years. We've seen grocery stores, banks, new residential housing, and new roads built. These all provide services or improve the quality of life for Brentsville residents. You know that data centers do not provide services or improve our quality of life.

[04:36:01] They do not constitute harmonious land use and preservation of open spaces. You wouldn't want a data warehouse built in your neighborhood or even in the districts you represent. To add insult to injury, the electrical infrastructure improvements needed to support these massive data warehouses will be borne on the backs of Northern Virginia ratepayers.

[04:36:19] And I guess that you'll be able to say that Prince William County can still meet its energy and sustainable master plan goals because you'll just pass the outrageous electrical energy generation problem caused by your data center proliferation onto neighboring counties and states. This proposal is being ramrodded by a greedy landowner, Stanley Martin Homes, who is focused on reaping a windfall profit by selling this land to data center industry giants with deep pockets.

[04:36:44] Stanley Martin Homes' only objective is to finalize the property rezoning and make a sale. It's clear that data center operators don't care where they create their next concrete wasteland. If they did, they'd avoid areas near national and state parks, neighborhoods, and schools. The data center Opportunity Zone Overlay District was created for the purpose of promoting development of data centers within areas of the county while limiting negative impacts to communities, including schools.

[04:37:10] In fact, Prince William County Municipal Code Section 32-509.06 states, quote, data centers shall be prohibited in agricultural, residential, PMR, B2, B3, and V districts, unquote. However, the Board of County Supervisors changed the comprehensive plan use for this land without consideration of its impact on surrounding communities.

[04:37:32] It is not and should not be considered in a data center overlay district. I remember something my grandfather used to say. You can put lipstick on a pig, but it's still a pig. Now I know what he meant. You can call a data center a technology park, but it's still a massive concrete industrial-scale data warehouse.

[04:37:48] There are ugly big-box facilities that are not compatible with residential communities. They are not developing new technologies. They are simply storing ones and zeros. They provide no direct benefit to the neighborhoods they invade. Stanley Martin Homes should do what they do best, build neighborhoods, not destroy them.

[04:38:05] Vote no on this rezoning application. Thank you. Next speaker, please. My name is Clifton Bukowski. I live directly across the street of Devlin, just like the gentleman before me, been here 20 years.

[04:38:21] Love moving into the neighborhood, great Prince William County. Data centers are not welcome. Vote no against this. Residential and homes are what's zoned for this property right now. And for the people that would buy a home in that area would know the data centers are already north and west of them.

[04:38:42] So they are acknowledging that when they come and buy in. I didn't acknowledge that when I came in. Next, I'll say that there have not been any face-to-face neighborhood outreach programs. There were before. The gentlemen that were here earlier, they're gone. Obviously, they said their piece.

[04:38:57] They're all about making the money. They didn't care what we had to say. They left already. Learn from history. I know one of the councilwomen said, noise is a problem. There's one-way doors and two-way doors. This is the one-way door.

[04:39:14] You have no leverage whatsoever with these people once they get their way and they can't be held accountable. You have no leverage with them. It's proven by what the councilwoman said with the other data center that's going on. The residents are upset. They're moving out.

[04:39:30] That's what's going to happen. You're going to end up with a Jersey industrial neighborhood for Prince William County. Learn from history. Victory Lakes is spring fed. All those lakes that are there, they come from spring.

[04:39:47] That spring runs right behind my house. I see every day that the wildlife and everything that's there, and it thrives. What's happening with this up above, it's higher elevation. All that water comes from that location. There hasn't been a study by the EPA or anything like that to determine what kind of impact this development, an industrial development, is going to have on that downstream wildlife and those spring-fed lakes.

[04:40:14] That's a part that all my residents, all my neighbors enjoy, and I don't want that to be gone. I'm going to be quiet for a second. Do you hear anything? I don't know if any of you suffer from tinnitus. It's a shrill sound that rings in your ears day and night, no matter if you're in the shower, sleeping, walking, anything like that.

[04:40:36] Basically, what you're committing to do with this data center is you're committing an unhealthy disease to all of our children, all of our residents, that they're going to basically get tinnitus that's outside of their ears. That's what you're basically committing with doing this data center.

[04:40:52] so i beg you i deplore you do not allow this to happen to our community residents who want to move into this area make it residential if they want to move into that area knowing they have data centers to the west and north of them that's fine right now vote no against this i'm totally against it and all my neighbors are thank you next speaker please hello my name is colin styles i'm a resident of the gainesville district i am asking you this evening to support the application i know you have a tremendously difficult decision to make tonight and i understand people's passion on the subject

[04:41:31] matter we spoke about parks this evening and the fact that the county has many unfinished parks parkland that was proffered previously on other applications with proffered dollars that still haven't been completed and at the end of the day the reason is that the county doesn't have the money to do that and those parks provide critical services for our youth throughout the county without applications like this to support the general revenue for the county we just will not have the opportunity to support our youth youth sports organizations and improve our parks and

[04:42:07] put ourselves in prince william county on par with our neighboring counties in loudon and fairfax our children deserve the same facilities thank you thank you um our next speaker is number five number six through ten are welcome to line up in the back of the room good evening my name is Richard Willett. I live in Bristow, Virginia. I'm an engineer for a locally based large international company. One of my duties is to build data centers and facilities and to fit them. I'm asking you to

[04:42:46] vote no on this and to reject it. My main concern is Supervisor Lawson, as you mentioned, is the environment. The US EPA states that urban deforestation raises the temperature by 2.9 degrees. In of itself, that's nothing here, simply because we have a water table that could sustain that and cool that down. However, data centers are built with the intent to reflect as much light and energy back out to the environment. You can't absorb that. So all this energy that's coming in

[04:43:25] going right back out into the environment and with global warming and everything going on this is a big concern but that is nothing compared to what these data centers are going to do once they're populated and become operational the data centers are large data centers 20 megawatts to 100 megawatts to put that in perspective a house you that would relate to about 80,000 homes for one data center at its capacity of 100 plus megawatts that in of itself isn't a problem the

[04:43:58] problem is is that a computer doesn't have any moving parts it's not it's a machine but it doesn't have moving parts therefore all the energy is converted to heat 99% of the energy going into that facility is going to come back out as heat what that translates to is basically 300 for a A facility that's running at 100 megawatts is going to translate to 341 million BTUs.

[04:44:30] This is equivalent to a home that runs a three-ton unit. It's going to basically be 10,000 homes, moving air of 10,000 homes in one central area for one data center. Each one of these, now we've dotted the entire, we've sprinkled these data centers all over the community.

[04:44:52] These data centers are going to contribute heat, and they're going to begin a cycle. Once these things become fully populated, homes are going to have to run their air conditioners to compensate for the heat. This is going to be like thermal runaway. This area is going to run at roughly about 10 degrees hotter than the area.

[04:45:10] So when NOAA states that northern Virginia is going to run at 90 degrees, you can rest assured we'll be at about 100 to 103. Thank you. Next speaker, please. Hello, I'm Roger Yackel from Gainesville.

[04:45:30] I was going to start out with Supervisor Bailey. It's nice to see you sitting there when I speak, but again, she decides to leave the room. You remember back in February, this is to Supervisor Bailey, you remember back in February 22 when you said you share facts.

[04:45:48] I did, and I still do. Let's test our knowledge of facts with a little true-false game. True, false. Stanley Martin donated $45,000 to the campaigns of you, Democratic supervisors. True. You are making it very tough for me to say I'm a Democrat with some of your very questionable decisions.

[04:46:13] True, false. Stanley Martin has supplied all the details of building locations, substation locations, power line locations, etc. false. None of it. Nada. One might guess they are not being honest and open with citizens.

[04:46:30] Sounds like it to me. True, false. Every member of the surrounding communities, Amberley Station, Lanier Farms, and the others, all are in favor of Devlin Technology Park. False. That's an easy one. Who would be in favor of this anyway? Stanley Martin, some supervisors not sure why union members are as they get the jobs building houses unless some official asked them to come. True, false. All the residents and their children at Chris Young

[04:47:05] Elementary have to breathe the soot and toxic pollution coming from the backup diesel generators. True. Yes, the toxic pollution which we've seen coming from dump truck exhaust, the same black toxic mess that can cause respiratory illnesses. Our children will have to breathe this. True, false.

[04:47:29] The Board of County Supervisors already know which communities will have the new electrical transmission lines running through them. False. We get to find out later. Watch out, Prince William County. Watch out all over Virginia. Residents will have to look at them, pay for them, and they supply power not for you, but for data centers. True, false. In December 2021, Supervisor Bodie bragged to Bill Wright and me about voting against the Hunter property. True. Thank you. You were

[04:48:05] right. Too close to schools and also environmental issues. Devlin Technology Park is very similar to Hunter, don't you think? Should be an easy no vote on this project. True, false. All these negative facts have never been heard by the Prince William County Democratic supervisors. False. They've heard from citizens, emails, local media, and of course they did not agree to come to the town hall meeting.

[04:48:35] Thank you very much. Your time is up. Next speaker, please. Ms. Madden, do you see that he would like to use the overhead? I'm John Liver from the Gainesville District. My PhD is in computational data modeling, which I have done on the noise in this county, something that the county is not able

[04:49:11] to do. So the first set of questions that I have here tonight are looking at preparation for tonight. Did the county do their homework? We heard Mr. McGettigan blatantly admit he had not done his homework. They have not looked at noise. They have not looked at several other issues. So let me just highlight a few here. Does anybody know in this room the noise level at Chris Young Elementary School? The answer is no. It will be 74.5 decibels. The proffers only talk about the noise from their

[04:49:44] own private site. Doesn't talk about in conjunction. There are special education students there at Chris Young who are triggered by noise. Anybody have an idea what's going to happen to that program? No. Public health issues. What's the county going to do about that? They're beginning to be taken to court. They're from other neighborhoods that have noise issues. Long-eared bat. Bats navigate by sound. What happens when you fill the air with sound? You murder bats

[04:50:24] because they can't fly. They can't eat. And we talk about these proffers, these great proffers. How are you going to enforce them? Has anybody looked at Virginia Code 15.2-980? I doubt it. For those of you who have known me, you know I worked at NASA for many years. This was a proverb that we, we call it a proverb, that we live to. If you don't have time to do the thorough research and design before you launch, what makes you think you will have time to do it right the second time

[04:51:01] or even to be able to fix a problem. Look at that. If you don't have time to do it right the first time, and we heard tonight that the county staff did not have time to do it right the first time, what makes this board think that the county is going to have the time to do it right in the long term? How many people will be endangered? How many people will be put at risk? How many Chris Young Elementary School students who are special needs are going to have their educations

[04:51:34] destroyed what happens when all the long-eared bats are gone you can't fix it let's do it right if we're going to do it if we're going to do this let's do our homework let's do it right there is nothing nothing making this a mandatory emergency that it has to be done tonight let's do our homework let's do it right let's design this thing right so it's not time to vote tonight i urge you to vote against it thank you all and thank you to supervisor lawson for your years

[04:52:11] on the board. Next speaker, please. My name is Rachel Ellis, and I live in the Gainesville district. I am proud of the residents that are here tonight speaking and fighting the Devlin rezoning. During a time when they should have been preparing for the holiday festivities with their families, they were spreading flyers, staging protests, and working to make the community aware of this vote. They are standing together and making their voice loud for this board to hear.

[04:52:43] Supervisor Bodie, I will make this clear for you. The residents surrounding Devlin Technology Park are not okay with this project. The community is not okay with this project. Supervisor Franklin, you launched your campaign from Virginia's 7th congressional district stating, I have always been about one thing, delivering real results for working families. Maybe it would have been more accurate to state that you are about delivering data centers to working families because Devlin impacts working families. Supervisor Angry, during an Omicron Zeta Sigma town hall, you stated, quote, the problem is we build data centers and communities where they shouldn't be.

[04:53:23] You indicated that they have spread like a weed, and I quote, we have to control what that looks like. You noted the biggest problem in the county is residential housing. You have a choice between housing and data centers tonight. Vote no. It was with intent that this was brought for a vote during the lame duck session, but I look at it as an opportunity for the four remaining Democrats on this board to stand up for what they know is morally right and set a new path for Prince Williams starting with this vote. It is a path that allows residents to have a voice as to what is being built in their neighborhood. It is a path that tells big donors that we value our residents' quality of life over what amount you donate it. It is a path that recognizes we are

[04:54:02] oversaturated with data centers as a sole focus of economic development. It is a path that acknowledges data center proliferation poses irreversible environmental harm. It is a path that says this county needs to stop and take a pause. There are tens of millions of square feet of data centers already approved that have yet to be built. Where is the power coming from and how will it actually impact our residents? County residents will financially subsidize the power infrastructure needed for all the data centers. According to an article published by Stanley Martin Homes on May 5th, 2021, Stanley Martin had $1.4 billion in home building revenues in 2020

[04:54:38] despite navigating COVID. $1.4 billion. Stanley Martin can still build homes on this property and make a profit. They are looking to flip this property to data centers for one reason, greed. Some of these proffers are legally unenforceable. Please see them for what they are. Why doesn't Devlin application have a special use permit? Why is this application getting special treatment?

[04:55:02] Supervisor Angry, Supervisor Bailey, Supervisor Bode, and Supervisor Franklin. You have a choice to make tonight. You can choose to be a bully by misusing your power over people who are unable to stop it or you can stand up to the real bully and say enough the voices of our residents have value and we need to reconsider the direction of this county i am asking this board to vote no on the

[04:55:25] rezoning at devlin technology park thank you next speaker please i had something prepared that i was

[04:56:04] going to state my name is margarita moylan and i'm from the gainesville district there was a lot i was going to say a lot of it has been already shared by our supervisors who asked very valid questions and by the speakers who have already spoke. I feel like we come up here and we state the same thing week after week, and I just hope that you will listen. I think you guys are compassionate. I think you guys are just like the residents here. You care about people, but I think

[04:56:37] that you guys are losing sight of what the residents really want. I think that you've lost touch with people. You've taken a lot of donations from the special interests, from Stanley Martin themselves. And what's very sad is that I think we all know what this vote is going to come down to.

[04:56:59] Victor, you stated it earlier today that the last four years have been like a reality show, and it's really sad. It's sad that this county is looked at the way it is. It's sad that people don't want to move here because of the data centers that have come in here. I have people outside of Prince William County who have said to me, I've driven through your county. What is happening? It's horrible. Do you think adding a project like this in an area that is zoned

[04:57:33] residential makes a lot of sense? Please vote no to this project. Our next speaker is number 10 and 11 through 15. Feel free to line up in the back of the room, please. Good evening. My name is jessica grove and i would like to say thank you to all of the speakers that came prior to me since chair wheeler has not yet said thank you except for mr whoever she interrupted um so thank

[04:58:08] you to everybody who is coming out here before the holidays to speak um my name is jessica grove and i am a resident of the gainesville district and you know we've been called nimbys many of us and i really take offense to that um if you want to call me anything you can call me a nibe not in anyone's backyard i really take offense to being called a nimby since me and my family have been

[04:58:47] here all our lives and we are part of what makes this community great and now all of a sudden it's being turned around on us with punishment of data centers and higher prices for electricity and no promises of chair wheeler excuse me i'm actually speaking to you you're you're not paying attention thank you the applicant has proffered noise reduction but what about the construction noise and for how many years will babies wake from naps and seniors who are trying

[04:59:27] to live in peace in their forever homes worry about what's going on in their backyards what about school children especially since some of the proffers are not since the proffers are not legally enforceable. The nexus between data centers and parkland is unreasonable and unenforceable.

[04:59:45] How can the board pass this knowing that this could disappear? Legally, isn't the applicant required to do an SUP or a zoning application change? It's not a buy-write parcel. Why is this applicant getting special treatment? Is it because of the donations that some of you have been given for your election campaigns? The community is under threat. Their quality of life will diminish greatly. These families have made it clear they do not want the data centers in this location.

[05:00:15] Janine has made it clear she is not okay with this project in her district. Not near homes, not near schools. I was at one of the town hall meetings where there was a woman who was begging Truitt to not go through with this project. And she said, what do you want? Do you want my left arm? Do you want both of my arms? You can have both. Just don't build next to our homes. If that doesn't tell you the desperation of these families. I don't know what will. How this project has gotten

[05:00:50] this far is beyond me, and I cannot understand how members of the board are okay with moving forward with this and still look their constituents in the face. Thank you. You're out of time. Next speaker, please. Okay. Vida Carroll, Brintsville. It's absolutely ridiculous that almost two years later since this rezoning was initially submitted, Devlin Park is still a dark cloud over Brintsville's

[05:01:25] head and staff said tonight in chambers that they still have not had enough time to properly address the sustainability proffers in this application so it's been almost two years they don't have enough time I'm not faulting staff I'm faulting this board as usual for ramming things through trying to fit a square shape into a round hole and you know from day one Stanley Martins received preferential treatment by this board. I don't know if that has to do with the over $100,000 worth of donations, both indirectly and directly, the incoming board has received

[05:02:02] from Truett. But, you know, it kind of seems like it. First off, this application has a legally unenforceable proffer, a parcel that's going to stay in the comp plan as I-3, but going to be a park, please. Secondly, we are hearing this rezoning during the lame duck period, which is just absurd on its face. Thirdly, this application doesn't have an SUP, and instead they're just simply asking for the data center overlay to be extended. Why is this developer getting a free pass without an SUP? Are we just setting the precedent of expanding the overlay at the whim of a landholder? Where is the smart planning in that? How does that protect taxpayers, homeowners,

[05:02:41] our electric grid, our natural resources? And, you know, I'm looking at other projects Stanley martin has down the pike like smith crossing which directly abuts digital gateway um are you reading the room here what's not to say that during the lame duck period next time true it's going to come back and say hey can i flip this for data i mean data is right next door and and this board it's precedent we've done it before why not do it again i want to talk about village tech part the data center campus outside of downtown hay park get that abuts homes it has made a lot of press the photos are absolutely horrific and i went back and watched the hearing

[05:03:16] from that, which was June 2021, probably when Truett first started brainstorming this ridiculous project. And what was most notable was that the presenter said, oh, these burns are great from wide angle view. The homes are not even going to see these data centers. And you drive to those homes in Village Tech Park and you tell me if you can't see a data center. Tell that to the residents who live there. So I think we need to really look closely at what developers are saying and we really need to take a step back and say we've made mistakes in the past.

[05:03:48] Let's correct those mistakes. Let's let this not be our legacy. Let's move forward. The legacy of Ann Wheeler's board is a county that has been torn apart. The land use advocates in this county are the most bipartisan group of people and you have politicized us.

[05:04:05] You have ripped this county. You have ripped apart neighbors. You have ripped apart friends. You have ripped apart political parties. For what? For Truett's greedy little heart? do better deny this project and let's move on in 2024 to bigger and better things good night next speaker please hello my name is tracy caffrella i live in the brinceville district as supervisor lawson and many other folks have stated tonight it is also my understanding that

[05:04:44] the data centers must have a special use permit to be built unless they are in the designated data center overlay where data centers are allowed by right. So why doesn't the Devlin application have a special use permit? Why is Stanley Martin's application getting special treatment?

[05:05:04] This needs to be addressed and answered. Data centers on Devlin do not belong as the land is surrounded by neighborhoods and two schools. The data centers would be towering above several neighborhoods please keep the land 100 residential this is a matter of quality of life you would not want these data centers in your backyard please don't put them in ours thank you thank you next

[05:05:32] speaker please we should be on either number 12 13 or 15 i'm 15 okay that okay that's fine okay thank you just proceed sorry okay good evening the purpose of speaking before you today is to

[05:05:55] talk about the Devlin Tech Park that is zoned across from my neighborhood Sheffield Manor.

[05:06:13] I have seen how these things go and it is more evident now than ever that Stanley Martin and Truett Young are the Pied Piper to the majority of Prince William County Board of County Supervisors. Because of this, I also direct my statement towards Stanley Martin and Trout Young and all their colleagues.

[05:06:31] I understand that their main goal is to make as much money as they can, and by selling out our community and facilitating our future towards a dystopian wasteland is the way to achieve that. However, I'm hopeful that you can have a sense of compassion and empathy regarding what we are fighting for.

[05:06:48] The majority of us are middle-class citizens working hard to build a future for ourselves and our children. I myself am a school employee working two jobs, barely struggling to keep myself and my family's head above water. I know that many of us are in the same boat. We are not independently wealthy.

[05:07:05] We just can't sell and move on when our quality of life deteriorates, as the cement walls cast shades blocking out sunlight. Noise rumbles and permeates through our windows in the diesel generators' clouds darken our skies. Bristow, Devlin Road, and our homes are our past, present, and future.

[05:07:24] We have no other options but to just be. How hopeless and bleak is that? To just be at the mercy of people whose decisions they make today makes them no never mind as you get to go home to your homes and lay your heads in peace.

[05:07:41] Your decisions are not rooted in care or concern of those directly impacted. We are pleading with anyone that will listen to keep the plan as it is and keep the data centers in the areas that is already zoned for industrial use And let the lane that was zoned residential remain residential, or at the very least, deter your vote until all the questions and studies have been completed and answered.

[05:08:03] I will end with a quote by Gandhi. Earth provides enough to satisfy every man's needs, but not every man's greed. Thank you for your time. Thank you. Next speaker, please. Good evening. My name is Kara Kloss. I live in the Gainesville District.

[05:08:21] So to be clear, I actually don't live anywhere near this development, but I'm here tonight because what happens to one of us in Prince William County happens to all of us. Truly, we're one Prince William County, and I don't want to see this neighborhood decimated. As has been pointed out earlier, the framework for a complaint in the circuit court has already been laid, that there's definitely serious litigation risk with proceeding with this vote tonight in favor of this proposal.

[05:08:50] But we don't even need to get to that. There's been so many issues. Of course, you have unenforceable proffers. You have a special use permit. You have a substantially different plan that should have gone back to the planning office. But we don't even need to get to all of that.

[05:09:06] I mean, I'm here to appeal to you as a citizen, as a mother, and I've seen what data centers have done. Unfortunately, the digital gateway is proposed right next to my home. And so for the last year and a half, I've learned a lot about data centers. I don't want to see this within 100 feet of schools.

[05:09:23] I mean, think about the kids at Chris Young. I can't imagine my own children who are in Prince William County schools trying to concentrate with the constant humming and the noise outside. And you've got the construction noise that you're going to have also in addition to that. You know, Supervisor Bailey, you probably don't remember, on primary day we met at Swan's Creek.

[05:09:42] And I explained that I live next to the proposed digital gateway. And the first thing you said to me is, we should talk. We should sit down and we should talk. And I'm sorry that I haven't taken you up on that. We've still got a couple weeks, so, you know, check your inbox. Because that's the first response, right, of a public servant.

[05:10:00] When you hear the deep-felt concerns of constituents, or I'm not even technically a constituent, I'm just a person who has a serious issue facing our community. And that was your response, is we should talk. But who has been talking to these people?

[05:10:16] Supervisor Lawson has held town halls. The stories are heart-wrenching to hear people with children who have survived cancer, have other issues, that they probably won't be able to live in these communities going forward. At the council meeting earlier today at the 2 o'clock, there was discussion of this great rec facility, and there was a lot of talk about providing for our children.

[05:10:41] Well, what about the children in these communities? These are thousands of homes in the school. I just can't imagine what this is gonna do to decimate that community. So please, those of you who haven't heard the stories, slow all this down, hear what this means to the people.

[05:10:57] Because until that happens, until we have this dialogue, I mean, yes, we come down to these meetings and it is a great hardship. My kids have had to miss activities. My husband's had to cover a lot, et cetera. And it's hard for people to get down here. So you are only seeing a small sliver at these meetings of people that will be impacted.

[05:11:14] But if we were to have town halls right in the neck of woods where these things were happening, you could hear these stories. So I appeal to you at a much more basic level. Of course, this is fraught with problems, and as I said, I think fraught with litigation risk as an attorney. But you don't even need to get to that, okay?

[05:11:31] I think we're all old enough, and I said this in February when I was here. We're all old enough to remember the anti-drug campaign, just say no. So you see this proposal, and it's going to cite these data centers and industrial use in neighborhoods. Just say no. We don't even need to get to the other layers, to the problems with this.

[05:11:50] It is that difficult. There's nothing that can be proffered that can make this acceptable to the community. And that's just simply putting lipstick on a pig. And again, with the Supreme Court decision, the proffers are probably unenforceable anyway. So please, I feel like we've lost our way in this community.

[05:12:07] This data center issue is literally tearing us apart. We have the time now. Just take a step back and see this as one community, one Prince William, and what can each of your roles be in bringing us back together, in bridging that, and doing away with this artificial, politically manufactured East-West division.

[05:12:27] It's enough. We are one Prince William. Just say no. Thank you. Thank you. Next speaker, please. Our next speaker is actually number, well, let's assume 15 for the moment. If number 16 through 20 want to line up, 16, 17, 18, 19, and 20.

[05:12:43] if people don't know their orders. Please proceed. Good evening, supervisors. My name is Andy Corey. I'm in eighth grade Abora Middle School, and I live in the Gainesville District. Tonight, I'm here not just as a concerned citizen, but as a voice for our larger Prince Bloom community and the youth, echoing the sentiments of those who call Bristow their home. Today, we're at a crucial crossroad, deciding the fate of the Devlin Technology Park. This decision is more than a mere vote. It's a testament to our values, our vision for the future, and our commitment to the well-being of our residents, especially the kids. For months, the residents of Bristol have tirelessly

[05:13:20] opposed the Devlin Technology Park. This product threatens to transform our residential and rural lands into industrial zones dominated by data centers. The deferred vote back in February, which followed a marathon board meeting and a resident protest, spoke volumes about the community's stance. Yet here we are, facing the same dilemma. The core of our concern is not just about the presence of data centers, but the profound impacts they bring. Our long-range land use plans, once safeguarding housing, rural lands, and mixed-use development, are now under the shadows of these industrial giants. The prospect of data centers encroaching upon these

[05:13:57] areas is alarming, as it directly impacts the quality of life of a residence. I couldn't imagine trying to concentrate in school with the deafening noises of several data centers just outside our school. Our kids deserve better. Where's the detailed planning for the power demand these data centers require, how this demand be met, and at what cost to our community.

[05:14:17] Imagine a scenario where massive power demands are met without adequate community oversight or input. This isn't just about Bristow, it's a warning signal for every community. The unchecked growth of data centers leads to planning chaos, straining our infrastructure, and jeopardizing the environment.

[05:14:33] We are already witnessing the outsized energy consumption of these faculties with no clear path to meeting their demands without compromising our transition to zero carbon energy. Our communities deserve better. We deserve sustainable, transparent, and harmonious development with our long-term goals.

[05:14:50] We call upon you, our Board of County Supervisors, to recognize the far-reaching impacts of these data centers. This is a moment to pause, reassess, and ensure that our growth does not come at the expense of our residents' quality of life. Let us not allow our neighborhoods to become mere backdrops for industrial expansion.

[05:15:09] We urge you to listen to your Constitution's voice and prioritize our health, environment, and future. Vote against the Devlin Technology Park, not just for Bristow, but for the integrity and well-being of our entire community. Thank you. Thank you. Next speaker, please. Good evening.

[05:15:32] Alicia Gloss-Coles. For the record, I am not being paid by the union to speak tonight like some are. Devlin Technology Park, here we are again dealing with another data center. I said before that data centers will be coming to a neighborhood near you, and here we are again.

[05:15:55] We didn't know about the other community in the Colts District being affected by the data centers, but this one I do now know. We have a data center overlay district for a reason, and that is to protect the citizens of Prince William County from projects that would destroy their community and quality of life.

[05:16:15] But members of this board continue to entertain these kind of projects outside our overlay district. Data centers do not belong near residential or our schools, but this project has both. Two schools will be affected.

[05:16:31] One is an elementary school. If an applicant seeks approval on a project outside of the overlay district, they must apply for a special use permit. So why does Stanley Martin not have that permit within their application?

[05:16:49] Do they not need to abide by the rules? Are they receiving special treatment by this board? So we talk about, you know, the lame duck rule. Some on this dais has said that they would not participate in anything regarding that.

[05:17:05] But here we are. So we'll see if you're going to be true to your word. You know who you are on that dais. Also, proffers. Let's talk about the proffers. First of all, this whole project is bad for the community anyway. So just stop with the nonsense. We are not dumb.

[05:17:20] Stop trying to placate us into accepting this for a park. First of all, the county doesn't even own land over there. That's already been addressed. but I keep hearing the park, park, park. We all know after this last election, elections and politicians can be bought by developers and data centers companies.

[05:17:41] 100,000 directly and indirectly to DEMs on this board. So how do we as citizens fight back against this? Lawfare? Maybe we can pull our funds together to buy your votes because that's what it's seeming like it's got to happen in this county.

[05:18:00] Sad that it's coming to this, But we need to vote no on Devlin Technology Park. It's not good for the community. We don't want it. It doesn't belong in residential. It doesn't belong near our schools. Thank you. Next speaker, please.

[05:18:21] Ellen Gloss-Coles. Why the rush, folks? The votes have been tallied, and thankful Ann Wheeler got the boot. But the makeup of this board is going to be exactly the same. Why are you rushing headlong to push these things through? I know those big donor dinners that pack campaign money and all that money that was laundered through Luke Torian from the development community into this board's campaign finance documents.

[05:18:47] We got it. We the people cannot compete with their cash, nor your willingness to be sold to the highest bidder, despite your oath to the contrary. The people of this county can't compete with that, so we simply ask for mercy. Mercy for the planning staff.

[05:19:04] Mercy for the process. The process exists to make the process fair. The process exists to make it fair. Because our legislature has not made any real reforms to campaign finance, the process is the only thing that protects the public from each of your political aspirations.

[05:19:22] The planning staff are experts in their field that are employed by the county to provide expert advice to both the planning commission and this board so you can make informed decision. The problem is neither the process nor the staff recommendations will prevent politicians with campaign debt from repaying those big pockets.

[05:19:40] So we asked for mercy. Allow the staff to do their job, complete the studies, let the process play out. If the process shows this is a good project, then you can approve it. But don't rush it just to pay back your big pocket donors. Deny 13A Devlin Tech Park until you can let the process play out and the experts we hire to give their opinion say it's a good project. Thank you.

[05:20:05] Next speaker, please. Hello, my name is Keri Compien and I'm from the Brentsville District. So I was here the last meeting we had about Devlin, and it's been like over a year.

[05:20:24] And again, I'm back, and again, I am telling you to vote no. We don't want a data center on this land. We don't want it now. We don't want it ever. Just vote no, and let's end it, and we'll move on. All right? I live next to Devlin.

[05:20:41] I live 500 feet from Devlin. I can see Devlin straight through when I stand outside of my house. I don't want to look at a data center. I don't want to hear a data center. I don't want my home to be damaged by the blasting that comes with the construction of the data center.

[05:21:01] It's not something I want for my kids. It's not something I want for my family, my neighbors, my community. And I'm just one of a thousand homes that are going to be affected. It's not just me. It's thousands of people that this is going to affect.

[05:21:19] We've already seen examples of what happens when you put a data center next to a community. We have the Great Oaks. We probably have many examples in many other communities because this keeps happening and we're not learning from our mistakes. So the noise that happens with a data center happens 24-7, 365 days a year.

[05:21:42] You can't stop it. Our homes weren't built for that kind of noise. It's going to come in and it's going to affect us and we're not going to be able to stop it. So there are no proffers or things that you can promise us like a park that's going to mitigate that quality of life. Nobody wants to be in a park near a data center. There is no need to rezone Devlin and enhance one company's investment at the cost of many residents. Stanley Martin's

[05:22:17] original plan to develop housing is the only acceptable plan. If our county board will not listen to the Planning Commission or the residents, then we will have to go to Richmond and get laws passed that will protect our neighborhoods. Thank you. Thank you. Next speaker, please.

[05:22:43] Marilyn Karp, Gainesville District, a disgusted, outraged citizen of this county that you encourage that union to come and disrupt our press conference is absolutely abhorrent and disgusting.

[05:23:00] We have come before the Board of Supervisors to ask you to put a pause to data center development until we can get a handle on what is happening. We elected you because we felt you understood the responsibilities of the office and the needs of the citizens of Prince William County.

[05:23:23] With today's vote and the votes that follow, the Board of Supervisors will determine the future of Prince William County. It's an awesome responsibility because so many people will be affected in ways that are too soon to predict.

[05:23:41] By rushing these votes, mistakes that will be made that we won't be able to undo. What is the goddamn rush? you're authorizing construction of new data centers even though we don't know if there will be enough electricity to power them and we don't even know if there's enough water to cool them and we sure as heck don't know if there'll be enough electricity and water left for us poor residents of Prince William County. Time to step back and take a real look at the real impact

[05:24:20] of making Prince William County the data center capital of the world. Data centers provide no benefit to a community. Their only saving grace is the promise of tax revenue sometime in the future.

[05:24:37] Nobody knows how much tax revenue the new data centers will provide. In the meantime, we'll see our tax bills and electric bills go up to support the infrastructure costs of the new data centers. Today is an historic day in Prince William County.

[05:24:55] Today, you eight people hold our future in your hands. The Board of Supervisors can vote to push the pause button on data center development until we really understand what's involved.

[05:25:11] Or they can rush ahead based on vague promises. The Board of Supervisors can decide if it's okay to put data centers right up against residential areas. The Board of Supervisors can decide to sell the future of Prince William County for a few tax dollars somewhere down the road.

[05:25:35] And they can decide if the future of Prince William County belongs to its citizens or to the data center companies. For the Prince William Board of Supervisors, this is an incredible opportunity to demonstrate real leadership in seeking the best for our citizens both now and the future.

[05:25:57] Thank you. Your time is up. We're counting on you to do the right thing. The next speaker is number 20. If number 21 through 25 would like to line up, that would be great.

[05:26:11] Projector, please. Dr. Allie Stoger, Gainesville District.

[05:26:49] Unlike adults who leave the community for work, children live, go to school, and play within the community. They will be around these data centers 24-7. Because of the immense number of data centers in Devlin, there could be hundreds of industrial-sized air chiller units causing irritating 24-7 data center noise.

[05:27:17] Data center noise is additive. It can penetrate walls and windows, and it can be at a frequency hard for the brain to tune out. Known health risks of incessant 24-7 noise include sleep disturbance, high blood pressure, cardiovascular disease, autoimmune disease, anxiety, depression, and difficulty with concentration.

[05:27:44] In addition, Devlin could add about 300 backup diesel generators to the already immense number of backup diesel generators needed for nearby campuses. Do supervisors voting on Devlin tonight even know how many backup diesel generators are already planned in this community due to the data centers near Devlin, the ones contiguous with Devlin, which is Amberley and the Google centers, and many others?

[05:28:14] Do you have any idea of the cumulative impact this will have on the children of this area? Backup generators cause loud diesel center noise and dangerous diesel particulates that could be emitted during both regular generator testing or, if needed, for longer-term use.

[05:28:38] Diesel particulates are known risk factors for asthma, cardiovascular disease, and cancer. With the electrical grid becoming potentially less reliable due to so many data centers and increased by AI needs, if all the diesel generators in a community fire up during a crisis, it would create ghastly pollution.

[05:29:04] No other communities outside of Prince William County are placing this many data centers, industrial HVAC chillers, and backup diesel generators so close to so many homes. Supervisors who vote in favor of Devlin Tech Park will be voting to unleash a giant data center experiment on the health and safety of the children of Bristow and nearby areas.

[05:29:30] an experiment that the people who moved to this community did not sign up for. I implore Supervisors Angry, Bailey, Bodie, and Franklin to care as much about the children of Bristow as they do about the children in their own districts.

[05:29:49] Vote no on Devlin. Thank you. Next speaker, please. I'm Michael Turley, and I live in Sheffield Manor by Devlin Road.

[05:30:07] I bought my forever home after retiring from the military and serving our country for 20 years as an Army Command Sergeant Major in the Infantry and 10 years as a contractor supporting our military. I bought in what I thought and what is currently a residential-only area, investing a lifetime of sacrifice, of saving, and moving around because that's where I wanted to retire and live for the rest of my life.

[05:30:34] This is going to adversely affect my life and countless others. I urge you to vote no. I'm asking each of you to look into your hearts right now. Think about it. When you go to sleep the next time, I want my face in your brain.

[05:30:55] You have a decision to make. We do not know all the answers. There are more questions than what is known. The only rush is Stanley Martin, who does not build data centers, has decided that because he's losing some of his support on the board, He wants it done now, and he has cracked his whip.

[05:31:24] And some of you are going to listen, and some of you are going to do what's right. And I hope from the bottom of my heart that you do the right thing, because you can. You've heard it a million times tonight. In February, I've talked until I'm blue in the face to newspapers, TV.

[05:31:46] Anything other than no or a delaying vote will show you do not care about residents like me and Prince William County. You only care about money that have filled coffers by Stanley Martin, IBEW, and others.

[05:32:03] Show the citizens you're not bought and paid for. The money's already showed up, so do the right thing. They're not going to get it back. The actual residents oppose this. We've showed you loud and clear that we oppose this. Their area is outside of the data center overlay.

[05:32:22] There is not enough electricity. There's plenty of space in the overlay to build the data centers, and they're not doing that. They're building it because they want to flip their land, their home builders. They don't want to build homes.

[05:32:38] They want to line their pockets. And apparently, if you vote yes, they've lined yours too. You will vote yes. You're taking 30 pieces of silver. You're taking 30 pieces of silver. Look at my face.

[05:32:55] Tonight or tomorrow morning or whenever you go to sleep, I want my face. That's right, Command Sergeant Major Michael C. Turley. I've fought in many countries for this country. Do the right thing for these people if you can't do it for me.

[05:33:11] Next speaker, please. Veteran lineup coming up here now. My name is Josh Agneson, Marine Corps veteran. I'm in the Brentsville District in Sheffield Manor. The biggest thing that hit me today, I'm not going to talk data and facts, we can go ourselves blue in the face, but really looking at why the change. Why does a resident home builder who all of a sudden realizes that his land is bordered by data centers not want to build homes? Because they wouldn't want to build a home near a data center either. That's all I can figure out. So Stanley Martin, a home builder, says I don't want to build residential homes here because there's data centers surrounding it. Why are we going to allow them to then flip the script

[05:33:50] and put a data center near a bunch of other people's homes who didn't have a choice in the conversation, right? It seems shady. It seems odd. As a master logistician for the Marine Corps and a planner we understand the cost of impact is what happens after you buy the purchase not what you design and the government's great at buying things without knowing the cost of sustainment how to maintain it down the road they can sell us a park without understanding the cost to actually build a damn park right so it costs the county more money to have that gifted land than it probably would be to buy the land in the first place right when you look at long-term impact we still don't know we're still learning i have no problem with change i'm an entrepreneur change is hard i get business and i get growing business because that's what i do for a living we've already allowed data

[05:34:29] centers to be here yet we don't even understand the impacts of already authorized projects we can't understand the impacts medically we don't understand the impacts of the power grid we don't understand the impacts to temperature we don't understand the impacts to whether we can theorize data all we want to but we haven't even built the approved centers that are already there why are we rushing to add another center to an area that a home builder doesn't even want to build residential homes in to impact everybody else okay i'm not going politics i don't even know which one you a Democrat or not, I can probably sit there, or who's Republican? I don't care, honestly, because it has nothing to do with politics. I'm asking you to care about the people that are here, right?

[05:35:09] I don't want to be treated like I'm an ignorant child who needs to be told what to do by parents who think they're better than me. I'm a constituent. I'm a citizen in the area, and I don't want this here. I don't want it here for my kids, right? I've already had to deal with the bullshit of the Afghanistan withdrawal, and all my friends have seen the impact it had for all the work we did over there to watch it get flushed, because people didn't really consider aftermath and impacts on that one. We suffered through COVID and having that shoved down your throat, too, of getting vaccines, whether no one really cared about the impact of your faith or belief systems, so just suck it up and deal with it, right? Now I'm dealing with it again to say, you're too stupid to decide for yourself. We know better, and we're going to shove it down your throat, so just take it, right?

[05:35:47] BOHECA is an acronym we had in the military, and everybody here knows what it meant, right? Bend over, here it comes again, right? I'm not trying to be rude about that, but some things you had to deal with because you couldn't affect the change. It's what it feels like right now. I'm asking you just hit pause. Stop. Learn. Grow. Make right assessments. Coffers that are unenforceable that are going to hurt people that we can't do shit about anyway. Great. Thank you for writing me air. We call it vapor. You're promising me things we don't know from a person who has deep pockets who stands to gain the most. Have them build homes if they're really a home builder. Put that back where it was supposed to be. And if they aren't willing to, don't inflict it on me either. Thank

[05:36:24] you. Thank you. Next speaker, please. Good evening. This is Jimmy Brewer. I'm a 20-year veteran i'm also a 20-year homeowner within the brinsville district over in sheffield manor i come in front of you to say first and foremost why are we stop falling so short on our constituents within our county i'm looking over at uh supervisor very uh angry i'm looking specifically at uh mr

[05:36:58] bode and i'm also concerned with uh miss franklin why are we not looking at this from a county perspective as for unity this is no real reason for a big hurry to get this vote put together i know that uh the chair actually has put this forward as a vote for getting this forward for the data centers i just am a true advocate and a believer that there's no real reason why we're forced into a desired position for adopting this devil and technology part there's no real advocate

[05:37:30] that is in my corner as a housing impact i am a housing uh homeowner that's in the direct blast zone we're talking about blasting that's going to mess with our foundations the houses that are going to be there going to be disturbed you got slab foundations windows walls that are actually going to be shifted there's not been a firm commitment on the environmental assessments that's been done you yourselves every member that's actually on the board has actually heard from Scott Meyer, your own planning office, that there has been no identified weaknesses in the

[05:38:05] plan. Doesn't that not sound correct when you heard all of the other contrary positions that have been provided? We're looking at rezoning and providing redoing for the PMR. A plan mix use permit that actually has no form foundation because without environmental study, no tonal measure study, no decibel assessment values provided by the Prince William County. We also heard for as far as the water table adjustments and the studies being done on our water table.

[05:38:42] And then first and foremost also where is the special use permit that should be required for this actual level of development? We don't have that and we're not making anything except waivers. I'd like to try and ask why that is being allowed. I look to the board and say stand up for your morally correct positions. There's no real reason why we couldn't delay this to get a better assessment performed and we should be doing that as our own citizens are demanding that you board members stand up and do. I wanted to try and thank you for getting an opportunity to do this

[05:39:18] and I wanted to also confirm that Stanley Martin said that he stood up an outreach activity. It was a website why is it that a website that he never specified how many hits how many users how many actual constituents within it his footprint actually did visit so i take that under consideration thank you thank you next speaker please evening thanks i'm paul sigrist victory lakes hey i'm gonna ask you all do something for me right you all want the constituents out here to pay attention

[05:39:55] and not be rude do me a favor take your phones put them down put them down let me see your hands Okay, thanks. Okay, hey, as I said, I'm Paul Segrist, Victory Lakes resident. I've been a homeowner for 20 years here, and this evening I'm requesting the board not support Devlin Technology Park.

[05:40:14] I raise my concern as a county citizen because of the significant uncertainties of the project. There are things that have not been adequately assessed, resolved, or mitigated. Specifically, the project requires detailed planning that hasn't been done, and it's not been part of the data center overlay.

[05:40:32] So that needs to be completed and assessed. We've talked about the proximity to school, right? Chris Young's there. There's also a Montessori school. There's two schools there, not just one. We also have a lack of knowledge of the energy and what kind of margins we have.

[05:40:48] That needs to be assessed. And no studies done on noise. Heard tonight, there's no specialists here in the county for noise, and we're going to need to get somebody to do that. So that's a real big concern for me because when I went and I read the proffers, that's why I left the room earlier, There's some things that weren't discussed tonight by our guests that are trying to sell you on this project.

[05:41:14] One of the major concerns I've got is the inability to enforce it, as Speaker Larson, I mean, as Board Member Larson, I'm sorry, Lawson mentioned. The other part is that I wonder if any of you understood what the first speaker tonight said about sound, okay?

[05:41:35] The physics of sound. A lot of people don't understand it. I do. I was a nuclear submarine captain. I lived and died by sound, okay? So when you start hearing about the sound pressure levels that they put up there, she probably didn't understand a thing that she read. So let me tell you what that means. Three decibels from a point source, okay, that doubles the sound level. For a line source, like a data center, six decibels doubles the sound level.

[05:42:06] The proffers that they offered you tonight say 79 decibels in the light industrial, 60 in the residential. 79 is just below the threshold where hearing loss starts from 80 to 9 decibels. 60 is what a residential requires. You're not going to get, it's going to be very difficult to get down those levels in the distances that they were showing unless you have studies done to prove

[05:42:39] that their mitigation can make that happen. So a lot of the things that were done tonight and talked about tonight need to be looked at in greater depth the other problem with thank you your time is up next speaker please like to use the overhead elizabeth martirana gainesville and

[05:43:18] i am in opposition to the rezoning of devlin technology park when my husband and i moved to manassas 47 years ago route 28 from sunerville to manassas was two lanes traveling to lowe's and woodbridge along davis ford road felt like we were risking our lives in the evening on this very dark, twisty, windy two-lane road. Our board of supervisors at that time solved their disagreements with fistfights and were hauled out of the boardroom by the scruff of their necks by Commonwealth Attorney, also County Attorney, Paul Ebert. But the supervisors got things done in a

[05:43:54] timely fashion. It was a privilege and an honor to serve the citizens of Prince William County back then. I miss those days. What happened? Prince William County has encountered many hurdles over our 47 years here, but this hurdle of the data center industry is by far the worst and the highest that I can remember. I believe it will be the death of many more than our 22 county residents who lost their lives during the 9-11 attack on the Pentagon. The reports you have received from over 30 environmental groups, the paid reports of private consultants, the resolutions of

[05:44:31] supervisor appointed commissions and the staff reports of our county planning department in regard to the prince william digital gateway all pertain to this devlin park development too yes i know that planning staff is giving their approval for this project but at what expense how many more employees do you think will leave after this vote today who have been coerced for that approval i think mr hoshi chief executive officer of the dayowa house group which owns Stanley Martin Homes and who has 33 years of experience with his company would be appalled

[05:45:06] and horrified if he were to come here and look at the location of Devlin Tech Park. I believe any vote of yes by a supervisor on this board for this Devlin project is nothing short of malfeasance. In section 15.2-1405 of the Code of Virginia, quote, immunity of members of local government entities, exception, unquote. States in the last sentence, quote, however, the immunity granted by this section shall not apply to conduct constituting intentional or willful misconduct

[05:45:44] or gross negligence, unquote. There are thousands of children and adults in harm's way of this rezoning. You all know that. You have been forewarned. Mistakes have been made in our land use rezonings in the past admit that now and go on to make things right again here in Prince William County if you vote to approve this rezoning today it will be an atrocity and I say equal to quote conduct constituting intentional or willful misconduct or gross negligence

[05:46:19] unquote. Thank you. Next speaker, please. And if the next five speakers are 26 through 30. Number 26. I can read names if I need to. Karen Sheehan, Gainesville District. I request five minutes as secretary of my HOA, Rose Hill Estates. Are you here officially representing your HOA in

[05:46:56] their position? Yes, ma'am. Okay. This county does not need and cannot support one more data center building. We are facing a power grid crisis caused by data center approvals, decisions which have been made by Prince William County and Loudoun County leadership. Between our two counties, there are already 33 million square feet of data centers in operation. Coming online at least are

[05:47:35] another 28 to 32 million square feet of approved data centers in Prince William County alone, now under construction and to be built. All of these data centers require electricity, which our regional power grid is incapable of providing today. In 2021, Dominion Energy raised the alarm that data center growth in our region has taken the regional power grid to a breaking

[05:48:09] point. In 2022, our energy regional transmission organization, PJM, started putting together plans for massive power expansions to address violations occurring on the grid, which could cause blackouts for all customers. Transmission line and substation expansions are now being pursued because of all the data centers being brought onto the grid, particularly data centers in

[05:48:43] Prince William County, approved and supported by our current chair and majority supervisors on this board. I have been attending PJM meetings every month since July. As a result of PJM's data center planning initiative, 72 competitive bids have been submitted at a cumulative cost of 51 billion with a B dollars. The first scenario selected by PJM from this group

[05:49:19] will bring new 500 kV transmission lines and substations across West Virginia, Pennsylvania, and Maryland into Northern Virginia, as well as a new 500 kV transmission line cutting north through Prince William County up to Loudoun County.

[05:49:39] All of this is projected to take five years to complete, and its cost, $5.5 billion, will be borne by every ratepayer in the region. But this $5.5 billion is just the first bite of the apple, the poisoned apple caused by data centers.

[05:50:04] PJM has made it very clear that more expansions will be required to resolve the issue. More of those proposals will be wrapped into more and subsequent transmission and substation expansion plans because they can't ensure the power grid can support what is operational today.

[05:50:26] We are facing years and years of transmission line and substation expansions just to support the data centers that are already on the books. And any promised revenue coming into the county from these data centers is going to be more than offset by the costs to our pocketbooks to gift those data centers their operating infrastructure.

[05:50:53] Add to that the likelihood that these data centers may very well have to operate 24-7 on their huge commercial diesel generators for power during times of peak load to avoid outages during the next five or more years.

[05:51:11] All of this before considering the impacts of adding any more data centers to the power grid demands. So no, no to Devlin Technology Park because it is incompatible with the homes and schools which would surround it on three sides.

[05:51:30] No to Devlin Technology Park because it will require even more new transmission lines and substations coursing through communities and neighborhoods. We do not need and we do not want another 3.5 million square feet of data centers.

[05:51:50] Thank you. Next speaker, please. I'd like to start off by saying good evening, but it's not, is it? So here we go. I'm Rosemary Wright, and I live in Gainesville, and I strongly oppose the Devlon Technology Park.

[05:52:08] The rationale to oppose the data center campus are numerous. Number one, it will be located next to several neighborhoods. These family neighborhoods deserve peace to their minds, eyes, ears, their souls. Devastating a natural environment will not be secure and peace for these neighborhoods.

[05:52:27] Two, there is absolutely no logic in placing a data center near a learning environment. Three, there is not enough electrical power. Four, Devlin technology is not in the approved data center overlay district.

[05:52:42] Five, not one study has been done to determine the impact of noise. This project should not be approved until there is a new sound ordinance. And, of course, there's many more reasons. One of the most observed questions I can think of is why some of you are not listening to the families that would be directly impacted by this.

[05:53:06] They are telling you, they are begging you not to do this to them. Where is your respect and your compassion? These are my neighbors. I care about them. Why aren't one of you? And here's the thing that bothers me the most that I was so upset with tonight at this meeting.

[05:53:25] Three of you asked questions or made comments, and the rest of you were silent? Are you kidding me? The inertia on that board. I had to think, is this ignorance or is it stupidity?

[05:53:45] why not one thing i mean supervisor angry you did say hey what was that slide with the height that's it you're a retired sergeant major i was active duty six years army and then i spent a total of 40 years working for the dod you don't have an op order in this world without knowing everything about it you had not a question think of bristow as your lead in your troops are you leading them into a disaster, or you're going to keep them safe. It's disaster. How dare you stay

[05:54:21] silent up there? How can you do this? So I was ashamed of you, but actually I'm not. I'm angry at you. You should be ashamed of yourselves for being silent right now. You couldn't ask a question? God bless us. What in the world is happening? You're hurting our neighbors. Stop it. This plan should be shot down, and each of you should be showing the families of Bristol respect and

[05:54:48] compassion. My God, vote no. Next speaker, please. I'd like to use the overhead. My name is Bill Wright, and I live in Gainesville. I oppose the Devlin Technology Park. So does everyone but a few of you and the donors depicted on this slide. The fact that this proposal is even being considered

[05:55:28] tonight is an affront to representative democracy. Everyone on that dais knows that this proposal has absolutely zero community support. You knew it when you deferred the vote on February 7th. You knew it when you again deferred it on March 7th. Chair Wheeler certainly knew it on April 18th when she repeatedly dodged Supervisor Lawson's invitation to hold a joint town hall to assess community sentiment.

[05:55:51] The chair's characteristically dismissive response was, I don't intend to have a joint town hall with you ever. Chair Wheeler hasn't got time for any more town halls, but she's still got a few weeks left to plunge daggers into the backs of her constituents, as tonight's vote attests.

[05:56:08] The cowardly fashion in which tonight's hearing was scheduled is a testament to your contempt for those you were sworn to serve. It begs a more basic question. Who do you believe you serve? When Bristow residents surveyed your intentions regarding this proposal, our five heroic Democrats refused to even reply.

[05:56:28] Not only did you decline to meet with them, you wouldn't even answer their mail. Contrast that with the multiple accommodations offered to developer Stanley Martin, who submitted a fourth application for this proposal on September 25th. Despite significant changes from previous applications, it bypassed another review by the Planning Commission and took the express lane to tonight's vote.

[05:56:51] What explains the difference between the bums rush given to citizens and the red carpet treatment given to the developer? The answer is so obvious it's embarrassing. Stanley Martin has showered Democratic supervisors with $45,000 in direct campaign donations and even more through laughably transparent political action committees.

[05:57:12] Almost as laughable are the empty promises offered to make this miserable project appear even remotely palatable. Such brazen influence peddling would embarrass anyone with a scintilla of ethics. But some of you wouldn't recognize ethical behavior if it clocked you between the eyes.

[05:57:29] Corruption is any behavior that leads to the benefit of an entity in power at the expense of others. Apply that to the proposal you are about to consider. Who is benefiting and at whose expense? Are you about to pay back campaign contributors for bankrolling your personal ambition to continue to exploit the citizenry?

[05:57:50] If so, enjoy this life, because you're the ones who will get paid back in the next one. Next speaker, please. My name is Elena Schlossberg, and I'm in the Gainesville District, and I also would like the overhead, please.

[05:58:30] And I'm the executive director for the coalition, so I'd like five minutes, please. And that's a registered civic organization? The audacity for you to suddenly care is really unbelievable, Ann.

[05:58:49] Yes, it is. It is a 501c34, and you should know. It's enough. I'm going to make sure I just... It's enough. Give me my five minutes. It's enough, Ann. It's enough. You can calm down. It's okay. No. You are being so rude, and this is totally a new, is it new, Ann, that suddenly you want people to defend that they get their measly five minutes?

[05:59:13] I've stood here for years as the executive director. Well, I hope that woke everybody up. What is happening here is unconscionable. I'm sorry, Supervisor Bailey, is that too much for you?

[05:59:33] I, it is, so what's happening is people are leaving here in pain. They are in pain now. I talk to people who are literally taking sleeping medication because they can't sleep. They are so worried about their quality of life and their communities.

[05:59:52] And I really appreciated that the gentleman who said, let me see your hands so that I know that you're paying attention to me. This matters. You hold the future of people's biggest asset and their quality of life in your vote tonight.

[06:00:09] So I have some very specific questions. Where's the load letter? How can you make a decision on a project of this magnitude and not know the load letter?

[06:00:25] And can I make a recommendation, even though some of you appear to be, I don't know, a little bit bored with what Karen was sharing with you? She has taken like a master's course in the PJM Transmission Light Infrastructure Project that all of you are going to be committing our resources to.

[06:00:42] What you should do is you should have a work session on the impacts of the development that you are approving. So how would the power demand be met? Does the board believe that the 500kb line that runs through Pageland can supply power for the digital gateway and Devlin?

[06:01:00] Does the board understand the way Devlin proffers are written? They are ceding all power to the assumption without an SUP, the parcel now is in the data center overlay, which would make everything buy right. Why are you ceding your control?

[06:01:16] but I'll be honest with you. For me, I find that you all are not paying attention. You know when that was? It was May of 2023. This community has been warning you that what you are doing is irresponsible. So we have managed to do something that's pretty amazing. We have taken the concerns

[06:01:55] of people throughout the Commonwealth because we can't trust you. And it's not just here in Prince William, you are not looking at the decisions that you are making here in a cumulative effect for the entire state. So instead, we have decided that it's time we took control away from you.

[06:02:16] Do you see all these organizations? These organizations represent the goodwill of people in Virginia that care about not only their communities, but the communities across the Commonwealth. What we are saying to you is you don't deserve to have control over not just our

[06:02:49] quality of life, but the people who are impacted far and wide. And it is shameful that we have had to go to this length to get regulations and oversight. I don't know if there's one of you that will make a different decision tonight, but I can tell you this, you all are behind the eight ball now. Because the reality is that these impacts of data centers, they are taking too much

[06:03:21] land, too much power, and too much water. And I'd like you to just for a moment wonder what it is that you can do differently tonight. Because your reputation, now that you know, I know that Karen stood here and gave you lots of information that maybe, you know, like went over your heads because it was about PJM, and it was about transmission infrastructure. But those facts are hitting you hard in the face. You should vote no, because there are too many questions remaining. And you

[06:04:00] have an out to do that. So take it. What are you going to do different tonight for a different outcome that you can see is coming on the horizon? Next speaker, please. And the next five speakers are welcome to sign up. That would be 31, 32, 33, 34, and 35. Please proceed. My name is Kevin

[06:04:39] Allen. I live in the Brentsville District. I am president of the Silver Leaf Estates Homeowners Association. I request five minutes of time, please. Sure. There's many reasons why my neighbors are opposed to this plan, and there's many questions that we have that have not been answered. This proposal has been delayed and delayed several times, but nothing has been done to answer our questions. So for those of you who don't know, Silverleaf Estates, we already are going to have the Hunter Trust property. We're going to have a bunch of data centers built

[06:05:13] around us. We have the Mango Farms on the other side, and then this will be the third side of data centers. No one has talked to us about what's going to happen with the sound. We know sound is additive. We're going to have data centers on three sides of our homes. It's all going to come together? Who's going to be responsible for figuring out whose noise is destroying our neighborhood? Our fear is that everybody's going to point at everybody else and nothing's going to happen and we're going to be stuck with this. Please figure this out. Get a real sound ordinance

[06:05:45] that will protect us before you vote in favor of this project. We also are worried about the blasting damage. Mango Farm, which is probably the farthest one from us, when their blasting was done was already causing things to fall off of people's walls, and the damage is going to come.

[06:06:05] And our fear is when we have more blasting from Mango, more blasting from the Hunter Trust property, more blasting from this, again, our homes are going to be damaged, and everybody's going to be pointing at each other. Well, it was you that caused the problem. Who is going to fix our homes when we're damaged by blasting? We talked about the sight lines. They had the views that they did with the balloon test. They did the balloon test when it was full of leaves. Go look at it now when all the leaves are off. We're going to have very clearly see these. Some of our homes are up above

[06:06:43] and going to be looking down. And it's one thing to look at it at ground level, but a lot of those homes have decks on the second level. And so they're going to be looking down on these data centers. They didn't buy these homes to expect to look down on data centers. We were told we moved in that the long-range plan was for homes it was never ever supposed to be data centers the height of the data centers this this there's so many questions about this application another question

[06:07:20] is is that so we have 81 feet is the height that they're requesting um for uh the extension but does that apply to every all the uses or just to data center usages i would at least like it amended so we don't have it's 60 foot the standard 60 foot for all non-data center uses because we don't even know what other possible uses could be and there's so many uses that it's still possible to be we haven't even been able to address those because we think it's going to be data centers but we don't know that it's going to be data centers because they didn't proffer that it was only going

[06:07:52] to be data centers there's no trust from our neighborhoods about what's going to happen we had the hunter trust property we had a hundred foot buffer undisturbed tree buffer we were told any utility easement would go perpendicular through the easement. There was a path of about 20 feet wide, I don't know, 500 feet long of trees that were stripped down shortly after that vote was

[06:08:27] approved. Nothing's been done to mitigate that. They planted some trees that are about 10 feet apart. Half of them are dead. They've never been replaced. Nothing's been done to fix it. Why should we believe you on anything else you're going to do when you can't even do a simple thing like that?

[06:08:45] Nothing has been done about those trees. And the idea of planting a few trees is going to replace that huge swath of trees that were cut down. Nothing's been done with that. Nothing's been done to resolve that.

[06:09:02] So why should we believe that these proffers are going to be enforced? Please, I urge you, vote no. Vote to postponement so we can get our questions answered. Have you ever seen anything like this where virtually everyone is against it?

[06:09:19] No one in the community is for this. None of you campaigned on, yeah, I want to put data centers next to residential. Please help us. We're already stuck with them on two sides. Don't add a third side.

[06:09:36] Please. I'm begging you. Thank you. Thank you. Next speaker, please. I'm Donna Sarmania in Brentsville District in Sheffield Manor.

[06:09:52] I've been following this this whole time. I've been reading the emails. been going to town hall meetings and I've always been afraid to speak up because I'm asking myself what am I missing I I don't I don't understand this why are we here at this point I understand when somebody first came to you with data centers you kind of go let's take a look what is that and then you should have immediately after a cursory glance at it saying that does not belong in our beautiful Prince William County but you continued on but as stewards of this community you should have said no then. And so I'm understanding why you're not entertaining this. Like, you hear

[06:10:30] everybody say no. You hear everybody say you don't want this. And while some people are being insulted by saying, don't say I'm insulted by not in my backyard, I noticed that the only people voting for this is not in your backyard. I saw that again tonight, and that was sickening to me.

[06:10:53] Stanley Martin is not a data center developer. They are making rookie mistakes. They were pointed it out again every time they bring in a proposal to you. They did it again tonight. They don't know what they're doing. Supervisors, we are in laws and brought up serious infractions and oversights in the proposal. And you vote, you don't care. Let's let them do it. We'll just fix the mistakes later on. We have to give Stanley Martin a pass. These are lawsuit-worthy problems that were brought up and that you're still willing to overlook. And that's what I don't understand. We should

[06:11:26] have been done with this two years ago. No proffer is worth anything. No proffer, no compromise, no throwing more money at parks that aren't going to be built can ever make this work for us.

[06:11:43] It is incompatible to have any data center near residents and schools. It's just incompatible. You cannot make it work. You can't thread that needle. If they were, if there's something would have worked Stanley Martin would have possibly have come up with it by now they can't make it work because it does not work you're thinking that Prince William County is going to be the data center capital of the world but what's going to happen if you move forward on any of this is that Prince William County is going to be a lessons learned data center disaster of the world

[06:12:21] thank you thank you and again we're on numbers 31 32 33 34 and 35 hi my name is George Sherwood i'm in the sheffield manor community as well first things first i want to thank supervisor lawson ware and vega the last time i was before you guys eight months ago i spoke a lot about common sense i'm not a great public speaker but i do have a lot of common sense there seems to be a lack of that on the board other than the three people that i just mentioned i'm not sure what else i

[06:13:00] could say tonight that hasn't been said already i'm surprised by the amount of information not surprised really i'm pretty well disgusted by the amount of information that was shared here this evening that should have put a stop before we even got to the point where public speaking was necessary the vote that took place earlier this evening should have been overwhelmingly approved to stop this process in the tracks right where we're at it should start over at the beginning it should be looked at again we shouldn't even be talking right now i shouldn't have to get up here

[06:13:39] and say how much of a lack of common sense there is it's obvious this should have stopped two hours ago none of us should even be here to speak to you guys about this any further and I agree with the person that was up here earlier tonight the fact that so many of you have been silent through this entire meeting when all of these concerns were brought up earlier when Mr. Trout was still here and obviously I think he knows the way the vote's going to go tonight it's in his favor we're all wasting our time i think at this point he already made up his mind that he's got it in the bag he's out of here he's not even listening to what any of the rest of us have to say he doesn't

[06:14:18] care about anybody's concerns these concessions that he's made it's bs he knows that he has to do something to make it look prettier but from what i've heard from other folks tonight and i don't have the research on it but it sounds like he's already bought the vote from a bunch of other people here so he knows it's going to go through there's no reason for him to sit here my wife did ask me to say one thing as she left earlier to go home and meet with our kids these are communities it's not a transition area we live here there are communities on three sides of this property

[06:14:52] and a school nobody cares about a park we care about how it impacts our lives i didn't move here to live next to a data center common sense told me it was a good place to live 19 years ago when i moved in with my two kids it was a good place for them to grow up it was a good community lots of good people that i'm living next to i didn't move there considering to live next to a data Center. It doesn't belong there. It's a residential area. It has no business being there. Please use

[06:15:24] some common sense and stop this where you're at now. Please vote no on this tonight. Next speaker, please. Hello, my name is Jason Fox, and I live in the Brentsville District. I wrote a couple of thoughts out, but the truth is I don't really have much to say. I've been in the county for about 18 years. I've been a registered nurse for 20 of those years, for 30 years total. 20 years I've been a teacher also in county. So I've been in the hospital during COVID. I've been teaching during

[06:16:00] COVID. I've juggled two professions. I've given my life to this county. And now I'm here begging like some Russian peasant in the 1800s. I cannot believe I'm here. So let me talk to you guys about something I do know, which is psychology. My main focus is mental health. When we hear something, we agree or we don't agree right away. That's an attitude. We form attitudes really quickly.

[06:16:24] once we're there, we don't stop. We go full bore. Nobody wants to be wishy-washy. We don't want to sound like we're mincing our words. So we pick that attitude and we stay with it. And when anybody comes with a different attitude, we suffer the fallacy called confirmation bias, which means we won't listen to anything except what we first believed, even when it becomes wrong. And there have been a lot of mistakes made from this path. And unfortunately, some of you are on it. I mean, Look, I've devoted my life to this county.

[06:16:57] I can't believe that some of you are just that callous with the constituents who've lived their whole lives here, paid our taxes, raised our kids here. I mean, now I'm also going to mention this. In 2011, I was invited to the White House for teaching.

[06:17:14] I'm damn good at it. Put your cell phones away, please. So the other thing I want to talk with you about with psychology is when we're talking high-frequency sounds, they're not natural. The sounds that a data center produces, your brain can't understand.

[06:17:34] And it's nonstop. And I know that they're talking about proffers and trees. I don't know anything about that. But if you find OSHA data about injuries of workers in the data centers, the information you're going to find is pretty weird.

[06:17:50] You're going to see migraines. You're going to see anxiety. You're going to see a lot of mental health issues. This is because our brain isn't made for this electronic sounds. Nothing about our biology is made for it. So I'm stuck with a bad decision of, should I move before the data center is built?

[06:18:07] Because your mind is already made up. Or should I stay here in the county and watch whatever money I squirreled away into my house? Because that's how most of us keep our money. Just becomes worthless. Should I watch this urban blight just develop?

[06:18:23] Because a data center is not going to be anything other than a data center in 10 years. It's just going to be a big pile of block. And as time goes by, we become Cleveland. and there's not going to be an elementary school named after you for it. There's no middle school going to be named.

[06:18:38] Hell, these people cost you your election, Ann Wheeler, and you don't owe them anything. Thank you for your time. Thank you. Next speaker, please. And I'll say we were on 31 through 35. We're now on 36 through 40, if you want to come and line up.

[06:18:57] Please proceed. Hi, if I could have the overhead projector on, too, please. Do I have to do anything magical? Hi, good evening.

[06:19:14] Thank you for hearing us tonight. My name is Nancy Armour, and I'm an Occoquan resident and have lived here over half my life. All the questions that we have had for all of these other data center meetings remain unanswered for this project tonight as well.

[06:19:31] What about the power? What about the environmental impact? What about the noise? What about the data center overlay district? What about the study that was conducted for that? Where are we with that? Where are the details of this plan? What are the buildings?

[06:19:47] where are they going to be sited, where are the driveways, where are the substations. Something that is missing from this meeting that has entertained us at all the other data center meetings is the presence of Dominion and NOVAC. They're not here tonight.

[06:20:07] I don't understand why they're not here, because this same issue for power exists for this project. Another issue came up tonight that hasn't happened in the others, which is the procedural issue of the zoning text amendment, or the SUP, for this project.

[06:20:25] That seems like a critical procedural step that did not happen with this particular application. The sustainability office, they didn't even get to weigh in on this. Can you imagine working in the sustainability office?

[06:20:41] And they're like, oh, sorry, they didn't get you guys. Next time, maybe. It doesn't make sense to put heavy industrial data center buildings in a residential area, surrounded by thousands of families and schools.

[06:20:56] When I show people in my family and anywhere, because of course we talk about this to everybody. Picture of this development that's on my phone there. Every single person says that does not make any sense. It doesn't make any sense. So the sniff test, if you and your family wouldn't move to Sheffield Manor or Victory Lakes this afternoon, tomorrow, you should vote no. And if you would move to one of these neighborhoods on

[06:21:32] one of these streets, I think there are folks right outside that'd be glad to sell you their homes tonight, because I don't think anybody wants to live there. I don't think you want to live there. And if you don't want to live there, if you don't want your family to live there, why do you think these people want to live there, surrounded by concrete buildings with humming noise all night? Please vote no. Thank you. Thank you, Ms. Armour. Next speaker,

[06:21:58] please. My name is Marion Dobbins. I had written remarks, but you know what? I'm going to speak from the heart. I'm disgusted. I'm absolutely disgusted. I was born and raised a Democrat.

[06:22:21] that. Seventh generation in Northern Virginia. My ancestors have been here before slavery. And I have to stand up here and beg that you will please let me live in my house in peace. What is wrong with you people? You have been elected to make sure that we are taken care of. You don't give a damn. Not any of you. Most of you sat up there and you didn't even look at the people that were talking to you. You were on your phones, you were whispering to each other, or you had some smirk

[06:23:00] on your mouth, on your face, like you don't even care. We care. It's our homes. None of you live in the western part of Prince William County. Every one of you that vote for this live in the eastern part of the county. Do you want to live next to a data center? Do you want your children to go to a school next to a data center? Supervisor Angry, Bodie, Bailey, and Franklin, who's running for higher office. If you can't take care of the people in Prince William County, how do you think

[06:23:34] you're going to take care of people in the Congress? All of you. I am disgusted that I'm a Democrat because you are not upholding what I believe that Democrats stand for, especially angry.

[06:23:51] Supervisor Angry, you didn't even have anybody running against you. And you've just been sitting up there like you don't care i'm an african american who's worked hard all my life and i'm a public historian and let me tell you something you are repeating history if you say yes to this and this will be your legacy you will die knowing that you destroyed communities in prince william county god help you all thank you thank you supervisor lawson and we are you're the only ones and and vega you're the only ones that are standing up for us and you're republicans

[06:24:31] lost and you're the first republican i ever voted for thank you for doing what you needed to do you had common sense and courage to stand up against the multi-mighty stanley martin the rest of you are cowards yeah i saw you lift your eyes that's okay that's okay franklin you can lift your eyes because i'm telling the truth god help you all thank you thank you miss daubins next

[06:25:01] speaker, please. That is a tough one to follow. My name is Dustin Berger. Excuse me. I live in Sheffield Manor. Moved there 12 years ago. Reason my wife and I chose to move there was because it was a quiet, safe, nice community. We worked our butts off to get there. We're still, we have one child. We both have to work long hours all the time. This is what we saved for. This is what we wanted. And now I look out and I was out there talking with neighbors this weekend and I look out from my front yard and I can see exactly where those data centers are going to be from

[06:25:40] my front yard. I don't care whatever type of slides they put out there. I don't care whatever they say that you're not going to see it through a tree line. You're going to see them. You're definitely going to see them and you're definitely going to hear them. You know, going beyond that though, what kills me is that, you know, my son goes to Chris Young Elementary and if you all haven't been there, go there. You can delay this vote. You can delay it tonight. You don't have to vote on this tonight. You can go to Chris Young, see those little kids that are there, kindergarten through fifth grade, see what they're going to have to put up with. When there's blasting going on for years and years and years, when there's construction going on, and then, you know, when

[06:26:19] you have the noise that's going to go on just from these things being out there, what good does that serve these kids? Every single person up here, you run on a platform that says you're looking out for the children, but are you really doing that if you approve this tonight? Take some time, think about the actual kids who are going to have to suffer because of this at Chris Young Elementary.

[06:26:41] That's all I'm asking you to do. If you still want to vote yes afterwards, then vote yes afterwards. But go to the community, see what we're going through, see what the kids are going to have to go through, and make an informed decision from that. Everybody else here has said if you wouldn't want this in your backyard, you know you don't want it in your backyard. You know you don't want your kids to have to go through this. Why do ours have to do it? Please, if you're not going to vote to delay. Vote no on this. Thank you very much. Thank you, Mr. Berger.

[06:27:09] Next speaker, please. Hi, my name is Steve Hancock. I'm a resident of Victory Lakes. I've been in the area for 18 years. We moved here to raise our two kids and moved out here principally because it wasn't inner city or not inner city, but inside the beltway. It was outside. It was more residential. It was more suburban. It was more country. It was relaxed. You could go around and people put their hand up and wave at you. You go in the grocery store. Somebody would help you.

[06:27:43] that's changed drastically with a lot of the changes that have happened in Prince William County because the landscape has changed before I make a few comments I'll make I'll make I'll make it very clear I am wholeheartedly 100% against this approval I'm really somewhat even surprised Devlin Technology Park it has a name and it doesn't even exist because you guys chose to really get behind Stanley Martin and let them get in your pockets and deposit their cash it's pretty sad. It's a pretty sad state. Read your Bible. It's a pretty sad state. It'll change the

[06:28:22] landscape here forever. This isn't one-time thing. This isn't a swim pool. This is 30, 40, 50, 60 year change. You're ruining what Prince William County is known for. You single-handedly, Ms.

[06:28:37] Wheeler, you have been doing this. We met about a year ago, and I said, I'd love to talk to you about this. You said, great, give me a call. Not one phone call was returned. I've tried. You have no desire to hear anybody have an opposite opinion to you this this will be your legacy sadly this will be your legacy but to the rest of you especially uh miss franklin mr body mr angry you're at the beginning of your political careers miss wheeler's at the end of hers she's on the

[06:29:13] way out you're at the beginning of yours you'll be judged we'll all be judged someday but you'll be judged by your actions not by your words and you'll be judged by the role of an eye you'll be judged by I don't care you will be judged and you won't be judged positively this is your chance to make a change and start your career on a positive point by standing up for the people not Stanley Martin and speaking to Stanley Martin Truett you and I had a conversation about a year ago and we talked about this I told you put a pause on it that was my opinion and ask the community

[06:29:53] what they want possibly a park I said you said oh there's never a way we'll stop or do something like that you stopped and now there's a park proffer i'm sure it wasn't me but it looks like some good got in you somewhere the last thing i do want to say what you're doing is not just messing the landscape up the youth are leaving i was a scout master for five years i've been involved in scouting for a long time i've asked a lot of scouts in the last two years and other youth are you coming back to the area every one of them said no i'm sorry i should notice that you're out of time. Thank you very much. Next speaker, please. I'm sorry. I'm not done. I asked

[06:30:32] everyone. It's not how it works. I'm sorry, sir. I have to. Why would you come back? They said, I wouldn't come back and live in an urban area. That's not why I grew up here. Sir, please, relinquish the microphone for the next speaker, please. Thank you very much. Thank you, Ms. Lawson, Mr. Weir, for everything you've done. Hello, my name is Ali Aslan. I come from Victory Lakes to offer my humble perspective, particularly as a first-generation immigrant citizen. To me, at its core, this debate is about the relationship between people and their elected

[06:31:06] government. What has mainly appealed to me in America coming from a far side of the world is at stakes today, and that is a well-functioning democracy where people's will prevails as long as it's lawful. Unfortunately, that's not what we're seeing here. Experts almost unanimously agree many data center projects in Prince William, including Devlin Technology Park, are poorly planned and short-sighted, if not harmful. People have spoken in recent primaries and general

[06:31:40] elections, sending a loud and clear message about massive data center sprawl. The fact that some politicians still seem to turn a deaf ear to their constituency is mind-boggling to me. That is not the America I've dreamed of. When we first watched the 1939 movie Mr. Smith Goes to Washington with College Bodies in my native country 35 years ago, we all were truly inspired by American democracy.

[06:32:09] What happened to that America? Was it just in the movies or has it gone with the wind? When will our politicians set partisan differences and selfish political career plans aside and instead form a united front to protect our communities.

[06:32:29] True, special interest groups pushing for their agendas with the government have always been present. Provided that such requests are diligently checked and balanced by responsible politicians and courts, that's acceptable. And that's our expectation from all our elected officials. Those who calibrate their votes to the highest financial bidders for their political campaigns instead of heeding bipartisan calls for a more sensible approach, not only do a great disservice to their electorate, but also facilitate erosion of the foundation of our democratic republic.

[06:33:04] Sadly, in my native country, politicians who put their own political and financial interests before the nations turned their relatively promising democratic experiment into a major failure over time. Luckily, it's different here in America, or at least I'm hoping it is, because this is not some other nation in the world.

[06:33:27] This is the United States of America, long aspiring to be a shining city on the hill. Despite setbacks, I remain optimistic about the wisdom and perseverance of the American people and democracy, be it at local or national level.

[06:33:43] With that in mind, I stand strongly opposed to Devlin Technology Park and similar overreaching projects at the expense of our democratic will and well-being. Our vibrant community opposes so-called compromise offers. Thank you.

[06:33:59] Thank you. Our next speaker, please. And after, while our next speaker is going, numbers 41 through 45 are welcome to line up in the back, 41 through 45. Good evening, and thank you, Board of County Supervisors, for listening to this comment, period. I know it's been rough. My name is Tim McCormick, and my family and I live in Amberlee Station, and we are currently feeling the ill effects of bad zoning practice in the Hunter property, and we don't want to see that happen

[06:34:34] again and have our entire community surrounded on three sides with more industrial zoning. I'm urging you, I'm urging you, every one of you, vote no on this proposal. As a member of a community that is going to be surrounded by the Hunter property and data center development, we are already starting to feel the effects of poor zoning decisions. This decision tonight should be, and is, a simple, simple case of incompatible land use. Incompatible land use,

[06:35:13] as described by our own county's guiding documents, our zoning guidance, our data center overlay, even the DCS manual in section 800 refers to this as incompatible land use and suggests that it can quote, create conflict, which we're seeing. We're seeing that. We're seeing the effects of that.

[06:35:43] What we need and what we know, what we know is that this kind of land use, putting industrial zoning next to residential, mixed residential, elementary schools, we have a small and beautiful little common area of commercial with a monastery school, Bakhtarak, a locally operated business helping kids learn to love music, we have a wonderful burgeoning neighborhood here, 12 neighborhoods that are going to be directly impacted and affected by this decision.

[06:36:22] I'm urging you, every one of you, please, please vote no. This is, as I've said, as other people have said, as it has been suggested by other board members, incompatible land use. If you go back, if you talk to your staff, if you look at common sense reading, of the way that the county documents lay out the way land should be used.

[06:36:48] This is the clear definition of incompatible land use. The applicant's lawyer referenced the Hunter property in suggesting that already these kinds of decisions have been made. And I'm here to say that previous bad zoning decisions should not set precedent for future bad zoning decisions.

[06:37:08] We should learn from our mistakes, and I'm urging you. I'm urging every one of you. My wife, my two kids, we live in Amberley Station. The balloon tests were not adequate. Our home property values are going to go down. This is going to have real effects.

[06:37:25] Thank you. And I thank you for listening to me. Thank you. Good night. Next speaker, please. My name is Dr. Steve Pleichardt, president of Amberley Station HOA in Bristow.

[06:37:45] I represent 113 homeowners, many of whom could not be here tonight because they have families, jobs. They have to get up in the morning. I have been to so many of these meetings through the years, and I realize that anything that I have to say will most likely fall on deaf ears.

[06:38:03] Many of you don't even pay attention when we speak. The approval of the Devlin Tech Park will destroy the Bristow residential corridor with industrial buildings and noise that will force people to move out of their homes in droves. The silent victims in all of this are the children living in Bristow who will be subjected to this environmental injustice of data center sprawl, noise, and pollution.

[06:38:30] The majority on this board are hell-bent to pave over the western portion of Prince William County for power and financial gain. These same politicians will be directly responsible for harming the health of the children in their homes and at their local schools if the Devlin Tech Park is approved.

[06:38:47] Quite frankly, I don't know how any of the Democrats on the board can sleep at night doing this to people. None of you have data centers behind your homes, nor would you ever approve that. Don't allow them behind ours.

[06:39:05] Save our Bristow neighborhood from data centers. Vote no on this rezoning request. Thank you. Thank you. Next speaker, please.

[06:39:23] Good evening. I'm Kathy Kulik. I'm the vice chair of the HOA Roundtable of Prince William County. I'd like five minutes, please. And I'm just asking everybody this, but apparently it sets people off, and you're a registered civic organization.

[06:39:45] 501c4. Thank you very much. Didn't bring the tax paperwork, but if you'd like to see it, I'll forward it. I have something on the overhead. HOA Roundtable was formed just for projects like this, and we are growing very fast.

[06:40:11] We've been in existence since January of 2022. At this point, we have over 106 participating organizations. That's HOAs, civic organizations, HOA umbrella organizations, and partners in Fairfax, Falkyer, and Loudoun counties.

[06:40:31] And we may soon have some from Stafford because people are concerned. They're very concerned. They're upset. They're fearful. And they say the same things that the folks who are here today from the Bristow area are saying to all of you.

[06:40:46] It seems very odd that this many people could come in and express their feelings this strongly to this body and still be concerned that this development will pass. They shouldn't have those concerns.

[06:41:05] We've seen you many times consider developments, many of you who, and there's only one supervisor that represents this district, of course. I've seen all of you consider developments in your various districts. Five or six residents will come up and be concerned, and you'll take that seriously as you should.

[06:41:25] and deny something. Consider how many and how long, how these residents have come before you and made all the good cases about why this is wrong for their adults. Just look at it. You've seen this map many times. This industrial, heavy industrial, data centers now are heavy industrial.

[06:41:45] Why is that? Because they're enormous. 80 plus feet, loaded with 100, 500 ton cooling towers on the top. 30 industrial diesel generators the size of tractor trailers. The chemical dangers if something should go wrong there with those tanks that are stored above ground. There are so many reasons why this is heavy industrial. You would not put a heavy industrial development that looks

[06:42:17] just like that wedged up into a residential area. These people are under siege. You would not want in yours, please do not put this and approve this in the Brentsville district. The press has been covering this all day long. I don't know if you've seen the reports. It's been on Fox 5, Channel 4, Channel 9, and it hasn't been glowing and it hasn't been positive. They are bringing out all the concerns the reporters are, not the folks they're interviewing, though those count too,

[06:42:54] saying to the entire region and everybody watching, this is a big concern. So understand it when you take your vote. That's what the region is seeing about what's going on in Prince William County right now today, that this industry is not having a good effect on your county, the one you have the responsibility for governing. This is a really big concern. Care about it. Care about it a lot.

[06:43:27] Now, you probably heard, well, you'll hear it if you haven't heard it before, but I know you have, that why are these residents worried about this? They're just a bunch of NIMBYs. They didn't want houses. Now they don't want data centers. They don't want anything. Just nothing. They don't care. Not true. These people are very happy to have 500 homes on this property. That's the way it's been zoned for years, 30 years. When I came to this county, those two people on the wall were on the board. John Jenkins, Kathleen Seafelt. Neither one of them would vote for this.

[06:44:01] They wouldn't. There are plenty of things that we disagreed with about them, but they wouldn't put that intertwined in a bunch of homes. And they had a lot to do with all those homes. There's many reasons why this is an ill-suited development here. And it's only being done because Stanley Martin wants a whole lot more money out of this and they don't want to build homes. They don't want to build them, but they are going to build them for a very long time. The data center gold rush is too good. The money is too good. So let's go in for it. It's not good for anybody else but

[06:44:37] them. And nobody here is advocating for this except those that are getting paid, including our friends in the unions who are saying, well, we got to have these for work, but it's very interesting. None of them are here speaking about it except for their union bosses or somebody that they want to put on the video screen here for you because they're all getting up to go to work.

[06:44:57] They already have jobs. They've got a lot of them. It's a bogus argument, but money's got them here. Money doesn't have the rest of us here. Not a dime, and it's been that way. I thank you very much. It's been a long night. I hope you vote no.

[06:45:14] Next speaker, please.

[06:45:32] Good evening. My name is Bianca Ricketts, and I'm a resident of the Brentsville District. I'm here to oppose the Devlin Technology Park rezoning petition. I wanted to focus on two issues with their petition today, Even though you have heard and you will hear many reasons tonight why you should oppose this petition, which I concur.

[06:45:54] The first reason is because the rezoning is incompatible with the neighboring areas. The rezoning is incompatible because the majority of its boundaries abuts residential zoning and because the rest of its boundaries abuts property recently rezoned for data center use.

[06:46:11] As we heard here tonight, the Planning Commission has not had time to look into many things, including how noise will aggregate with the adjacent data centers already approved. There are communities, including mine, that are engulfed in data centers' rezoned areas.

[06:46:30] The applicant has proffered noise restrictions that you all know or should know that are unenforceable and that any relief for the residents will come at a great cost and will surely not be immediate. I have heard from members of this board that when the data centers adjacent to the current petition were approved, the latest being in 2021, this board had no idea of how the noise could be an issue with data centers. Well, now you know. Now you know that

[06:47:10] they generate noise. Now you know that noise aggregates, but you don't know how when combined to the adjacent data center parcels already approved, this will affect the adjacent communities. This project needs to either be shut down today or we need to have answers, thorough and unbiased answers of how this will affect the adjacent communities so you can make an informed decision.

[06:47:35] The second reason is because the major proffers made by Stanley Martin tonight cannot even be enforced. Supervisor Bodie, I remember during the last time this petition came before the board, you had just visited Bristol, including Chris Young Elementary School. You were, or at least you appear to be, seriously concerned about the well-being of the residents in that area, particularly the children attending Chris Young. What has changed? Because I don't believe the changes presented here today by Stanley Martin address your concern. Stanley Martin proffered

[06:48:13] to donate land bay a which abuts chris young to the county as a park yet they included it in the rezoning for light industrial and refuse here tonight to remove it from the proposed rezoning you know just as well as i do that once late land bay is rezoned to light industrial that the proffer is unlikely to be enforced and will be developed as light industrial this is the end of my time but I ask you to vote no tonight.

[06:48:40] Thank you. Next speaker, please. I will need the overhead.

[06:49:17] Okay, hi. I'm Connie Cernyuk. I'm part of the Brunsville District. I live in Victory Lakes. I've lived there for the last 19 years. It's across from the proposed property. I wanted to bring up my concerns about the infrastructure, specifically electricity.

[06:49:41] As you can see, according to popular science, cloud now has a greater carbon footprint than the airline industry. A single data center can consume the equivalent electricity of 50,000 homes at 200 terawatt hours annually.

[06:50:00] The electricity utilized by data centers accounts for 0.3% of overall carbon emissions. So during this time when we're trying to lower the carbon footprint, we're actually approving a lot of data centers which generate towards a greater carbon footprint.

[06:50:24] So why do data centers use so much energy? To meet the pledged customers that their data and cloud service will be available anytime, anywhere. Data centers are designed to be hyper-redundant. If one system fails, another one is ready to take its place at a moment's notice to prevent disruption. The data center is a Russian doll of redundancies, redundant power systems like diesel generators, redundant servers ready to take over computational processes should others become

[06:50:55] unexpectedly unavailable. Only 6 to 12 percent of energy consumed by the data center is devoted to active computational processes. The remainder is allocated to cooling and maintaining chains

[06:51:12] of chains of redundant fail-safes to prevent downtime. And here is one of many examples that are on the internet of how data centers have affected people. This one's from CNN. Ron Wright

[06:51:49] said his power was cut this winter. The crypto mine stayed online. The brutal winter storm that gripped much the South and forced some of the first rolling blackouts in TBA history. While residents were plunged into cold darkness, they say the power-hungry mind kept humming. They shut us down on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day every hour for anywhere from 15 to 45 minutes to an hour, resident Ron Wright told CNN. Well, once your power goes down, your heat pumps go off and pipes

[06:52:28] freeze, but less than one mile away is crypto, allowed to run on the low end. As soon as the power came back, boom, they're cranking before we are, insinuating the data centers are cranking before the residents' power is back on. Thank you very much. Your time is up. So please vote now.

[06:52:50] Thank you. If we could have 46 through 50, lining up at the microphone in the back, 46 through 50,

[06:53:06] anyone um 51 through 55 anyone with a number under 55 who wants to come with microphone okay got another one sounds good thank you please proceed uh good evening members of the board my name is uh my name is Jorge Melendez um I'm a resident of Prince William County I've been here

[06:53:38] for over 12 years I have something that a lot of speakers do not have I have worked in the data center. I was a shift tech at the data center, and I was a foreman in the data centers. A lot of these people speak about, you know, pollution, noise, water usage. From back in the days, yes, we will agree that data centers were, water usage was big. With the technology that we have in the

[06:54:14] new equipments, I can assure that your toilet use more water than a chiller in the data centers. We also got so many procedures in the data centers that even a drop of pain have a procedure on how to pick up the drop of pain without a contamination in that floor.

[06:54:38] So for my expertise that I have as a data center, I can tell you this, that a lot of people can blame you guys for voting yes to a data center, but guess what? We got to blame ourselves, too.

[06:54:56] A lot of the people that speak before me have this in common, computers and everything else. Guess what that got in common? Eight data centers, and you guys use it, right?

[06:55:12] So if you're going to speak about her and throw this away, do it. I bet you you're going to do it because this served for you guys to keep your grandchildren's picture.

[06:55:28] Every history you have in your life is here, and that's what the data center does for you. Guess what else I thank you guys for? Not traveling to D.C. or Maryland for two hours. And the last two years I've spent it here with my family.

[06:55:48] And I got a hundred of those people out there living in this county who thanks you for that. Because now they don't have to travel that far. And I can thank you for another thing, too.

[06:56:05] You're going to graduate more than 200 or 300 apprentices in this year, these five years, that are going to have a better benefit, good health. And that's what Data Center brings to this county.

[06:56:21] People are going to stay here, the people who live here, the people that matters. And that's why I say Data Center is a good thing. And that's on for it. Thank you. Have a good night. Thank you. Next speaker, please.

[06:56:38] My name is David Gee. I'm in Victory Lakes. Yep, a couple comments about that in a minute. But I'll run through my comments real quick. Please don't approve data centers next to residential areas.

[06:56:55] They're next to residential areas. Most people don't have a major problem with data centers. They just don't want them next to their house. Could you pause your time? I'm going to pause your time for one moment, please. Can we find out what's going on? You don't know?

[06:57:10] You think it's a – okay. Good. Please proceed. Thank you. So, finish that thought. Most people don't have a problem with data centers.

[06:57:26] They just don't want them next to their houses and their schools. That's the main issue. You know, it's good that they bring jobs. Yes, everybody uses their phones. They use their iPads, everything. They just don't belong next to neighborhoods and schools. That's really why we're all here.

[06:57:44] Devlin Technology Park is not in the data center overlay. Data centers on Devlin is 100% incompatible with, because of the surrounding neighborhoods and the schools. They don't belong there. They don't belong next to neighborhoods and schools. There's plenty of space in the data center overlay.

[06:58:02] No reason for data centers to be expanded to other areas, especially in residential. More data centers without proper noise ordinances. Energy and water studies will set Virginia back. I've lived in Virginia my whole life. I grew up here. Prince William County will not be able to meet their Energy and Sustainability Master Plan, which was adopted, you know, not too long ago.

[06:58:28] One point I made last time, Prince William County has been one of the wealthiest counties in the country for a long, long time. It would continue to be one of the wealthiest counties in the country without data centers. Data centers may be necessary, but it's not necessary for them to be by neighborhoods and schools uh it's the morally right thing to do please vote no to rezone you you don't want this to be a part of your legacy and one final thought since many many people in

[06:59:04] your positions like yours are motivated by votes nobody is going to lose an election by voting no to data centers but you probably will if you vote yes thank you next speaker please good evening my name is Clark Chitty. I live in the Brentsville district. So here we are, yet another contentious land use hearing that has seemingly been politicized by this board. There are so many questions that have not been answered by the applicant. Why are only three of you up there

[06:59:44] asking the tough questions? The answer to this is easy. Five of you that are not asking the hard questions have been bought and paid for by Stanley Martin, every single one of you. Why are the balloon tests always done during the summertime when all the underbrush and the deciduous trees are fully leafed out. Why aren't we doing it now when the trees are bare? That'd be a more accurate balloon test. Is the sound level testing going to be done on a day with a heat index of 110 when all of the diesel generators are running full tilt? Probably not. What is the health impact going to be on the

[07:00:21] students at Chris Young Elementary School, the Montessori School, and the residents that will have to live near this proposed concrete monster? Where is all the electricity going to be coming from? How is Chair Wheeler going to have the electricity to charge her Mach-E out front on the taxpayer's dime. There's not enough juice to go around. How are all these Teslas going to get charged? Another question that this county still has not been able to answer on many land use issues is what is the impact on the water table going to be? You don't know because you don't ask.

[07:00:52] You don't study it. The citizens of this county are now waiting to see if Queen Anne sitting on her thrones of lies that's been built with campaign donations from Stanley Martin and the data center industry and her minions are going to ram this project down the throats of the citizens of Prince William County, despite the overwhelming citizen opposition to it. There is no reason to rush to a vote on this project other than the fact that she has favors to still repay. There's big questions that still need to be answered before you guys can do it and have an informed vote. Before you vote, each one of you should ask, would I want to live next door to this?

[07:01:32] Not one of you can look me in the eye and say yes. It's fine if it's in somebody else's backyard, but if it's not next to you and it doesn't directly impact you, you don't give a damn. Do the job you were elected to do and represent your constituents, not the building industry.

[07:01:51] Next speaker, please. I'm Sherry Hickerson, and I'm from the Brentsville District. I live in Crosman Creek. Appreciate those that have said things tonight. The silence has been deafening, and I just sit here and I think, I don't get it.

[07:02:13] People have said that. People have said the money. I don't believe that because it wasn't enough. I mean, it wasn't enough. So the county is getting the money. They're getting the money from all of the data centers.

[07:02:29] They're getting the money that in about a week, I'm going to have to pay a whole lot of money for property tax, which I would think would run the county because we pay a pretty good amount. The houses in Crossman Creek, we weren't here when they were built, but I do know what the person that bought the house paid because of taxes, and it's just now, within the last year to a year and a half, getting to the value of what they bought the house for it took almost 20 years to come back because we had a downturn in the economy right and the house is tanked so those people had to keep the

[07:03:07] house even though they moved to Colorado they rented it out for about six to seven years because they couldn't get the money out of it and then they finally sold it we were renting down the street we bought it that day and so just now what that original price was 19 years ago has just now come back. And guess what? I haven't lived here that long, maybe four or five years. These people have lived here for 19 and 20 years, and they've had that happen. And now you're saying, we're going to put a data center there. And some, I'm sitting here thinking, oh my goodness, I need to

[07:03:44] be thankful that there's only one going across from me. I can't imagine these people that have three. Can you? So I don't get it. You know, I know that you know in your heart, you don't like being here. I don't like being here either. The reason I came is because I saw the little sign on Devlin because I live by it, and Tim's like, oh, they're having another one. We were here in February, my first time here. And then I talked about that scale of justice, the seal on your thing. And I walked out here, and we both thought we were going to lose. And miraculously, somebody

[07:04:23] voted with us. I don't know who did. Whoever you are, vote with us again. At least hold it off or vote with us again. I was sitting here crying tonight, which I don't usually come to government things and sit there and cry. It wasn't for me. It was because I remembered in February a mom coming and saying her son will be adversely affected by that humming. And a lot of talk in February went on about the noise. So I came here tonight going, okay, how are they going to fix the noise? And I find out y'all did nothing. Nobody did nothing with the noise. Can we at least

[07:05:01] wait and find that out please vote no or please wait thank you thank you next speaker please and if anyone uh 56 through 60 wants to line up that would be fine projection or elmo yeah but tip the microphone down because we can't hear you thank you my name is laura mahoney i live in the brentsville district i'm not paid to speak thank you mary joe i don't have enough time to share all the thoughts

[07:05:37] why devlin's such a hideous idea but i'll share my top contenders devlin's application doesn't include a special use permit, zoning text amendment, as required by the zoning ordinances. Why the special treatment for Devlin? Devlin has no master plans, just a big box drawn on a map.

[07:05:55] I think my daughter could do a better job with that. Part of the Virginia State Zoning Ordinance Code conditions, zoning ordinances shall be for the general purpose of creating an attractive and harmonious community. What's so attractive and harmonious about Devlin? Data centers do not belong next to homes and schools period no exceptions with over 30 percent of the land being proffered as a public park this would indicate a substantial change requiring it to be remanded back to the planning commission as i believe similar to the climb project again why the special treatment for devlin with all the electrical power where is it going to come from

[07:06:34] pgm's last report i saw was at least 10 billion dollars of transmission line upgrades that rate payers will need to absorb. Why is the board not taking this into consideration for the residents? As you see on the projector there, there's a copy of the misleading flyer Stanley Martin sent to residents. I believe there was about 50 residents they sent it to, so if you're trying to get community feedback, I don't think that's very appropriate when there's thousands of homes.

[07:07:02] There's a single glass story building on here. Nothing like what the project will look like. Devlin's topography is unique. Does the board realize that the neighborhood's closest such as Victory Lakes and Sheffield Manor will sit at about 141 feet to 171 feet below the Dublin data centers if built. Here are some pictures from University in Edmondson that show the height difference. There's the first one there you can see and near the stop sign there's a small excavator

[07:07:37] there's also a dump truck going by. It's very hard to read but up here that's the top of the ridge that's the houses are equal to that road we're going to be looking up at those buildings. Here's another one, a school bus. School buses are huge. Again, we will be looking up the ridge at the top of those buildings. Add another 80 plus feet plus pad. Here's another one showing from Devlin and

[07:08:14] University looking down towards the left. Again, the ridge. At one point during the December 13th board meeting, Chair Wheeler and Supervisor Lawson were discussing Devlin. Chair Wheeler said, be clear, I have reservations that I listened and when we approve the hunter track that I didn't go out there and understand the impact on that and I sat there on this dais and was told it was going to be fine thank you I don't want to make that mistake again please don't make that mistake again

[07:08:39] thank you next speaker please can I have the overhead good evening I'm Bethany Kelly I live in the Brentsville district I sat down to think about what to say tonight and the first thing I thought why are we here tonight I asked that of myself many others have asked that as well so I

[07:09:16] started to go through what I would call the myths of this project versus the facts. First myth, Supervisor Lawson is responsible for the data centers on Devlin. Fact, there are eight of you sitting up there who are making these decisions. She is in no way solely responsible for any of this. As a matter of fact, she's one of just three of you who have helped us and fought this. Myth, Stanley Martin knows how to build a quiet, community-friendly data center campus. Fact, Stanley Martin's a home builder.

[07:09:49] If the data center developers can't figure out how to do this, surely they can't do it. Myth. Stanley Martin values community input. Fact. They have ignored community input. Three nights in January, biased surveys, misleading flyers, and no community input on this latest request to submission.

[07:10:10] Myth. Stanley Martin has support of surrounding communities. Fact. No, but they did have the developer and the union rep supporting Devlin. No one else has. Myth. Supervisors say Stanley Martin can't be expected to build homes next to data centers because of the ones on Hunter.

[07:10:30] If you take a look at the slide, there's a 1,000-foot buffer at a minimum between Hunter and any homes that would be built on Devlin. This is Smith Crossing site.

[07:10:47] Fact. Sorry. Myth. This is the same myth. On this site, Stanley Martin is actually going to build homes within 200 feet of the Prince William Digital Gateway. 200-foot buffer, which they call substantial. Myth. Stanley Martin can't be expected to build homes next to industrial or power lines.

[07:11:15] This right here is their plan for a mixed-use development, Innovation Town Center. Please note, there is a substation, there's industrial on two sides, actually three sides of this, and there are power lines running right through this. Myth, Stanley Martin's application for Devlin Tech Park is complete.

[07:11:35] Fact, it's missing a lot. The special use permit, detailed site plan, and enforceable proffers. Myth, supervisors can make an unbiased decision on Devlin. Fact, Stanley Martin has donated over $140,000 to some of you on the board, either directly or funneled through PACS.

[07:11:54] And the only organization to donate more is the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers with $163,000. Bottom line is, why are we here? Because we have a greedy developer who is out of control and wants to flip their land to data.

[07:12:13] Next speaker, please. Sorry, you guys are just going to have to bear with me. I have a really bad migraine headache, so if I pass out, I am so sorry. I'm going to try and get through this. My name is Donna Gallant. I am from the Amberley Station Homeowners Association,

[07:12:35] so I would like my five minutes, please, and I would like the overhead. Sorry.

[07:12:57] I know this is very difficult to see, so I'm going to try and work through it, because sometimes I think visual aids are far more important. I don't have the luxury that the developer had about putting up their fancy slides, so I'm going to do the best that I can to walk through this.

[07:13:14] So, as you can see, let me see if I can drag this over. Here is university. This is the, quote, proffered, given land.

[07:13:30] I want you to see that there are homes here. There are homes here, and we've heard time and time again from Stanley Martin, oh, I'm not going to build next to data centers, but he's okay with building data centers next to homes.

[07:13:47] It's an oxymoron. It's moronic, if you want my honest opinion, because at the end of the day, you'll see here, this is the hunter track. This is a substation. The closest data center to the Stanley Martin property for homes would be over 1,200 feet.

[07:14:11] This was a discussion I had with Mr. Trulet. With him donating or making that park land, which, by the way, is illegal. There's a Supreme Court ruling case that just came out, Commonwealth Attorney.

[07:14:31] It's Elmira County versus John. You might want to read it. I've already consulted an attorney, and this proffer is absolutely illegal. So you have now, if you move forward with an approval, you will absolutely screw the pooch on this.

[07:14:50] Because when Stanley Martin inks their deal with Amazon, Amazon will have the right to come after this county and take that parkland and rezone it how they want. So be ready for that.

[07:15:08] You heard a lot tonight. And sometimes I say, you know, if this was a murder case and one of your family members was on trial for murder. You have the prosecution and you have the defense. The prosecution needs to prove their case beyond a reasonable doubt. In this case, the prosecution is Stanley Martin.

[07:15:34] And I ask each one of you sitting up there on the dais, did they present their case to each one of you fully and wholeheartedly where you can walk away from this and say, I can approve this, which is a guilty verdict in a murder case beyond a reasonable doubt. And you heard the defense, which is every single resident that came is stood up here. Yes, you'll hear from the unions later who, by the way, are paid to come here and say jobs. Last time I checked, when you build a house,

[07:16:12] you need a carpenter. When you build a house, you need a plumber. When you build a house, you need electrician. So their argument about data centers, you can do it with a house. So I want you to think long and hard when you're making your decision tonight that if your family member was on trial for murder and Stanley Martin presented their case against your loved one, did they do it beyond a reasonable doubt to warrant your approval or conviction of murder?

[07:16:48] If you have doubt, which let me go through the list, the applicant did not do a special use permit outside of the overlay. The county does not have qualified staff to ensure data center proffers. Yes, I heard we'll hire a consultant. I'm on the data center working group, and we are struggling with your basic ordering agreements that you have in place to find a qualified company

[07:17:21] to do noise studies today. They will have to go and find people to do it. So no, you're not ready. We have the lawsuit, which went to the Supreme Court. You might want to look it up. That proffer for that park must have a nexus.

[07:17:43] A nexus means that that park has to have something to do with data centers. Last time I checked, a recreational park is not a nexus to a data center. Amazon will fight you and take it away. It's illegal.

[07:17:59] Read the case law. You have nothing to move forward with an approval on this. your time is up to vote thank you very much miss galant miss galant you said you spoke on behalf of amberley station is that correct the board and that's why you requested five minutes yes ma'am do you know that your president steve placard spoke three minutes i took five he took three minutes yes ma'am so i just want to make sure okay yes ma'am i made sure before okay thank you you're very welcome okay next speaker please needs this visual aid to make it easier i'm happy

[07:18:37] to give it to you. You're welcome to give it to our clerk if you want to. Okay. Next speaker, please. Hi. My name is Jagdeep. I live next to, I live in Bristol next to this Linton Hall and Devlin intersection. I just came in. I don't know, like, this is the first hearing I'm seeing,

[07:19:16] and I didn't know, like, what to speak, but I hear all these people speaking against it. I also have the same concern and I don't want to repeat everything, whatever these people have said. I mean, enough has been said.

[07:19:32] So I don't know what else has been left here to say. All I can say is like, I'm just going back to when I thought of buying a house in the Prince William County and all my friends and my company and said like, oh, Prince William County, why you want to move there?

[07:19:50] They don't have any good residential areas. and I said I did my research I spent a year and I think this is where I wanted to live and we bought a house we built a house there expecting that we'll be staying there we researched the schools and everything and we we said no this is the place we wanted to live and I and I think I was the first in my community in my friend circle to move there and after that People came visiting my house, and they decided to move.

[07:20:22] And so a lot of friends actually moved, and we built a community there. Then this data center came into picture in the middle of the houses. I never thought that I have to come here and fight for this thing, and saying that what is the data center is doing in the middle of the houses, actually.

[07:20:46] Is this a good residential area? According to me, no. It's the same health concerns I have for my kids also. So my kids ask me, like, if the Stata Center comes, do we have to move? I told them, I don't know.

[07:21:02] I never wanted to move, but if the choice of a health and they don't want to move because they have friends here, they have built a circle here, they don't want to move.

[07:21:18] They said, no, we don't want to move. Now, if I have to choose between the health of my kids and they have to select whether they wanted to have a good health or they wanted to have friends. I never thought that this kind of a choice will come into my life or they have to choose something like that.

[07:21:41] All I can request is please say no to this data center. Data center does not belong between. I work in IT. I know what is the data center. So please, this is just a request from people who have said this.

[07:21:58] I mean, please say no to the data center. Thank you. Thank you. Next speaker, please. And anyone, I have 59, 60, 61, or 62 want to line up. My name is Palmer Denny, and I reside in the Occoquan District.

[07:22:16] I wasn't planning to speak tonight, but after the plain disrespect I've seen directed towards the residents of this county by the people elected to serve them, I cannot sit this out and stay silent. While I'm not directly affected by the decision you are going to make tonight, this will set a precedent for future projects, ones that may end up in my backyard one day.

[07:22:35] Since when has this board ever approved a proposal so controversial and yet so poorly vetted? Prudence is a virtue, you know. I just figured I'd remind you. Secondly, your own planning commission has recommended that you not approve this. Do you plan to throw out their advice and just push it through anyway?

[07:22:51] The applicant hasn't even properly answered your questions and concerns. What reason do you have to approve this other than a repayment for a campaign donation by Stanley Martin. Beyond that, I feel the need to speak up alongside my fellow county residents in Brentsville and Gainesville simply because this board has a serious problem that must be addressed. They, with the exceptions of Supervisor Weir, Lawson, and Vega, refuse to listen. You won't listen to the people who you are elected to serve when they plead with you not to litter the areas around their schools and homes with data centers. Please, let tonight be the night that you prove me wrong and vote to send this proposal back to the planning office.

[07:23:26] thank you next speaker please good evening my name is laura harders and i reside in the gainesville district please vote no to rezoning application rez 2022-00022 i want to point out from the staff presentation earlier mr meyer shared that this project does impact some wetland and environmental areas and he did say that staff has remaining concerns i will give i will admit

[07:24:05] that he said the applicant did the best they could do, quote. However, that doesn't cut it. This needs to go back to the Planning Commission. I also believe there hasn't been adequate engagement by the applicant since this major overhaul in this rezoning application.

[07:24:25] It was indefinitely deferred and then miraculously brought back to the table during the lame duck session. And perhaps most concerning, why is there no SUP for this rezoning application?

[07:24:41] That is a legitimate concern. And why does Stanley Martin get preferential treatment? But another question, what happens when their proffers are not legally enforceable? Another question I have, why does the Bristow communities, why do they get industrial blithe and data center proliferation?

[07:25:04] Why are you fast-tracking these controversial data center projects? There has been a huge outcry against this project. The applicant has not assuaged the public's concern. They have absolutely not mitigated the issues with this application.

[07:25:25] They are directly bordering residential communities. There are weaknesses in the proffers. And I'm a little concerned to hear that they wanted to extend the data center overlay district within this rezoning application as supervisor weird pointed out why would you do this without the study group without proper oversight input and review it just wouldn't make sense to do this at this rezoning application um thank you supervisor vega you pointed out earlier this

[07:26:01] is a quality of life issue it truly is honestly this board you've made this an east versus west issue. You have divided us. The amount of data centers you are looking to push through during the lame duck session in the West. The Democrats on this board, you seem intent to push this through.

[07:26:30] You heard earlier from an impassioned Democrat who came up and was enraged at how you have made this a politicized issue. When you hear citizens coming up and begging you, please vote no. Next speaker, please.

[07:26:45] Good evening, Christopher Carroll, Brentsville District. There's a lot I wanted to say tonight, but so many people have spoken so much more eloquently than me. So I'm going to take kind of a different tune than what you guys are used to me, and I'm going to try to be nice tonight.

[07:27:06] And so I'm not going to bring up the hundreds of thousands of dollars Chair Wheeler has in stocks in the data center industry. I'm not going to go over what Supervisor Franklin is saying, us on the West deserve these data centers. I'm not going to rehash anything that's come out of Supervisor Bode's mouth on the campaign trail.

[07:27:22] and because i'm going to be nice i won't bring up the over a hundred thousand dollar donations to the board majority from stanley martin a few points to start the five million dollars for parks uh land i'm not sure what it is do you know what's currently in the proffers from the devlin residential rezoning almost three million dollars so don't act like this is a huge sum to us we already have it as a county it's already there know what else is in that almost $150,000 in the affordable housing fund, which I've heard for years that the board majority cares about. Gone. Know what else is in that rezoning? Houses, which also I've heard for years that the

[07:28:02] board majority cares about. Gone. It's not often that we get a second chance in life, but here we are. You all, the Dems on the board, completely botched it with Village Place. Supervisor Franklin just stepped out, but she said that they went above and beyond beautiful buffers. Just watched tape this morning and she's going to start her congressional campaign by doing the same thing and not asking a single damn question to make sure that doesn't happen again to more constituents it's shameful but back to sustainability supervisor bode you claim to care about the environment have you read the sustainability proffers for this project you don't have a single question

[07:28:42] about it not not one um and by the way she's she's gone but shame on supervisor franklin for saying i was appointed the sustainability commission for political purposes I mean, if caring about the environment and the health of my children is a political purpose, then yes, I guess I was.

[07:29:00] But back to sustainability. You're probably familiar with Supervisor Bodie, as they are the same measures you touted at Village Place. And you know what happened? Because they were so poorly crafted with no metrics or standards, it turns out the applicant took the bare minimum, if at all, for any of those proffers.

[07:29:18] And the items that did go through, developmental services couldn't even confirm, as they don't have the SMEs to handle these types of things. or for the items in the building itself, like the reflective roof, building review won't even touch it as they just review building code. So all that stuff, out the window.

[07:29:35] So no renewable energy profit for this project, no moving away from diesel generators. The sustainability measures they do include are crap and unenforceable. If you're ramming this down our throats in the face of universal opposition, at least strengthen those so we're not breathing diesel on the way down.

[07:29:53] Thank you very much. So we do have some out-of-county speakers, but if there are any local speakers, I have a number 76 who just signed up. Are there any local people who want to speak? And then if the people who are non-residents want to start lining up in the back, that would be great.

[07:30:13] Hi, my name is Melissa Yurk. I'm in the Brinsville District, and I've been watching and reading and listening and educating myself, talking to all sides. Oh, sorry.

[07:30:31] Can you hear me better now? And I've been listening, but you are not listening. I email. I rarely ever get an email back, but you aren't listening. I don't feel like you're tone deaf. I have no seat at the table. These other residents have no seat at the table.

[07:30:49] And isn't that what's important here, is having a seat at the table? And the residents are saying, this is not good for our community. And there is utter disregard, elitist behavior, which I don't understand where this is coming from, when you have a majority that says we don't want a data center on Devlin Road and that park area, then you should listen to your citizens.

[07:31:19] But that is not happening. You are not listening. And I don't understand how you can live with yourself and be a public servant, which is a sacrifice, and we voted you in.

[07:31:36] Why is this happening? We don't want a data center here in that location. There's other locations that this can happen at, but not here. It doesn't create jobs the way that it's being misinformed to do. It doesn't create jobs.

[07:31:51] It just doesn't. And it does not help communities, and it doesn't help children, families, people who have different issues. It's not good for on the environment, and it's not good for where we live in a historical area where there's historical grounds.

[07:32:10] I'd like you to think and please hear the people and take us seriously. We're educated people. We'd like to have an educated response. Thank you. Next speaker, please.

[07:32:35] Good morning. Honorable leaders of the county of Prince William, Virginia, my name is Lou Spencer. I live at 614 Ann Pitts Road, Corrett, Virginia.

[07:32:53] That's Essex County. Thank you for your service to Prince William and the Commonwealth of Virginia. I'm the Assistant Business Manager with UA Local Union No. 5 Plumbers and Gas Fitters, and I'm the Secretary-Treasurer of the Virginia Building and Construction Trades Council.

[07:33:09] We represent thousands of plumbers and construction workers residing in the Commonwealth of Virginia. Many work and live in Prince William County. At UA Local 5, we have 1,900 members and over 60 signatory contractors, and we operate in all of greater northern Virginia, as far west as Winchester, as far south as Fredericksburg and King George.

[07:33:30] Data center construction has been good for the plumbing and mechanical industry. The data center owners and users have been professional and responsible to the mechanical, plumbing, and electrical sectors of the building industry. Tens of thousands, possibly millions of hours of work have come out of data center construction, meaning significant dollars and decent wages, medical, retirement savings, and apprenticeship training contributions have been made, and those dollars stay in this community and in this region.

[07:33:59] The residents of Prince William are blessed to have this debate. I travel through many regions of Virginia where there is little to no economic development. I support the development and construction of these data centers for the following reasons. Investing in Prince William County public schools, creating careers for the future, improving transportation to reduce traffic, keeping our community safe for supporting our police and first responders, and preserving parks and open space.

[07:34:26] That said, I want the residents of Prince William County and the Board of Supervisors to know the professional construction trades are eager to build what needs to be built and we will do it on time and on budget and we will do it safely professionally and responsibly i support the rezoning for the devlin devlin technology park i urge your prince william county board of supervisors approve the rezoning for devlin technology park thank you thank you next speaker please excuse me don slayman with the international brotherhood of electrical workers may i reserve five minutes as an organization i don't think i'll take all that time though i don't think so

[07:35:05] I think it's civic organizations, HOAs and non-profits, but thank you. Sorry. I would like to speak tonight in support of the Devlin Technology Park. And I'd just like everyone to know that modern civilization does not exist without potable water, electricity, and now data.

[07:35:22] And data is doubling every year and a half. And it's much more energy efficient to preserve this data at data centers and in people's places of home or work. So if you want to do it efficiently, if you want to do it the best environmentally, it's done in these data centers.

[07:35:41] As to the data center industry, what it means to my local union, these are great jobs. These are skilled jobs. They only use, they predominantly use, in my case, more than 90% union labor on the guts, on electrical work.

[07:35:59] 45% of a data center is electrical construction. And they do that because of the redundancy and the skill. But because of that, this is organically, because of that, the most unionized industry in the country. It's the industry, it's the jobs of tomorrow, right here in your community.

[07:36:15] Right now, the European Union passed a law that data has to be stored where it's generated, because they recognize that, and they want to take those jobs. These jobs, also, the data center industry has been great to the workers who do the construction and maintenance of this industry.

[07:36:31] They have taken it upon themselves to help us clean up the construction industry. At this high road, high end of the industry, we pointed out that on the shell, which they weren't concerned about, there was wage theft and misclassification of workers and paying them illegally and calling them independent contractors, and they were working to correct that.

[07:36:48] They've done it, and they have been very great progress made, and so that is why it is such a great industry for working people. People are very cavalier about work right now because we historically have the highest workforce participation in decades and historically forever the lowest unemployment.

[07:37:11] So people kind of miss that when they discuss this. I worked 40 years in the labor movement and watched deindustrialization and globalization tear apart our communities and increase income and equality in this country and reduce our social fabric and torn it apart.

[07:37:27] This industry does exactly different. This is better than the auto industry, better than the entertainment industry, better than the maritime industry. It's for unionization and for creating careers and giving opportunity for folks. We train folks. It's free training. Nine days in the field, the 10th day they come and train, we pay them.

[07:37:44] This is a great opportunity. It's a great opportunity for your community. And I just hope that these jobs stay here. And one last thing. I just want to lay the fears of the folks in the community. We have 12,000 members, 39,000 lives in our health care insurance fund.

[07:38:01] We don't see any abnormalities, no hearing loss, no cancers. We work in those for the last 30 years. We've had people who all they do is work in data centers doing maintenance. And lastly, 30 people continue to do maintenance in all those data centers. Every single building that's built in perpetuity.

[07:38:16] Your time is up. Thank you. Next speaker, please. Good morning. Members of the board, Jason Asher with the Mid-Atlantic Pipe Trades, United Association of Plumbers and Steamfitters. I represent about over 10,000 workers in the DC metro area. Several hundred of them live in this county. Jorge, who spoke earlier tonight, is one of them. His local, the Steamfitters, have built almost every data center in Loudoun and Prince William County. So I'm here to ask you to support it. I think it creates great jobs. I think Don and Lou, who came right before me, enjoy going at the end, said a lot of what I could have said,

[07:38:55] and I'll just give back my time. Thank you. Thank you. Next speaker, please. Technically is good morning. So good morning to everybody. My name is Cameron Hamilton. I live in Orange, Virginia. I'm currently running for Congress here in the Virginia 7th, hopefully representing some people of the southeast aspect of Prince William County. A couple of notes that I've observed just by being here and listening to this, to the concerns of the constituents here.

[07:39:26] I don't know that I would make a really comprehensive argument on why data centers are not advantageous to a community. I think clearly they are. They do provide good jobs, and I think they are essential with the flow of traffic. I think the issue at hand here is should we be placing a data center within a specific residential area?

[07:39:45] I think that's the nature of the conversation, and I think it's a much more compelling argument that we should think about. So this isn't a repudiation on the nature of data centers themselves, the jobs they bring, which are very reputable and admirable. Again, we love our blue-collar brothers that are out there working, building pipes, building infrastructure, and working in construction in general.

[07:40:04] Some of the things that I've noted from individuals here that have spoken, you have substantive concern by ranking members of the Board of Supervisors that have yet to be addressed by the current applicant holder. I find that to be of major concern to me. You have an alleviation request to be exempted from adhering to state and local ordinances, again, by the applicant holder. I find that to be of serious concern. You have no formal acquisition strategy developed so as to ensure that the burden is not placed upon the taxpayer through development like this.

[07:40:41] And again, I've written appropriation language as a division director within DHS. I've worked within the federal government quite a bit. There's a significant degree of subsidies that come with developments like these. I think many of them are innovative and very creative, but it does come at a cost to the taxpayer.

[07:40:58] We have to be very sincere and pragmatic about what that means. Again, some of these deviations, should they occur within the development process, the county would then be implicated potentially in any wrongdoing or any financial hardship incurred by ultimately the individual or the party that purchases this land once the data center is built or purchases the rights to the data center.

[07:41:22] I find that to be of significant concern. A proffer, again, has been discussed significantly at length. A proffer is not a legally binding statement. It is an offer made in a pre-negotiation period for a contract. I have to remind people, it is not something that the county is able to hold as legally binding and withstanding.

[07:41:41] If so, it should be written explicitly within the terms of contracts. So, I issue a last quote, again, by Thomas Jefferson. Every government degenerates when trusted only to the rulers alone. The people themselves, therefore, are its only safe depositories.

[07:41:59] You've heard a lot of feedback. You've heard a lot of consternation from individuals within this district and concern over data centers being built specifically in this location. I advocate for you that you vote not to approve this center, but to approve one in a more amenable location. Thank you.

[07:42:15] Thank you. I don't know if anyone else signed up. Is anyone else in the chambers who would like to speak to this issue who hasn't spoken before? Feel free to go to the microphone in the back of the room.

[07:42:35] Madam Chair, members of the board, I'm Bill Billard. I'm with the union, and I'm against the data center. I think we need to listen to the people and respect the districts. And Brentsville, I believe is where it is, they say they don't want it.

[07:42:54] So all of you and all the other districts should vote against it. You serve the will of the people, so please listen to the people. So thank you. Thank you. Is there anyone else in chambers or in the atrium who wishes to speak at the public hearing at this time?

[07:43:20] Michael McFadden, resident of Prince William County. Potomac District. And I came into this not knowing that this was going to happen and listening to everything here. So I addressed my Democrats, my Republicans, my socialists, my capitalists, my anarchists. I was reading a lot of anarchy lately. And it turns to me that this is a community issue. And what is bothering me is that I see a very small community that is

[07:43:59] acting out and saying, we don't want something. And then a board that was elected that doesn't even live in that community is making decisions for them. So I agree with law and order. I like America. I like all this laws, but I have to take this from one different perspective that I hadn't heard here. And that was from the anarcho-syndicist perspective, that the people who live there are ultimately the ones that had made to make those decisions. The people who live in that area are

[07:44:32] not being listened to. And to me, that reminds me of the 1400s in England. Well, just take the land from the commoners, because we, the smart people, know how to economically develop the land better than you do. That's what I'm hearing. And I'm not a history major. I'm actually, I work in computer science. When I first heard this, I was like, data centers. Great. I love data centers. Yes.

[07:45:03] Well, from a computer science standpoint, let me explain it to you very, very simply. Have you ever had a laptop that all of a sudden starts spinning out of control and those fans turned on and it goes and it gets hot and you know something's wrong with it because it's just eaten up all that all that CPU that's exactly what you're doing but you're not taking one laptop you're putting a hundred thousand CPUs in one place and you're going to spin them as fast as possible and that's

[07:45:36] it but let's go back to the point you guys honorable supervisors of Prince William County you're making decisions for a small community just think that thanks thank you is there anyone else in chambers before i close a public hearing who would like to i know who would like to speak i'll assume no we will go to i'll turn it over to vice chair bode ms madden how many people do we

[07:46:10] have waiting online 25 okay thank you i'll turn it over to supervisor bode thank you madam chair Ms. Mann, shall we begin? Here for speaker is Pete Smyter. Hi, how are you guys?

[07:46:32] Thank you for listening to all of the constituents and taking everybody's words into consideration. Also taking into consideration that that number is multiplied by however big Victory Lakes is, however many houses are in Amberley Station, however many people live on Linton Hall Road,

[07:46:58] However many people live in the 13-state PJM grid that has been redlining every July for a questionable number of Julys.

[07:47:15] What a redline or level one alert is, is a directive to every power station in that 13-state grid to operate at full tilt.

[07:47:31] that's a directive for all that's lake anna that's some thousand generating stations throughout the 13 state grid to operate at full capacity that means that's all you got pedal to the metal that's all the power you got now i just had a phone call with the federal energy regulator commission today as well as a few weeks ago doing some research to talk to the balancing authority and to talk to other parties regarding the reality of the situation,

[07:48:09] and there's a lot of research going on on other levels. Now, I'm also the guy that's been talking to FWS as well as a couple other entities that are taking a look at things like Endangered Species, Endangered Species Act, the fact that no environmental consult has been done, even though there are registered endangered data.

[07:48:36] For some reason, we here in Prince William County have opted to not employ an environmental consult, which is one of the recommendations by FWS.

[07:48:53] Now, I'm not sure if you know what FWS is. That's the Fish and Wildlife Service. So that's the Department of the Interior. So even if you should erroneously choose to pass this, you've got to go through the permitting process. That's Army Corps of Engineers.

[07:49:10] That's FWS. That's Virginia DEQ. You've got a lot of work to do. So I'm just going to read from this book that you've inspired me to write. The third and possibly largest concern is that of our county carbon footprint commitment and electrical grid capacity.

[07:49:33] The state of Virginia's electrical grid will not support our current data centers. Thank you. Good night. Thank you, Mr. Snyder. Next speaker, please. Your next speaker is Mustafa Kaya.

[07:49:53] I live in Bransfield district and I recently moved here and all my life I saved so that on my 17th move, I would move to a peaceful home and live there happily ever after.

[07:50:16] But soon enough, I was pretty much disappointed to learn that my house is back into Hunter property and I'm going to be surrounded by data centers. And now there is this Dalin Technology Park, which is making things even more complicated.

[07:50:42] First and foremost, I'm a lead data scientist, and I'm working for a major company that employs hundreds of thousands of people. And I'm connecting to data centers every day.

[07:50:59] And as a matter of fact, do we really need them? Absolutely not. It's just that my company doesn't want to pay for maintaining computers, and they just rent computation power and storage from some data center facility.

[07:51:20] And it's all about money. For the developer, it's all about money. And for the data center industry, it's all about money. We don't need data centers to survive.

[07:51:36] But on the other hand, as a human being, I think it's within my right to be able to sleep at night. So according to World Health Organization, we need to have 30 decibels to be able to sleep at night.

[07:51:54] But as far as I understand, the noise limit is about 60 decibels, and thinking that it's a logarithmic scale, it's way higher than 30 decibels that enables us to sleep at night.

[07:52:12] So, this is the major area of concern for me. The constant noise is going to cause health problems. And it's a known fact that this type of noise causes chronic health issues.

[07:52:35] So I'm urging you, the Board of Supervisors, please say no to this project, and I want to live a happy and healthy life together with my children. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Kaya. Next speaker, please.

[07:52:54] Your next speaker is Max Anamaradosh. Hello, all. Thank you to all the residents who are speaking up against the Dublin Technology Park, and my name is Max Anamaradosh.

[07:53:13] I'm from Brentsville District, and I'm a young family that recently moved to Sheffield Manor in search of a good life, safe life, residential.

[07:53:30] It's a residential area, like a lot of residents spoken against it. With that purpose, we moved to this area as a young family with two kids. And like a lot of presidents said, we also saved up all our life earnings and with recent instabilities in the economy in the United States, with the high prices, we bought the house with a high cost.

[07:54:01] So the question here is that I have as a resident, as a new resident of this area, is if you guys vote yes on this right now, and if this causes your vote, your yes vote causes financial distress to young families like me.

[07:54:24] i have a four-year-old and i have a newborn and if it causes financial distress if if it forces us to sell the houses because it's going to become all industrial around around us you know it doesn't belong in this location that's what i'm trying to say like all the residents said will you cover the costs that we will be forced to sell the house at a lower cost that we bought because everyone's gonna be forced to sell their house because and like all everyone said no one's going going to be willing to buy a house in the industrial district industrial area will you guys

[07:55:01] who voted yes cover those those those those uh costs whatever whatever the minus uh minus two hundred thousand dollars whatever i lose from that investment will you cover that answer to that question so i really want you all whoever is planning to vote yes to reconsider and listen

[07:55:28] again to all the residents and be a public servant vote no please thank you sir thank you next speaker please your next speaker is bobby kelly uh good morning i am not going to share my video because it's the morning um so i'm bobby kelly from the gainesville district uh chair wheeler i hope

[07:56:07] you're counting tonight as you typically do to release your wheeler report and so far we have five supporting this out of 60 plus and out of those five three of them were union reps so please make that clear in your Wheeler report. Just for the record we're not opposed to data centers we're opposed to siting data centers and plopping them down next to residents and homes. Please put them in the other parts of Virginia that seem to be clamoring for them based on one of their union comments tonight but I'm appalled and very disappointed by the current oversight and

[07:56:45] administration of this county with regard to land use. It's not what I expected of my local government. Tonight's presentation by the applicant only highlights that concern. So many disconnects, so many questions, but I want to add kudos to Supervisor Lawson, Weir, and Vega for asking thoughtful questions that represent concerns of the residents of Prince William County.

[07:57:10] There is some integrity on your board. I'm totally opposed to the approval to develop them at Devlin Park, in large part for the same reasons I'm opposed to developing data centers on the Prince William Digital Gateway.

[07:57:28] Large, loud, and noisy industrial centers should not be plopped next to and on top of residential areas. You see the maps. These are heavy industrial sites that should not be next to residential areas. areas. There are many suspected and still unstudied environmental problems leading to negative health and well-being hazards for people. And these people and families are your constituents. I don't understand your thinking as politicians that abandoning the concerns of your constituents is the right thing to do. And you've heard that over and over again tonight. But wait, could it be that

[07:58:04] the residents are not your constituents? Large wealthy corporations have now become your preferred constituents, and they certainly seem to be your major contributors. You're going to become and quickly becoming the poster child for how not to do land use. Your names will forever be associated with this negative benchmark and will always associate this disaster with your reign. So Supervisors Bode, Bailey, Franklin, and Angry don't continue to be the lemmings you have been so far. Just say no. I know some of you are aspiring to higher office, but this reputation

[07:58:42] is going to be your legacy and we're not going to let it go. Public comments tonight said it all. The proposal's not ready and it's not right. Just say no. Don't rush this to pay back your political debt. Vote no in this lame duck session for any rezoning applications for data centers next to residential areas until all answered questions are addressed.

[07:59:10] Thank you, Ms. Kelly. Next speaker, please. Your next speaker is Neil Kelly. Good morning, fellow residents of Prince William County. My name is Neil Kelly from the Gainesville section.

[07:59:27] Once again, I come before the board and bring up the questions that have been unanswered. We've heard numerous speakers tonight and this morning and this afternoon over and over and over again the questions that have yet to been answered. Why are we in a rush to approve this seems to be the one that comes to mind most.

[07:59:45] Without knowing what we're approving, this is very reminiscent of former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi saying we have to vote on the bill before we can read it. Let's make sure we know what we're getting ourselves into. Let's make sure we know what we are leaving behind for Prince William County.

[08:00:01] For the union members who come and say that they want these projects because of the jobs, they'll get the jobs no matter where the data centers are located. Data centers do not have to be located next to houses, next to schools, next to national battlefields, next to senior communities.

[08:00:21] No matter where these data centers are located, they will get the jobs. As far as the tax revenue goes, once again, we don't know how much money we're going to get from these because the county has not done a full study on it. It's very nice that the Stanley Martin folks want to now include giving the Prince William County people a park at our own expense, of course.

[08:00:44] We would have to develop it and put the infrastructure on for the park. That's very nice, very generous of them, but it's trying to sugarcoat it and give us something that we really don't need right now. If we needed the parks, I'm sure we would have had the money in the budgets to approve these parks.

[08:01:01] That money could have been better spent on the schools in the rest of the county. Everybody says we need these data centers for the schools, so let's concentrate on what we have and what we have to work with, not putting these pipe dreams out there of trying to get this stuff done.

[08:01:18] And as far as the board goes, this will be their legacy. This has been said over and over and over again. This is how people will remember you as they drive through 66 on their way to the other counties of northern Virginia. So please, vote no. Let's put this finally to bed, and this way we all can go to bed.

[08:01:37] So everybody have a good morning. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Kelly. Next speaker, please. Your next speaker is Carmen Todd.

[08:01:58] Hello? Yes, Ms. Todd, we can hear you. Please proceed. Okay. I'm Carmen Todd, and I live in Bransville.

[08:02:14] I think that most of the technical points have been covered. My only concern is because I like forest and I have seen the complete transformation in this area where, you know, all the forests have been turned down and, you know, data centers and parking lots have taken place.

[08:02:42] That is my concern. I want to keep as many forests around here as possible. Now, there is a problem with the, I would like to talk about the widening of the Abeling Road, which is creating a lot more traffic, which will impact our communities.

[08:03:09] Unfortunately, I suffer, which this will invite more traffic and will increase entire type pollution. Unfortunately, I suffer from allergies and other respiratory problems.

[08:03:26] So I see myself spending more money in health care in the Board of Supervisors through replacing all the trees we have around with more and more industrial buildings. My request is that the Board of Supervisors place the health and welfare of the community over the interests of the corporations and denies the resounding application for the Devlin Tech Fund.

[08:03:53] Thank you. Thank you, Ms. Todd. Next speaker, please. Your next speaker is Chris Grove. Sorry, you're muted. We can't hear you currently. I think we can hear you now.

[08:04:31] I would like, okay, thank you. I would like to recommend that the board vote no to this proposed rezoning for Devlin Tech Park. As it has been pointed out multiple times this evening, approval of this proposal sets a dangerous precedence related to items like potentially unenforceable proffers, potentially approving rezoning considerations when an SUP should be in place as per county code.

[08:04:54] This county is no stranger to the unintended effects of precedents set by current and previous board decisions. The allowance of data center development outside of the data center overlay, such as Gainesville Crossing, Village Place, and everything already under construction in Haymarket.

[08:05:11] I feel like I need to remind everyone that on the dais that the only sense of urgency to push this project through is an idea that has been planted in your head by the purveyors and the financier of this project. Nearly every citizen that is not being paid to speak tonight has been in opposition to this project.

[08:05:29] For the board members who are coming back in January, when are you going to start listening to the citizens? This decision will be part of the legacy that you are leaving throughout the entire county. This is not a fire-and-forget exercise.

[08:05:45] You will be subject to the consequences throughout your subsequent term. You will be held to account for this decision you make tonight. Any precedent you've set tonight will come back and bite you in very short order, as you know, as the floodgates for data center development have already been opened in Prince William County. It is time to be strong, be bold, and buck the trend of bad decisions that we continue to make in this county.

[08:06:06] Vote no for Devlin Tech Park. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Grove. Next speaker, please. Your next speaker is Patrick Harders. My name is Patrick Harders in the Gainesville District.

[08:06:22] We all know that this vote should be taking place in the next session and not during this lame duck session, but it's already gone through. When I was a child, I once received a letter from my uncle.

[08:06:41] I was 14 years old, and when you're a kid, it's exciting to get mail, something addressed to you. And at the bottom of it, it just said Mark 836, and it said, what is the profit of man to gain the world but to lose his soul?

[08:06:57] And that's something that always stuck with me, not only eternally, but also in my day-to-day action. Why go and try and get short-term gain or go after money or give up my credibility only for something that is fleeting and isn't going to last? Recently, I was on Stanley Martin's website, and I was noticing that they went through a full mission statement rebuild, where they were really looking at who they are as a company.

[08:07:20] And their mission statement changed. And this is a gut-wrenching thing. My company recently went through this. But their mission is to design and build homes that people love at a price they can afford. Great mission statement. Doesn't say anything about data centers in there. They're already, as the dust is just clearing off this mission statement, abandoning their mission statement, going after a quick flip of property, a ton of money in data centers, throwing money at political candidates with the hope that that money is going to buy votes.

[08:07:52] They also have their core value. We do the right thing. We act with the highest standards of integrity every day. Now we look at that, we know, like, how could you work for a company that they abandon their mission statement and they don't do the right thing and they push this through against the people that live in these communities.

[08:08:08] So I come back to the supervisors. I can go through all the problems with this, but really it comes down to the supervisors and we all know what the votes are going to be. There's two outliers here and two people that can make a difference. First one is Kenny Bodie, Supervisor Bodie. There was one time that I was so proud of the asphalt fight that went on on a night like this.

[08:08:26] And Kenny early on voted against his political party and took an independent stance. We haven't seen that Kenny for a long time. It would be great to see somebody stand up, somebody that says our vote isn't paid for by the biggest donors, but that donation simply just gets you an invitation to discuss your issues, but doesn't give you, you know, the automatic vote as it comes through.

[08:08:54] The other supervisor is Supervisor Franklin. And Ms. Franklin, I've always said I believe you're the most gifted and have probably the best opportunity to move on past this stage. But these are the things that matter. I remember when you came to the battlefield, how important that was and how impactful that was. But these votes are going to matter.

[08:09:14] As people start seeing these data centers get built like we see in Haymarket, and they see this destruction, people who voted for this will not be able to walk down the street, will not be able to run in other political offices when these travesties are happening and this anger is built up.

[08:09:33] Thank you, Mr. Harders. Next speaker, please. Your next speaker is Irene Magnani-Kelly. Can you hear me? Yes, we can, ma'am. Please proceed.

[08:09:48] All right. My first want to thank Supervisors Vega, Supervisors Weir and Lawson for really showing their own fellow supervisors that they have been given legitimate reasons to vote against this zoning regulation change.

[08:10:15] It's hurting people. And I can't imagine that if any supervisor still thinks they can vote yes for this zoning change, ask yourself, why are you doing this if you know it's hurting people?

[08:10:37] Why have you chosen to stick with your position? And I can't come up with anything else but the fact that for some reason, you really want to hurt people.

[08:10:57] You want to inflict some sort of comeuppance justice on your behalf that you believe these people deserve to be hurt. There's nothing wrong with data centers, but certainly they never have and they will never be welcomed in communities with children and families and schools.

[08:11:25] You don't have to go down that road. Our other supervisors have given you legitimate reasons to say, let's put a stop on it. Let's put a wait on it.

[08:11:37] Don't let that road of determined you're going to get your way come into play when innocent people who really just want to live their lives without harm, they don't want gas fumes, they don't want to have power outages, please do what you first originally, and I bet you did when you ran, you wanted to help people.

[08:12:14] please do that please just if for nothing else put it on hold but don't vote yes good night thank you miss magnani kelly next speaker please your next speaker is stephanie caparola hello everybody um i am speaking from bristow um in the background i'm not sure if you can see um my background but um i have the view of what it looks like behind or behind my house um and i know we

[08:12:54] saw the pictures earlier and yes um there were pictures that showed um green greener times um but obviously many times in the year it looks like this and you can see directly um through through the woods so um i am here tonight to say many of the things that a lot of the people that has spoken before me have said that data centers do not belong in residential neighborhoods.

[08:13:24] I'm having to answer questions from my 11-year-old and 14-year-old about why this is happening, and I don't have answers. Also, I'm going to reiterate no noise studies have been done, and they're not able to be enforced. The last meeting that we have, I think, in January or February one of the um Prince William County police officers came in and said they were not able to enforce um the noise ordinance and ordinances um which was very telling and

[08:13:58] nothing has been done since then um again Devlin is not in the overlay district um why are we not requiring the special use permits why are we pushing this through so quickly it seems like we are letting Stanley Martin dictate what's going on why are why are we allowing why are we allowing that um mainly what I'm seeing is that money is unfortunately driving all of this and it

[08:14:33] is really sad to see um the other thing that I want to talk about is um the attorneys that say the parks proffered are not enforceable. I think we all are in agreement tonight that the proffers are not promises. They're not enforceable. So why are we even talking about them? I want to say another thing is Stanley Martin is probably going to light a match.

[08:15:03] They're going to light a match. They're going to throw it and they're going to walk away laughing at all of us um and i don't know why we're not seeing that i mean many of the residents are seeing that but i'm not sure why um the board members are not seeing that so um i want to thank um lawson we're in vega um for sticking up for us and um i want to ask everyone else not to make

[08:15:35] a deal with the devil. Thank you. Thank you, Ms. Caparola. Next speaker, please. Your next speaker is William Caparola. Hi, William Caparola from wherever I live with my wife. So I don't really know what to say other than that I am just so deflated, feel so defeated. I've never seen such

[08:16:08] and an outcry, a pouring of people coming out and standing together and so adamantly saying how they don't want this to affect their community. They don't want this in their community. Nobody's saying no to the data centers. We're saying no to the data centers in our community. It's going to affect our home values. It's going to affect our children's lives. It's not something we want.

[08:16:35] And it's not something that we should have to ask you to even consider voting against. Like, This shouldn't even be a topic. And why it is, I'm so utterly confused on everything, right? It kind of made me laugh when the unions came and spoke and were advocating for their employees.

[08:17:02] It was almost comical to me. Only because I had been looking at the donators who donated to, who was it? Wheeler and Angry and Bodie and Bailey and Franklin and what's funny is they all had the same donator and the ones I looked for was the the uh was the brotherhood of the electrician people because they spoke at the last meeting I spoke at um so between them and Stanley Martin

[08:17:35] those are the two biggest donators along with the toilet guy that spoke before them um and I got nothing against them wanting to advocate for jobs but would they advocate for these jobs if it was next door to their homes i i don't think they would it would be stupid for them to nobody wants to live near that find a place to put these data centers where they're away from people and not in the neighborhoods um family martin they've shown over and over again they're they're just not good people they're they're bad of the soul they're bad of the core um i you know

[08:18:14] i asked the board to really really search your soul when you vote um like i said there's been so many things just from lawson and weir what they said tonight alone should have given you pause and and not even voted to to carry this on tonight you should have shut it down and re-evaluate waited everything just on what those two said alone not not even counting what everybody else like it just baffles my mind i i i feel bad for our our community i feel bad for everybody that lives here and who's affected by this i i really do hope you guys have a change of heart put a

[08:18:51] pause on this and do your due diligence do your research um that's that's all i got just do better thank you mr caparola next speaker please your next speaker is mary rayleigh there i am can you

[08:19:21] guys hear me yes we can please proceed ma'am there i am okay so yes it is early in the morning as you can see, I finally gave up on the ponytail. This is Mary Riley. I live in the Gainesville

[08:19:46] district. I must have some feedback going here. Hold on a second. Yeah. Okay. So I want to just make a couple of points here. And my most important one is the fact that this is all about the data, about where data centers are placed you know i haven't heard anybody get up here and say that data centers aren't something that we need to have that data centers are not important um they are

[08:20:23] they are the you know they are a huge uh driver in you know american life in world life but there's also a place for them and i think that you know the vast majority would sit down and say yes data centers are important, but let's put them where they belong. They don't belong next to homes, next to schools, next to battlefields, next, you know, in the areas that the land use is just totally incompatible. And so I ask you guys to think about, you know, it's placement. It's not

[08:21:01] the data centers. And so why Devlin? Why Digital Gateway? Why put them in places where they don't belong. Put them where they do belong. You wouldn't be getting all of this heat. You wouldn't be getting all the news. You wouldn't be having potential lawsuits. There are so many aspects of this that would just go away and leave so many people happy in their communities, in their homes that they're currently in, in their property values, in their schools, in their health concerns, in the electrical concerns, the water concerns, the environmental concerns.

[08:21:40] And I have spoken to you all many, many times so far on the science issues and the environmental issues that go around and around on this. And those questions remain unanswered, even though they've been posed. The facts have been put before you of what we do currently know.

[08:21:59] And we're still here. It's not about the data centers. It's about where you want to put them. put them where they belong in the overlays away from homes away from historic areas away from battlefields away from our greatest treasures and um that's what i've got to say for you um if you'll uh i was looking to see if my background's on there but it's not but what you would see is two black bears um they're actually out in front of my house uh last year and you know what welcome

[08:22:35] to them. And they're going to get pushed more and more and more as we continue to degrade their environment and push them into ours where they're not happy and we're not happy. So put them where they belong. Say no to this change. And thank you very much for your time. It's time to go to bed.

[08:22:56] Goodbye. Thank you, Ms. Riley. Next speaker, please. Your next speaker is Moshtaba Amin. Hi, can you guys hear me? Yes, we can. Please proceed. Hello and good morning, everybody. My name is Mashaba Amin and I live in the Neabsco district and I'm asking the board to approve the 13A Devlin Tech Park for the opportunity and resources it will provide for our youth sports leagues. The 85 acres

[08:23:32] I think that's included in this project for park use is needed for the youth athletic fields that will come with it. I believe Stanley Martin has proffered the construction of the initial phase of the park, including a parking lot and two fields for use. And through my research, in the first year of operation after approval, the county will generate close to $10 million more in annual tax revenue. And by year 15, the county will generate over $70 million more in annual tax

[08:24:03] revenue. Sorry about that, excuse me. These tens of millions of dollars in new tax revenue are needed to ensure our kids have facilities in line with other northern virginian jurisdictions they compete against they're not only competing with them on the field but they're also competing against them for opportunities i've been coaching youth soccer for over 10 years now and you know from my own experiences i i found it a struggle to find space and competing with other clubs and teams to find space field space has always been an issue the least we can do is try to provide

[08:24:43] the facilities and the tools to maximize their potential. And I truly believe this will benefit the community for the present and also for the future. Thank you for your time and service to our community. Thank you, Mr. Amin. Before we move on, how many more folks do we have signed up?

[08:25:02] There are seven left. Sure. Thank you. Let's proceed. Your next speaker is Shrikant Sharikar. Hi. Can you guys hear me?

[08:25:17] We can. Please proceed. Hi. Thank you. Yeah. So my name is Shrikant. I live in Lenar Farms on Devlin Road, which is close to Seafield Manor and Leighton Hall Road. Every day, I mean, every day I drive on Devlin Road to get my medicine wall, Walgreens, which is on Leighton Hall Road.

[08:25:39] Whenever I pass by the Devlin Road, there are trees. As of now, there are no leaves, so I can see what in the woods. So just imagine 80 feet tall building, you know, in that land. And when you are drive-by, how does it look good right next to the living community?

[08:25:58] That's not a good sign. There are so many disadvantages to it, like environmental impact and then noise and visual pollution, health concerns, as well as the most important aspect of our life, quality of life, the noise, traffic and other disturbances associated with the data center.

[08:26:17] That can diminish the quality of our life and the residents, kids, teenagers, our elderly families, everyone surrounding, you know, residents or the communities living across the Devlin Tech Park going to get affected.

[08:26:36] So I sincerely and, you know, requesting all the board members, I don't want to call out any names or I don't want to point out to anyone. It's just as a resident from Lenar Farms, I'm requesting you guys to say no to this project or at least put a hold, take a step back, review each and every aspect of the applicant which he brought it up, review them and do the risk analysis, risk mitigation, whatever the, and I'm not against data centers.

[08:27:09] But the location of this Devlin Tech Park in the Devlin or near the Devlin Road is not the right location. Put them where they belong. That's the only concern I'm trying to put it out here. I'm not against data centers. I'm just against the current location of the Devlin Tech Park.

[08:27:28] Please move it away to the suitable location. It does not belong in this neighborhood. That is the only concern. So please, I request all the board supervisors to vote against to this Devlin Tech Park and review and get a proper analysis on what needs to be done and how it needs to be done and then move it to the proper right location.

[08:27:55] That would help the Stanlick, a private entity, as well as the residents of this Prince William County, everything. So at the end of the day, what matters is money can come and go, but the good deeds you do will stay forever in the hearts of all the residents.

[08:28:15] It does stay. So actions speak louder than words. So please, please vote against the Devlin Tech Park. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Shadiqar. Next speaker, please. Your next speaker is Luann Reuter.

[08:28:33] Can you hear me? Yes, we can. Please proceed. Hi, I'm Luann Reuter, and I'm from the Brentsville District, and I'm going to make this quick, so I'm just going to read it.

[08:28:58] I've lived in Prince William County for well over 30 years and in Victory Lakes for the past 15. I want to make certain that you know that our family and our neighbors are 100% against the data centers in the proposed Devlin Technology Park. Without going through a laundry list of negative impacts of data centers near a residential area, which you're totally informed already, I'm personally concerned about aesthetics, noise, plummeting housing prices, and changing the character of the county from a rural oasis that we've been living into a checkered industrial belt.

[08:29:36] The box attempt to voice this data center project on the community is not supported by us, our family, or our community. You expect data centers to generate income for the county when, if you would just study Loudoun County's plethora of problems with their data centers not generating the income that was proposed, you would squash the addition of any more data centers.

[08:29:58] As to the aesthetics, we're not persuaded that all developments in building structure and masking the facility will not damage the natural beauty of this area. We understand that everyone wants their data and speedy internet, as do we, but not if it means changing the character of our neighborhoods.

[08:30:14] These data centers would be a blight. Even if the box believe the only alternative to these data centers is more residential development, a denser population, and more traffic and infrastructure needs, we judge that to be vastly preferable to the planned data centers, which will create higher electricity costs for us, and electricity brownouts for the residents of this county, water problems, and possible water shortages, especially during our summer months, it's just not feasible.

[08:30:42] And if the box intent on bringing more data centers to Prince William County, where we already have enough remote area to house those data centers without ruining our homes and neighborhoods, neither we nor our neighbors will vote again for box members who are in favor of proceeding with the Dublin Data Center plan.

[08:31:07] And thank you for listening. good night thank you miss roiner next speaker please your next speaker is james reagan thank you good evening board uh my name is james reagan and i am a resident of sheffield manor in the brentsville district my ham my family's home is a mere stones throw away from this proposed rezoning property apologize i was not able to be there tonight my daughter's eighth birthday was yesterday so i i don't know the exact numbers but i think it's important to to reiterate that i've

[08:31:46] only heard three, I believe three, Prince William County constituents state that they are for this project and the rest of Prince William County constituents against. That is unbelievable. That's got to be something like 75 to three. I don't know the exact numbers, but it's got to be close. And that remains, and that means that there's been unanimous opposition from Brentsville and Gainesville constituents. But I do have a few simple questions. And the first we've heard a

[08:32:19] few times, why do we need to push this through this evening? What is the rush? I don't need to rehash all the outstanding issues with this development. It has been talked about by many of my neighbors. The second question is an important one. Why is Devlin Technology Park being treated differently? We all know, we all know they should be required to acquire a special use permit, but they don't have one. Why are we even considering this proposal? Third, and contrary to what the applicant has stated, Deadland Technology Park will sit at 300 feet of elevation.

[08:32:59] Surrounding neighborhoods, particularly on the east side, sit at 250 feet or less with a steep gradient that exists right along the eastern edge of this proposed rezoned property. Now, do you know what happens when precipitation falls on a mountain? Gravity pushes it down.

[08:33:18] This might come as a shock, but water moves down faster and in larger quantities along a non-absorption substance such as concrete or asphalt than a porous substance like vegetation. We are going to exasperate an already ongoing issue of water running down this parcel of land and flooding our basements if we overrun this parcel with concrete. And fourth, I can't believe I even need to ask this with the Democratic Majority Board, but where on earth are the sustainability and environmental studies on this project? Aren't we supposed to care about those things? What kind of message does this send to the residents of Prince William County? Fifth, What is the board's legacy want to be?

[08:33:58] A board that finally listened to their residents and constituents and did the right thing or a board that just simply followed the money? And finally, why does Stanley Martin want to switch the zoning from residential to light industrial? Is it that they don't want to build homes next to data centers?

[08:34:14] Oh, but it's okay for them to build data centers next to our homes. I thought that was my last question, but for those of you who have children, how can you look your kids in the eyes and explain to them that you were one of the reasons that brought this disaster to so many communities? of families despite being told over and over again by those residents that this was a bad plan.

[08:34:34] Thank you, Mr. Reagan. Next speaker, please. Your next speaker is Paul Cudahy. Good morning. My name is Paul Cudahy. My wife and I live in Gainesville. I want to thank you for the opportunity to speak to you this morning. Before I comment, I want to thank Supervisor Lawson for our excellent service to Prince William County, and also I want to thank Supervisors Vega and Ware for standing in opposition to this project steadfastly. The planned construction of the

[08:35:13] Devlin Technology Park in the midst of numerous residential communities and two schools is totally insane. Even a seven-year-old child knows instinctively that this is a very bad idea. If Stanley Martin thinks this is an ideal setting for 79 data centers, why didn't they propose this originally instead of submitting their plan to build more than 500 houses on this land. As they say, it's all about the money and not about the quality of life of the residents of Bristow and

[08:35:48] Prince William County. Let me give you five good reasons why you should not approve the Devlin Technology Park rezoning application. It does not belong next to residential communities. It does not belong near schools. It is unknown if there will be available power to run it. The location of the buildings and parking lots is unknown, and no studies have been done on the impact of noise from seven and nine contiguous data centers. I urge you to do the right thing for the residents

[08:36:20] of Bristow and vote no on the Devlin Technology Park rezoning application. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Cudahy. Next speaker, please. Your next speaker is Andrea Morton. Good morning, Andrea Morton, Brentsville District, and I wanted to touch on one of the main questions, which is why the rush for not the solely for corporate interests.

[08:36:52] Shouldn't we make sure we have enforceable measures in place before any more data centers are approved? Something that stuck out to me at the meeting is that Stanley Martin refused to keep land bay A as A1 agricultural and also to keep it out of the data center overlay.

[08:37:11] They want to take the whole parcel and make it all M1 as well as all in the data center overlay. So my question for you is how can we feel any protection as residents here? There was talk of making sure that development is sensitive to surrounding residential, and that doesn't seem sensitive.

[08:37:33] 81 feet is not sensitive. It's not sensitive to anything but profit. And it seems like overall the goal here in this plan is to maximize flexibility for the applicant and the end user so that they can kind of do whatever they want to do to maximize their profit.

[08:37:54] when they build this. We don't have a lot of details. But how does that not translate to keeping every avenue open to take advantage of the area as much as they can while leaving citizens with no recourse to object? So we're asking at this point, where are the protections for the people? We only have to look at Great Oak and Hornbaker, Village Tech Park to see that the unintended consequences are real. They're tangible. And it feels like we're just watching developers being given permission to basically kind of bulldoze over our communities um i want to

[08:38:31] thank supervisors who've come out and met with residents i know a number of you have at this point um last spring i want to thank miss lawson for the town halls um and for gathering the community to continue to speak and talk and um hash out issues about this project i want to point out this is not political it's not a party line issue it's our lives and it's our children's health and safety. And I really want you to take a look at everyone's motivation here tonight.

[08:38:58] The people who are in support of this project are motivated by money and making absolutely as much profit as they can. But the people who are here speaking against it, we're the people who live here. We're not motivated by money. We're trying to protect our homes, our families, our schools, and we are begging you to represent us and protect us as citizens and protect thousands of families that will be impacted by this in some way and thank you for letting me speak tonight good night thank you miss morton are there any other speakers miss man yes there are three more all right let's

[08:39:35] proceed your next speaker is taisha king hi my name is taisha king and i'm a gainesville resident my family moved to sheffield manor back in 2004 it was a place we called home for 14 years i'm speaking out against this because this is a travesty to see data centers put near the elementary school that my son went to is, to say the least, disturbing. This area is not where they belong.

[08:40:03] The one thing that Prince William County Board and the shady data center industry have in common is they're not big on the truth. They submit half-baked applications as the board turns a blind eye. This industry has put a carrot in front of your noses that Prince William County will never catch. The only ones that benefit from a yes vote are the developer and the five of you. You literally have residents begging and pleading with you to vote no to protect their quality of life.

[08:40:31] So please don't put temporary jobs over permanent residents. Thank you. Thank you, Ms. King. Next speaker, please. Your next speaker is Sharmika Martin. Hi, everyone. Thank you so much for the time tonight. I align with so many of my neighbors against the digital data centers. I am a parent here in the Brentsville area and my child goes to Christian Elementary and just so you are aware and I don't know if many of you are Christian Elementary right now is campaigning and fundraising

[08:41:09] for an outdoor classroom an outdoor classroom I don't know how many of you want to put your children in an outdoor classroom outside of a data center I know I don't I know that that's the kind of children that we're raising. That's the community that we live in. When we want to promote outdoor activity, physical activity, engagement, nature, we have these beautiful lands, the battlefields and so forth that really are here to support our families and to support our children. I grew up here in this area. I left and I came back here to raise my family and I raised them for all of the reasons why a lot of you probably moved

[08:41:45] here. It's beautiful. The land is beautiful. We have so much to do. There's so many different places to play. The playgrounds are nice. All of these things are impacted if we bring in these data centers. I think it's important to note that when we talk about sports and physical activities, I have two very active children on the western side of Prince William County. There are plenty of places for them to play, but that is because we have playgrounds, we have schools, we have parks and recreation, we have sports centers, we have plenty of places to play. The sports centers that they're offering are not guaranteed. The jobs that they're offering are temporary, and they are

[08:42:21] temporary to many of you who are voting as well. None of you guys that are voting for this live here. You don't live here. The people who are in favor of it, they don't live here. The jobs that they're promising are actually very temporary. Once this is built, once it's done, all of those people move on to the next project. So for many of you guys, it's just a project. For us, this is are life. This is where we bought homes. This is where our kids grow up. This is the air that we're breathing every single day. And I really want to employ you to do your research. There are things that are important to you guys on the board. I know that some of you have volunteered with Boys

[08:42:59] and Girls Club and you're feeding the homeless and you're doing all these things, but you're doing these things because you wanted a better community. And so do we. I agree with many of my neighbors that we're not saying no to data centers. Prince William County is known for many things, the battlefield, the land, the wonderful restaurants, the beautiful communities, do we have to also be known for the largest data center in the country? Does that really align with who we want to be as a county? And I also want to end with this one thing. Oftentimes, I work across the community to create piloting programs that bring in solutions for housing, food, and education.

[08:43:39] I'm not a SME in any of those things. We call SMEs subject matter experts. To my knowledge, none of you guys on the board are SMEs. None of you are. The people that live in this community, the people that live on this side, we're SMEs. This is our neighborhood. The folks that have been opposed to this, the environmental...

[08:43:57] Thank you, Ms. Martin. Your time is up. Next speaker, please. Your next speaker is Paula Daly.

[08:44:17] Good morning. My name is Paula Daly, and I live in the Gainesville District. First of all, I'd like to thank Supervisor Rear. It is lovely to have a representative in the Gainesville District again. And also Supervisors Lawson and Vega for their support in all of our efforts here to forestall data centers in incompatible places.

[08:44:46] I'm going to make this really short this evening. Nearly everyone that has spoken here tonight is not here because they moved next to an industrial center. They're here because you are putting an industrial zone next to them.

[08:45:07] This is a failure of government. Your idea at the beginning with the target industry and the data center overlay, that was a good fit. You had compatible zoning and you were increasing your commercial tax base, which is a valuable thing to do.

[08:45:26] But data centers then, several years ago, their average size lot was 22 acres. They were small, 100,000 square feet. Now they're huge, and they do not want to be on a 22-acre or 100-acre plot of land.

[08:45:47] They want hundreds of acres and thousands of acres to build many, many data centers, okay? probably nine on Devlin Tech Park, and as many as 37 I hear now on the Prince William Digital Gateway.

[08:46:10] The failure happened in the transition when you started moving them out of the data center overlay. You failed to do your due diligence. We started investigating data centers over two years ago, And it didn't take much to learn that the evidence existed for power use.

[08:46:37] There were countries in Europe that were banning data centers because of the power management that they took. Also, water and noise, all of those things we have brought forward to the board for two years. And you did not do your due diligence, and that is the reason we are here tonight.

[08:46:56] So tonight has been an example of a colossal waste of time on your part and on the part of all the people who have had to show up over the last two years, in particular for the DeDevlin Park this evening, but also for the Prince William Digital Gateway.

[08:47:18] I have no doubt how the vote will go this evening. That could be told by the lack of questions by the five. Thank you, Ms. Daley. Are there any other speakers, Ms. Mann? No, not at this time.

[08:47:37] all right thank you so much for your assistance and have a good night back to you madam chair thank you very much this will officially close the public hearing on item 13a i would ask if board members had additional questions supervisor lawson you indicated you had additional questions for the applicant yep i do i have a series of them for staff and the applicant um let's start with back to the park i mean this is called devlin technology park so let's kick this part off with

[08:48:13] the park and land bay a and the proffers miss Cameron I referred to the zoning ordinance during the public hearing and and confident that you're you're amending the proffer regarding land bay a and the two requests that you declined earlier would would be acceptable it's it's allowable by section

[08:48:47] thirty two - seven hundred point four three so can can you I don't have that zoning ordinance section can give me one second to pull it up sure thank you essentially I'll well while you're pulling it up essentially for the public sake allows the board to amend a case such as this that we're hearing for approval of a less intense use amended and i would ask that you proffer to take the land

[08:49:25] for land bay a out of the m2 rezoning request as well as the overlay district and either keep it the plant is it what is the zoning right now i know it's residential pmr pmr matter of fact the dale city rec center down minnieville road which is a public prince william county owned

[08:49:51] center is currently zoned for pmr chen aquatic center is zoned a1 so we don't have to have m2 we can have less intense use and we can do it tonight give me one second i'll get back to you on that another is there another question that i don't have to go back to him on oh we're going to have a lot of dialogue. And then I believe you were working on some requests.

[08:50:23] Proffer changes? Yep. Give me one second, Supervisor. Sure. The applicant is going to keep the proffers and the data center overlay district the same.

[08:50:45] We've specifically proffered that this use can only be for public parks and open space, and that is a guarantee as part of the proffers. It would require a proffer amendment to go ahead and change that to something else, but that would be the same thing if it stayed A1 or PMR. You would still have to go through something else another zoning to change that so we're keeping the proffers the same well I appreciate your comment that it's a guarantee but you and I both know and you as an attorney know that it's not a guarantee because there are strong concerns about a nexus and the end user who the applicant has already said multiple times he doesn't know who

[08:51:21] it will be could just like the Albemarle case decide that they do not want to proffer the land to the county nor the five million dollars and we will end up with nothing other than possibly a strong possibility of more data centers there that's that's that's exactly why i'm asking you to proffer change this proffer so that the county and the community have protected interests that will stand up in the court of law we understand that the board and the community we've heard a lot

[08:51:56] about whether or not there's a nexus the applicant believes that there is a sufficient nexus for this public park it's identified in your master plan for parks and recreation data center employees do have the ability to use the park as a public park the difference between abermal in here is that abermal did not have the applicant and the attorney at the public hearing specifically saying that they believe that there is a nexus if there was and your concern is that stanley martin sells the property and there's a new developer exhibit a for the county attorney is going to be this

[08:52:31] exact presentation confirming that the applicant has agreed that there is a nexus for this where's your analysis of that we we looked at specifically what does the parks and open space master plan say that's not what i asked and what we analogized is that it identified the need for public parks in this area the applicant believes that there is specific for an indoor rec we did not our proffer does not say indoor rec supervisor lawson our proffer specific all over the staff

[08:53:10] report our proffer specifically says for parks and recreational purposes the parks and rec master plan identified the need for additional recreational fields an indoor recreational facility and additional outdoor baseball fields i believe your client is on record in multiple occasions including staff report communication so much so that the staff included in the report that it would uh it that there was likely a strong likelihood or whatever

[08:53:45] the specific language was for indoor rec your your your client answered community questions and promoted it even cited USTA a partnership I mean you're not worth this but that was I'm sorry not done or Jonelle your client is on multiple occasions your client is on multiple occasions suggesting that this would be for indoor park and rec and my question to you is where is the analysis that proves that there is a nexus that that proves that there is a nexus so that i can

[08:54:24] be confident that your end user will not be able to bail on this dangling big fat carrot that y'all have been waving the last few months so a couple of statements clarifications um everything i've reference regarding this parcel has been referenced back to the actual language and text from the parks master plan the parks parks and rec master plan references usta because at the time you guys were when the when the master plan was put together usta was over innovation before they pulled out

[08:54:58] and went to loudon county um it literally wasn't a commitment to usta it is it is a verbatim text from the Parks and Master Plan that speaks to USTA, outdoor recreation, indoor recreation, passive open spaces. So it's not a commitment that we've made that said this is going to be an indoor recreation facility. We're relying on the Parks Master Plan regarding what the uses could be. So that's your proper analysis? Is that your proper analysis? When you say

[08:55:32] proffer analysis i mean i'm okay so i'm just saying that i'm only staff evaluated i'm only speaking to my statements that you were referencing well i asked her i asked your attorney a moment or two before about a proffer analysis and i didn't get a clear answer we did not do an official proffer analysis thank you that's my point that is exactly my point which means you have not proved that there is a nexus like you have analysis on other matters baked into this rezoning that's my whole point i cannot i cannot be assured the public cannot be assured that your proffer on land

[08:56:11] bay a is strong and restrictive and is going to deliver what you are putting on paper today a speaker said earlier tonight consider it vapor because i know and i won't be duped into thinking that it's a strong proffer that that the county attorney's office can enforce and it's my responsibility to make sure I'm protecting the interest of the county and the community for certain when we when we agree to proffers this isn't a this is a proffer that has huge red flags

[08:56:49] all over it and I'm asking you to cooperate with me to to make this better and your client continues to decline therefore I'm left to believe that the worst is yet to come a bait and switch that's exactly what this feels like a bait and switch all right let's move on I think we got our answers crystal clear there a couple other things that were talked about tonight in the public hearing

[08:57:21] let's talk about blasting there there are I appreciate that you're proffering like blasting pre-surveys and and 500 feet notices to certain communities but there are other communities that absolutely are very close by that have have strong concerns about blasting that i believe

[08:57:49] need to be included in your proffer blasting so typically um and we can use uh saybrook as a reference point recently we were working on the uh our woodland neighborhood in the princeville district, a lot of intense blasting adjacent to an existing community. We set up the proffers where we have a 500-foot range where we do pre-inspections and post-inspections during the blasting process as well as monitoring in order to understand what is happening between

[08:58:28] our project and that 500-foot area. It's a large piece of property and there's a lot of you know, communities nearby, obviously. I don't think that it would be odd if there was blasting on the site. If there was problems in that 500-foot area and somebody had an issue on the other side, it's very clearly attributable to what was happening on site. However, if there wasn't,

[08:59:04] you have this whole area of a testing area that's been tested that you would know whether or not there were problems or not. It becomes cumbersome for both the developer and the county to manage pre and post inspection surveys of thousands of homes. So we've got a giant area here that we're talking about doing, but I'm not willing to, because I don't, it's not willing, it's, I don't see the need to go further than where we already are, being is that we're already, I don't know, two or three times further than what the fire marshal's office already requires i was just

[08:59:42] going to ask you so has anybody with geology expertise uh not not to diss the fire marshal office because they're the ones that grant the permits for the blasting um but this is a corridor that and this rezoning tonight is land that was decades ago considered for a rock quarry indeed so i live nearby i know uh what blasting is like because when glenkirk estates and other

[09:00:20] neighborhoods by bridlewood where i have lived for almost 30 years um you know was being developed i remember being at home in the afternoons when my china cabinet would rattle i remember those days well um i want to be sensitive to the communities all around there agreed they they have been experiencing blasting from mango which you know is i don't want to put a number on it but i'm guessing more than 500 feet away um i i don't know if you but within not to interrupt you but

[09:00:57] within that 500 feet away was there was there any commitment to testing so well well so back to my point so but the reason why i think this is so serious is because this corridor absolutely is deep with rock agreed and you know that um that's why i i'm wondering did somebody with you know a geology expertise say oh yeah 500 feet will get you there or is there a possibility that

[09:01:33] we need to expand that radius and that's my whole point. I don't think that expanding it's super helpful. The existing project doesn't have the 500 feet at all and the existing project as it's well that's why I'm learning from my mistakes. No no I'm just a point of reference is that that project has not only blasting the level of the site but blowing holes in 516 basements theoretically. I would assume, and this is an assumption because I'm not in the fire marshal's office, but they do deal with blasting quite often. They do deal with blasting in this area

[09:02:11] quite often, and they're well aware of the areas where they have problems and where they don't have problems and how far away those are because we deal with them all the time. Like I said, we were immediately adjacent to Saybrook, and while we did a significant amount of blasting there, There was no damage from any of the homes that was documented.

[09:02:31] But the rock may not be as deep there. I don't know. It's all very close to the surface, and it's all a dye-based material. It's really hard. Okay, I believe you to a degree, but what I do know is your land at one time was under consideration for a quarry.

[09:02:49] I don't know if where, you know, down by Youth for Tomorrow was. Yes, agreed. But I know that we blasted an incredible amount of rock, But my point in all that is, is that if there is something that happens within that 500 feet, it's indicative of a problem, and there are people on the outside of that, it's going to come back to the developer.

[09:03:07] Okay, so let's, what about the people that are 600 feet away? Let's pull up the aerial that shows the residents of, there are a lot of folks, Sheffield Manor tonight, Victory Lakes. I know right now you have Lanier Farms, Amberley, and Silverleaf included.

[09:03:27] I think you're going to go to an exhibit, probably our setback exhibit, that's 500 feet from the buildings. This is 500 feet from the property lines, which is different because you've got 500 feet from the buildings on the exhibit, plus the 200-foot buffer, plus whatever parking and other areas in between.

[09:03:43] So you're significantly further than what you're seeing on the exhibit with regard to where 500 feet off the edge of the property line actually is. Okay, so Bridalwood Manor and Catholics for Housing, they were absolutely concerned. Okay. um Crossman's Creek all those all those you know communities there and there's a blend of them sure that are really close to your your property line on the Devlin side right they need to be protected and again if they're within 500 feet if there's at 600 feet and there's a problem within 500 feet

[09:04:19] and they have a problem it's going to have to be dealt with yeah but but you're not you're not going to prop for that if they're 502 feet away and have a problem they're out of luck they're not out of luck how do i know that because you've got a fire marshal's office that monitors every one of the shots that are taken yeah but you haven't done a survey there's a whole process and what if the fire marshal office goes out there and says this is from settling of your home from 20 years ago you know i don't know mr young i'm just trying to protect sure the residents understand and we feel that the fire marshal's current requirements we went a significant step further

[09:04:59] to 500 feet and that should feel comfortable for the community so we go up to 750 feet i wouldn't i i go up to 600 feet i mean i i don't know what 600 feet looks like i will make you a deal i'll go back and talk to my engineer who's got a plan and can kind of give me an idea of how far out 600 feet goes just so i know what it looks like sure i wouldn't want to make the decision on the fly i appreciate that we're going to be here for a while so i appreciate that um so the balloon test um the balloon test was was flown around i think it was like late summer of

[09:05:34] 22 now it's winter the the the public made um you know some comments about the concerns of visibility now that the the trees are bare um i think that uh that's a fair point to make do you have any visuals that you can show does staff have any visuals of visibility when uh it's winter time we do not have any um images of the images when images from when it's winter time but what we have

[09:06:09] done is provided upgraded architecture and fenestration when the buildings are visible to show you what that would be able to look like you had a question earlier can you do more than 25 percent we can do 30 percent but we also realize looking at the proffer that we left off devlin road in linton hall road so we can change that proffer to 30 percent and include visible from devlin road in linton hall road what what page in the proffers is that i think it was toward

[09:06:49] the beginning it is it's proffer it's on page four of the proffers at the very top so the proffer would read once you find it let me know i'm on page four go ahead okay um the applicant shall include four of the design elements listed there on principal building facades and include a minimum of change 30 fenestration on a building facade facing invisible from the amberley station and

[09:07:26] silverleaf communities linton hall road devlin road or university boulevard okay so you're going add linton hall and devlin road thank you because i didn't catch that either all right you guys catching that plan i'll hand that as well um okay and you said you're you're going up to 30 percent

[09:07:55] from 20 yeah yes um go ahead 600 feet's fine thank you it's better than 500 feet sure um okay okay and supervisor just so you know there are a bunch of other people waiting to ask questions and so i'm just meeting a bunch of other board members yes so i'm just okay i appreciate

[09:08:28] that um i uh as long as we're gonna is does anybody have a question on grading and elevation okay i do you do you want me to hold off it's just more about how it pertains to linking it to the sound walls on the other screen okay i'll let you do it um okay so let me uh let me ask one more time would your client consider land bay a remove the proffer for park and rec

[09:09:04] and simply proffer to keep it as an undisturbed buffer no why we would proffer it to be left as parks and open space whether it's dedicated or not and with the hopes that we'd be able to figure out how to actually get a park built there at some point if we don't feel like it's done through this process we'll do it you know with the county work separately i appreciate that but you're going

[09:09:37] to be long gone when there's a chance for a park and and rec space or there and you know i'm i'm concerned i'm concerned the distinction hold on hold on i'm concerned the distinction is is that it's being proffered as parks and open space regardless of who owns it it can't be built upon and it's proffered that way but but i'm not gonna look we're not gonna continue to beat this horse we all know that your proffer is weak it is the dedication portion of the proffer i believe is

[09:10:11] what you were calling out as being weak not the actual designation there's a difference it's not enforceable um there there's case law it's been referenced there's case law i can't dedication i can't not as far as i can't i'm not going to go any further other than to tell you that i have very strong concerns about this proffer and the enforceability and that there's no proven proffer analysis. The staff did a great job of pointing out to the board and the public the concerns of

[09:10:46] the deficiency. I've tried to get you guys to work with me, and you continue to to reject object to my request so my last request to you in this case for for land bay a is would you consider proffering changing the proffer to 85 acres of an undisturbed buffer and then we

[09:11:19] obviously don't have the the worry of the nexus um i i think that you're on designation not dedication i think you're conflating the two that if we dedicate it that seems to be a problem with the nexus if we designate it whether it be designated as buffer whether it be designated as parks and open space it's immaterial am i right take it away um okay honestly if you what did you say well neither are you madam chair i i think there was a question i just

[09:11:57] want to I don't actually I actually like what the lady said virtually a little while ago which was that none of us up here are the subject matter experts and you know I don't know exactly what Mr. Young was trying to say about dedicate and and designate but I just want to make sure that I'm doing all I can to protect the interests of the county the community and my last request on

[09:12:29] land bay a was would you consider changing the proper to an undisturbed buffer you continue to be the property owner and the response from mr. young was no we don't care whether or not you decide that it cannot be dedicated but we would still like for the designation of the property to be parks and open space i understand that and like i've told you over and over again you can

[09:13:01] you can call it designate but a year from now there's a there's a possibility that it won't ever be turned over to the county for park and rec because of what i've already laid out multiple times about the enforceability concerns um so i thought well you know at least we'd get an 85 foot undisturbed buffer or i mean 85 acres of undisturbed buffer at least we could get that

[09:13:34] out of it you continue to be the property owner and you could dedicate it you you proffer it call it whatever verb you want with that starts with a d but i'm calling it a proffer of an undisturbed 85 acre buffer what do you think madam chair i have questions for the planning staff if i could just ask i mean you know part of the issue with the the case was with um you know uh proffers was the dedication of something.

[09:14:05] When someone puts a plan or a planning plan in, and we're not talking about giving the county any land or anything like that, can they mark on their own plan parks and open space and we can hold them to that? It's part of their plan as opposed to they're not dedicating it, so there's no question about whether it's a legal dedication to us that is unenforceable.

[09:14:30] If they mark it on their plan as parks and open space, that goes with the land. Is that correct? Well, I'm thinking it would be preferred to be a little more specific than that because they're dedicating land.

[09:14:47] You can have a restrictive covenant. It may not transfer as clearly and as cleanly as you're thinking if they just mark it up on the plan. I'm trying to follow. But I guess that's different than a dedication where they're dedicating the land to the county if they're i mean part of the issue that she was bringing up was that the issue of dedication and that that might not be enforceable even though they're saying there's a nexus and in law there would be um i'm trying to understand the difference between designating something on a plan versus not designating i mean you have open space there they're designating it as open space sure yeah well i mean if you're dedicating you're you're

[09:15:25] You're basically, you know, as it says, dedicating for that use. But so dedicating is different because they're going to give it to us. I'm just talking about designating. Do you understand the difference? Yes. Yeah. Maybe I mean, because I. Yeah, so when you, if you write on your MZP or your GDP that it's open space, then that's a zoning restriction that you're placing through that zoning document that's proffered.

[09:15:57] um so it's it's the same effect as zoning it to an open space use and that would be the use parks and open space would be the only use for that piece of property if that's what is proffered but the key word is proffer and that's why i kept saying well let's just not talk let's not dissect dedication versus designate um because the key word is the proffer and that's what my whole point is is that we've you know we've got I've got concerns about the enforceability of that proffer

[09:16:37] um I mean we've of the dedication sessions about it so I'm not going to repeat what was said in closed session but that's that's the concern I mean whether you take whatever verb you want it's baked into a proffer and that's the problem which is why I asked the applicant to just say okay well we'll take that proffer off and then we'll just keep the 85 acres but it will remain

[09:17:07] undisturbed as a buffer do you see I think there's a vast difference from what Mr. McGinnigan is saying and what you're saying about unenforceable proffers that are being dedicated and given to the county I don't I don't so I I don't believe that that there is a vast difference he he used the word proffer, it's designate or dedicate, it's still in a proffer. Unless you're talking about the deed, the deed of the property, is that what Ms. Cameron was trying to explain? Because the

[09:17:45] deed and the proffer are two different things. So your concern is with the proffer of dedication and what the applicant is saying is for another separate proffer that says this is going to be used for parks and open space that is enforceable because that's part of the the zoning document that says it's open space open space is designated on on plans all the time and that is cannot be used for anything but open space okay well then david why does your as the acting planning director

[09:18:25] Why does your staff report have the strong concerns about this proffer? About the dedication proffer. I'm sorry? About the proffer of dedication.

[09:18:42] Hold on, I'm getting it. Page 36. Mr. Meyer did a good job earlier tonight of spelling it out. This is a public document. Proffer issues and deficiencies, and it's all related to land bay A.

[09:18:59] So are you not familiar with the staff report? It says, there's the word, dedicating land bay A.

[09:19:27] As per proffer number 35, this is on page 36 under proffer issues and deficiencies, there's the word dedicate. As per proffer number 35, the applicant is, quote, dedicating land bay A. Maybe I said designate earlier, my bad.

[09:19:44] It's dedicate to the Board of County Supervisors for future passive and active park and rec purposes. we don't need to keep spinning our wheels over and over on this everybody gets it it's a huge red flag it's a concern that's because if they don't dedicate it fine they'll just designate it and it'll go with a proffer and it'll be enforceable thank you oh so you're saying so so you're saying that the word designate now fixes it and even in well let's look to miss

[09:20:17] roble and see what she says no i mean we did we're no no i i think that this is yeah we we definitely need to hear from the county attorney would like to hear legal advice we can go into closed session let's go to closed session great that's great we'll go oh do we have to do something before we do that go in a closed session for legal advice with regards to land use law and with regards to rezoning 2020 2022-00022 devlin technology park and i i would ask that the closed

[09:20:52] pursuant to 2.2 - 37 11 a 8 of the code of Virginia so move second but she made by supervisor Bailey seconded by I think it was supervisor we're I would ask that the planning at least the acting planning director attend as well seeing no further discussion please vote no this is we'll go directly in the closed

[09:21:26] session and be back. Back from closed session if I could get a motion to

[09:25:22] certify please. So moved Madam Chair. Second. Motion made by Supervisor Bailey seconded by Vice Chair Bodie. Any discussion? Seeing none please vote. Vote unanimous. Would you like to proceed Supervisor Lawson and then maybe we can get some other people in there. Yeah thank you Madam Chair. Thank you everybody. I'm sorry that we had to go into closed session but I'm glad that we

[09:25:50] did. So if I could have the applicant come up and we're going to revisit the discussion we had right before we went into closed session. And I hope that my colleagues will support me in this request. And if you have anything you would like to weigh in on before the answer, please do so.

[09:26:21] Would you change proffer number one, the GDP, general development plan, to designate open space? I'm sorry, land bay A. Thank you.

[09:26:39] Not parks and open space, just open space. Open space. Okay. Yes. Okay. And remove proffers 35 and 36. Yes. Okay. So what we will do, just so we're on the same page, is make the revisions to the proffers.

[09:26:59] if there's more that comes and can we take a five minute recess because i like michelle to look at the proffers beforehand yeah but we do have a full-size copy of the plans today so we can cross out the reference to park dedication and public park on the general development plan and we can sign it for today's date but i just want to make sure everybody is on the same page with that is what we are going to do so i'm saying it to you all in the public hears that as well so okay so

[09:27:30] to be clear that's change your GDP our GDP for land bay a currently says and if you give me a second I can pull it up just so you can see it if you would like sure but the GDP for land bay a currently says public park slash open space to be dedicated to the county for public park purposes we would cross out public park and we would cross out to be dedicated to the county for public park

[09:28:09] purposes do you see where it says that just say open space yes so cross out public parks so it'll be main it'll be owned and maintained by the applicant it is this is not land so it will be designated as open space correct and who maintains ownership of the land the applicant a subsequent owner okay that's as part of this proffer because we would remove proffer 35 what you just asked for

[09:28:44] which was the public park dedication we would remove proffer 36 which you just asked for which was the five million dollar monetary contribution okay and then of course that will change your computation of other things related it would not why because it's open space so the far is calculated on the property as a whole but it's but this isn't for the public purpose even if it's not for the public purpose it's still considered open space and open space is part of your overall

[09:29:16] far calculations what's what's the uh can can somebody from planning help me out i thought the far calculation was all tied to dedication for public space uh so or public use so uh section 32 400.04 of the zoning ordinance general floor area ratio regulations uh floor ratio shall be

[09:29:52] determined by dividing the gross floor area of all buildings on the lot by the total area of the lot In calculating, and this is part, that was one. And part two, in calculating the permitted FAR for the site, the total area of the lot shall not be reduced by the area to be dedicated for public street or other public purposes.

[09:30:13] So if it's their land, then it can be used in their FAR calculation. If, even if it were dedicated as a public park, it still can be used in their FAR dedication. So either way, it can be used in their FAR calculation.

[09:30:32] Okay. So do you want to take a few minutes to? I figure that there may be, you were the first round of comments.

[09:30:50] I don't know if any other supervisors, based on their questions, would have additional proper revisions. So I would rather make everything all at once, if that's okay with you. Okay. Well, go ahead, because I know a few other. Okay. We have Supervisor Weir, Supervisor Bailey, Supervisor Franklin, Supervisor Bodie, so Supervisor Weir, and just if everybody could be cognizant of the fact that there are people waiting to speak also.

[09:31:21] You need to turn your microphone on. Sorry. It's like Zoom calls when you forget to unmute. Just to clarify some rationales here because it may come into play later on.

[09:31:38] Earlier you noted that the red line and blue line changes to the proffers were at the behest of staff correct yes and that the you had determined the nexus of the park land to the data center usage correct yes when was that nexus calculated we sent a i grabbed the

[09:32:09] wrong binder give me one second and as we stated earlier we didn't do a complete analysis of the

[09:32:23] parks and rec but we had a resubmission to the county in our september 13th resubmission

[09:33:33] Okay, so that's when you came up with the nexus in September. The reason I ask is this. If you look at the original narrative statement that's now blue-lined, the July 1, 2022 narrative statement under Parks and Open Space, you state, and I quote, the proposed rezoning will have no impact on Parks and Open Space.

[09:33:54] So between July of 2022 and September of 2023, you've suddenly flipped it to now there is a nexus for a requirement. Did that come at the behest, or should I say request, of the county?

[09:34:10] It did not. That was a specific thing that we looked at when we looked closer at the Parks Master Plan. You just told me that all these proffer changes came as a direct result of county input. I told you that the latest set of proffers, which were dated November 6th, those changes were based on county's input, but we didn't change the date.

[09:34:35] So we really submitted those proffers to Scott. I don't know if you have the date, but essentially it was last Tuesday. So we did not update those proffers, but we did provide a red line that showed the changes.

[09:34:51] So there was a red line. So when was this blue line dedication created? When you see on the narrative statement, that was November 6th, and we provided that to staff so they can have an updated narrative for the staff report to really see the changes and support.

[09:35:12] Okay. Maybe I'm not, maybe I'm not clear. It's getting late. What was the impetus? But we did just agree to remove the park dedication. I understand that. Okay. But what I'm curious is what was the impetus for creating the now disposed of Prophers 35 and 36?

[09:35:34] The applicant looked at the park's master plan and understood that we weren't doing anything with this property. But is there something that we could do that would be a public benefit? And that's how we came up with that conclusion. Mr. Meyer, keep this in order.

[09:35:56] I think part of the confusion lies in the language of the proffer statement dated November 6th and your staff report.

[09:36:14] And I'm going to just assume this is a result of you being under a time crunch that I find unacceptable. But if you look at the November 6th proffer change, one of the delineations or one of the changes with respect to the parks that we've spent all this time on is that the language in the proffer was changed from which will include an indoor recreational facility to the county which the county may build an indoor recreational facility.

[09:36:49] But if you look at your staff report, it still includes, which will include an indoor recreational facility, and that was what was published and reviewed by the public as part of the packet, correct? Yes, that is correct.

[09:37:04] Yeah, it should be referring to the very latest version of the proffers. So the fact that it was published referring to an earlier version, Scrivener's Error, Overlook, I'll accept either one. Mr. McGatigan, earlier we were talking about the requirement for an SUP, the manner in which this was, in my view, circumvented by this rezoning language.

[09:37:43] Can you explain to me how the language used to accommodate or to accomplish the SUP requirement takes into account the requirement for such things as hours of operation, number of employees, off-street parking designations, consideration of the GDP and master zoning plan components sufficient for an orderly and expeditious review, particularly given that we're now changing the GDP?

[09:38:13] Or do we, like I guess the question is, does this process actually accomplish the goals and the requirements of the SUP application? And if it doesn't, how can doing this by rezoning language obviate the need for the SUP?

[09:38:38] If the, usually an SUP is because that particular use has impacts that need to be looked at in the legislative process.

[09:38:59] And typically with data centers, that is the design, the electric transmission line proximity and so forth. Those are the things that are in the overlay district that would not need to be enforced through the special use permit process.

[09:39:25] And so hours of operation isn't something that we typically look at. But that doesn't comport with 32700.52 with the review process for an application for special use permit, which requires concordance with 32700.41, 4243 of this chapter, and a variety of other things in section 720.1245 and 4 and 6, I believe, for consideration of any SUP.

[09:40:04] So, again, are we following the process or are we not? And I would argue we are not. You don't know. Fine. Thank you. supervisor Bailey David could you you were about to could you expand on what I mean just expand on what you were about to say because I think I had the same question as Bob but you were about to explain it could you just expand on that

[09:40:36] please for me yes so so the list of requirements for a special use permit is As Supervisor Weir puts out, explained lengthily, it includes a lot of things like hours of operation, for example.

[09:40:57] But that is a list. It can be modified, I believe, by the planning director. But it's a general catch-all list. The factors that you need to look at in a special use permit for a data center are the same things that are being looked at in the rezoning, and that's why the rezoning can take the place of the special use permit, in my opinion.

[09:41:32] Okay, so I appreciate that explanation. So that says to me there was no special compensation or, you know, arrangements made for this particular project. It's just how you decipher the requirements.

[09:41:48] Is that what you're saying? Right. Okay, so there was nothing special done for this particular project. I think that needed to be clear. Okay, all right, I'm good with that. So the other, I'm on point with that, David? Okay. So the other question that I have was, and Jonel, this may be you or it may be David, the noise, in your presentation you talked about the noise adjustments that you had made.

[09:42:18] Could you kind of, in layman's terms, explain that a little bit? Because you went through the slide kind of fast, and I just want to make sure, from your perspective, it's clear to us and to the community. Yes, ma'am. So as you decide on noise, currently noise is regulated by the noise ordinance.

[09:42:36] It's a separate ordinance in the county's code. The noise ordinance is enforced by Prince William County Police. What we decided, based on feedback that we heard on Great Oaks, is there needs to be additional enforcement mechanisms for Prince William County. So what we did was we proffered the noise ordinance into our proffers. So essentially, if you are not in compliance with those proffers for noise, those decibel levels for noise, in addition to it being an enforcement mechanism for the police, it's now an enforcement mechanism for the county where it

[09:43:14] could be a proffer violation if you are above those noise ordinance sections. So the first thing I read was the decibel levels for noise that match Prince William County's noise ordinance. Separately, what we did is the county's noise ordinance doesn't account for tonal noise.

[09:43:33] And what we heard from Great Oaks, and I don't want to speak for everybody, but sometimes the issue wasn't the noise level because the levels were in line with the county's noise ordinance requirements. The issue was a constant hum. So what we did is we proffered to prevent that constant hum.

[09:43:53] We then said we will do studies. So we will do a modeling study before the building is constructed, and that study takes into consideration the layout of your building, the design of your building.

[09:44:09] And that study would come back and they would model it. So it's a predictive model. It would predict based on your building size and the equipment in your building what that noise level could be. And that predictive modeling may say, I think you're a little bit over 60 DBA, so you should move your building this way or you should add additional mitigation measures into the building design.

[09:44:34] So what we said is we will do the predictive modeling. if there are recommendations that will say we believe based on the predictive modeling you need to do additional noise mitigation measures we would do that either at site plan if it's site plan related or during the building process if it's building related and then we said okay great you did the predictive modeling but now we have to see if it's true so six months after occupancy permit that assumes the building is completely occupational or occupied six months after

[09:45:10] operational six months early six months after occupancy permit for each building you would have to then do another study to confirm yes you are meeting those levels and what that does is it requires a study at each site plan so site plan one let's say it's one building it would be one building site plan two would then have to take into account the existing one building and then the second building so we tried to put in specific measures to make sure that we're meeting the zoning

[09:45:44] ordinance requirements for the noise ordinance ordinance requirements for noise doing studies and making sure that the county has an enforcement mechanism i hope that i explained that it does And it also helps me understand what David was saying earlier about us having to hire a consultant to make sure that once we start standing up, it's compatible or it's according to what the requirements are.

[09:46:10] So essentially, and I do an analogy to a site plan. So for a site plan, the developer, they will hire their own civil engineer, and then they submit the site plan to staff, and they have their own civil engineers on track to review it.

[09:46:26] So what we were saying is we're going to do our sound study. It's going to be a third-party consultant. They'll submit the sound study, and I think what David was getting at is the county would have their own consultant to confirm and verify. Okay, and I remember having that discussion before when we deferred the project, having it with the applicant and with you.

[09:46:47] Okay, so I get that. So the last part that I had was, and I think I missed this when I walked in, and I don't want to drag it out, but I think it's very, very important, the community involvement is very important in this.

[09:47:05] And one of the pieces was the Montessori school. That was one of the things when we met earlier before this presentation, we talked about that, but the community involvement and what you did to inform the community. Can you kind of go over that again for me? Because that's essential.

[09:47:21] That's very important. I'll specifically talk about the Montessori school, and then if you want Truett to come back up and talk about the community outreach. I'll do it real quick. Okay, that's fine. So specifically for the Montessori school, Truitt talked to the owner of the school and they really want an outdoor community garden. So we have a specific proffer that says in the event they ask for an outdoor community garden, we would provide that to them.

[09:47:43] And we've laid out what the square footage is of that garden. Truitt, you got anything to add? I know you were a little, I saw the hair going. She was talking.

[09:48:00] That's okay. Community outreach again. Come on, community outreach. So, we did a significant amount of community outreach before our hearing back in February. February, uh-huh. And, candidly, the feedback from those meetings, they became contentious, so we took a different approach.

[09:48:16] We took it online, created a website for the community, for the project, that anybody could go to, as well as, as I mentioned earlier, getting a direct link to make it easy for people to go to the Prince William County website and find all the documents that have been submitted for the application.

[09:48:33] and what the reviews look like and what the, you know, everything that's there that the staff has done. So we try to be a little more clear and direct about that. Okay. Okay. Thank you. I just missed that piece. Thank you. Thank you, Madam Chair. Thank you, Supervisor Bailey.

[09:48:50] Supervisor Franklin. Oh, I actually don't have any additional comments. My discussion was going to be around designation versus dedication, and I think we cleared that up very easily. Well, I don't know about easily, but I think we came to a good agreement.

[09:49:07] Supervisor Bodie. Thank you, Madam Chair. In regards to, first, the conversation to go back to noise, I know that sound barriers are also being proposed. Correct. And are those sound barriers only going to be erected?

[09:49:24] It's erected as per the GDP, if I remember right. Correct. And so I know that as per the proffers, the height of those barriers is going to be dependent on what comes out of the sound studies. I know some of the concern that communities express, though, is the ability to see through the trees, especially as it pertains to the winter months, to be able to see the data center building.

[09:49:46] So can there be at least some consideration of the fact that the sound barrier should be at least a certain height, regardless of what the sound study portrays, so that you don't have like a 10-foot sound barrier, and then there's 70 feet of, it's 2 o'clock in the morning.

[09:50:07] No, I completely understand what you're saying. So your request was, can we look at proffering a specific height for the sound, a minimum height for the sound barriers? Right. Let me get with our team. Sure. Was that the only question, or should I get with them now? My other one was going to go in a completely different direction, so go for it.

[09:50:24] Okay, thank you. I have to ask, do you have an idea of what you think an appropriate minimum height would be, just so I can figure it out?

[09:50:40] 50 feet. It's really tall. I don't think that that's realistic. Okay, that's fine. So, you know, give me just a moment. 30 feet. I still think that a sound barrier 30 feet tall might be. It's hard for me to make the commitment.

[09:50:56] Give me just a moment to talk to the engineers real fast. Sorry. Can we move on to the next question really quick? Sure. So it was mentioned earlier by at least one of the commenters in regards to clean energy. And I know that we're not in a place where we can do solid profit requirements.

[09:51:14] But can we at least make a request that the end user seek out, you know, power purchasing agreements or renewable energy credits that they at least have those conversations, pursue those things? We would be willing to have those conversations with the potential buyer, but wouldn't want to proffer that they would have to do it because everybody does something different.

[09:51:37] But here you understand you, and that is a conversation that we're aware is big in the county. And to link to that as a follow-up, I know that there was also some concern about the limited nature of the sort of the boilerplate sustainability measures that were in the proffers.

[09:51:53] Now, I know that part of that said not to, it's not an exhaustive list. Correct. So you could have more than what's there. It's not an exhaustive list, and I just wanted to pull it up because there's another point I wanted to make.

[09:52:09] So it is not exhaustive, and it also says the applicant shall, in consultation with the county's sustainability officer, determine which measures are appropriate.

[09:52:27] So we would also work at site plan with the sustainability officer. So although it was an oversight that the sustainability officer wasn't consulted ahead of time as per the review of the rezoning, she could be brought in at site plan. And if she made recommendations outside of just that list, those would be considered.

[09:52:46] And yes, absolutely. And I didn't go back to when we originally submitted the application, but this proffer, this specific proffer, has been in here at least since we came to you all in February. So this is not a new proffer. And then my last question pertains to what was said earlier about the sight lines and the grading.

[09:53:23] Actually, no, I remember now. So it was said earlier that because of the topography and the fact that a lot of this site sits higher than the surrounding neighborhoods, that there was concerns about runoff. You know, certainly you have a bunch of impervious surfaces between the parking lots and the buildings themselves and what have you.

[09:53:44] What's being done to make sure that there isn't flooding and things of that nature? I'm going to have our civil engineer come up because he can kick me if I say anything wrong. But the stormwater management regulations today require you to capture all of your runoff on site before it is able to then go off site.

[09:54:05] So that is a state law requirement that you have to capture it on site first before you can then bring it to whatever stream channel it's going to. So I don't think that that's an issue because there is that requirement in place. Did I answer that?

[09:54:22] He said I did a good job. And so my follow-up question to that is because it's come up before is that may be the case once it's fully constructed, but we've seen in the past that in certain circumstances while it's under construction and that stormwater management system isn't complete you see runoff you see worlds being blown out and things of that nature is there a way to protect the community from that that is part of the erosion and sediment control design of the final site plans and those are those are

[09:54:57] incorporated into the design and the review process and then they are inspected during construction so in the event that there is a blowout or some problem that would be immediately addressed if that if that would occur so essentially the county as part of their proposal also wants you during construction to keep it on site so you're required to provide a facility that keeps it on site and that facility is continued to be inspected okay i just remember a couple years back

[09:55:33] we were shown pictures not even just data centers but other construction sites where roads have been blown out and things of that nature and one of the excuses we heard and why it wasn't addressed immediately was because the inspectors were overstaffed or understaffed and overworked and they couldn't get to them in time to address those issues so i just want to make sure that that's clear and that that's a concern that's still out there especially since we have a situation where we do have communities that are literally downstream and downhill from this site that we won't run into issues like that i i believe since those conversations supervisor boney

[09:56:08] these new regulations regarding stormwater pollution prevention programs require an extensive amount of both private inspections and inspection companies and reporting to inspectors to make it a little bit easier on them because they can't physically be everywhere.

[09:56:26] Okay, thank you. Can I get back to the fencing real quick or the sound barrier? Yes. We look at the sound barrier as a tool with regard to noise and aesthetics. It's really difficult to build them much higher than eight feet tall in most circumstances just because, you know, you're getting down pretty deep with what you're building in order to hold them up.

[09:56:49] It would be hard for me to commit to a height. What we envisioned was that as part of the predictive model would set a series of tools up to, you know, deal with the noise. So at the noise levels at the perimeter of the property, that's where you were judged.

[09:57:05] and how you do it inside the property is how you do it whether it be better equipment whether it be building orientation whether it be sound walls however you get there you get there but at the edge of the property line is where you're judged okay because my only sort of follow up to that is i know that there's been some concern about when you put equipment on the roof if you have an eight foot sound barrier and the equipment on the roof is the one that's making the noise how's an eight foot sound barrier gonna it it it wouldn't it wouldn't so uh but it it doesn't matter if there's roof equipment if there's not roof equipment all that matters is at the property line where the measurements are taken you have to meet the requirements of the noise ordinance period

[09:57:43] and now our proffer right and how you how you do it is is up to you but you know whatever fans whatever you have it has to be built to a spec that is going to you know get to a noise level that is acceptable at the property line the last question i have as it pertains to noise for now is I know that in the proffers pertaining to blasting, there's coordination that's going to be with the principal of Chris Young to make sure that the blasting sites are least disruptive as possible to school hours.

[09:58:18] In that same vein, going back to the discussion that we had back in February, is there going to be any consultation during the sound study phase with Chris Young knowing that there's going to be children and students with special needs there that may be more sensitive to tonal noise and some of the noise issues that we're talking about versus the broader public?

[09:58:39] As far as consultation goes, we're happy to consult with Chris Young and the principal. I'm just trying to figure out what we would say. Because, you know, you do the predictive model and we're solving for the same problem at the perimeter with Chris Young as we are with the perimeter of Linton Hall Road on the opposite of the property.

[09:58:57] It all, you know, one set of standards for the entire project to achieve a goal that is not impactful to the kids at Chris Young, is not impactful to the people on Linton Hall Road or Devlin Road or across the power lines. Sure. Just knowing that there's a couple of touch points. There's predictive modeling before you build any buildings.

[09:59:13] Correct. Then there's the actual study that takes place after each building is complete. Correct. Can there be touch points after each building is complete to then check with the school to make sure there's no adverse impacts to the children there? We absolutely can do that. I want to understand how we would write that.

[09:59:29] Sure, fair enough. But happy to do it. Okay, thank you. Supervisor Weir? Mr. McGettigan, I hate to belabor this, but in response to the response you gave to Supervisor Bailey, whereby she took that nothing special was done, I kind of want you to explain this process to me.

[09:59:55] You also said that the requirements of the SUP could be waived by the planning director, correct? Correct. and that as part of this rezoning, those certain requirements were waived.

[10:00:11] I see the language within the SUP where it allows for the waiver of those considerations, but it's limited to the planning director or the designee of the planning director determining that at the pre-application conference.

[10:00:31] So how was that accommodated as part of a rezoning procedurally? How did you make this happen? And how did you decide, based on the fact that you weren't going through an SUP or determine that an SUP wasn't required, that you were going to relieve the applicant of certain baseline criteria that are ordinarily required as part of a special use permit, any special use permit, not just a data center?

[10:01:08] What I fear is we're establishing a precedent that I don't think we can allow in the review process. So I would only be able to speculate because I was not the planning director or acting planning director at the time this was submitted.

[10:01:30] So we can't speak to how this actually happened because nobody currently on staff was involved in this? Would you like to give this? That's correct. We met with Rebecca Horner on several occasions and outlined the process as to which options that we can pursue in order to be able to get this project done.

[10:01:57] And staff's recommendation at that time was to do exactly how we did, and we submitted accordingly. Staff being Ms. Horner. Rebecca Horner, yes, and her staff at the time. So at that time, David McGettigan was the long-range planning manager. So he handled, the original request included the CPA request.

[10:02:16] So David McGettigan handled that request. But at that time, David nor Alex were part of this project. They were in long range. So the entirety of the team that approved this process and procedure is gone. That's an accurate statement.

[10:02:33] And we have no institutional knowledge of what they did or why. Thank you. Supervisor Lawson. And then after Lawson, we have Angry and Vega. Thank you. So to your point, Supervisor Weir, thank you for making it clear that this is an outlier.

[10:02:52] A couple points I'll make. Sustainability officer has been employed for, I believe, at least a year. This case was not reviewed by her in recent weeks, nor was it reviewed by her back in February.

[10:03:13] So that was referenced. I have a recent email from her that says the Office of Sustainability was not a reviewing agency for Devlin Park Project. So that's a problem. Not that it's her fault, but it's a problem that we don't have her office reviewing cases such as this one.

[10:03:40] let's talk a little bit more about blasting because I appreciate that the applicant was willing to expand the radius to 600 feet so residents understandably are concerned can the blast notifications be extended to other nearby neighborhoods such as victory lakes you already have linear farm included i believe do you yeah i think so um sheffield manor crossman creek and broadwood

[10:04:17] manor that's for the notifications we're happy to notify um would there be how are you envisioning that victory lakes is hoas okay just the hoa that'd be fine well i mean it's not the property managers establish a contact with the hoa whether it be the property manager or whatever and notify them yeah i mean you did that for the community meeting so i would assume yes you've got all that contact that i just want to make sure i understood what the request yeah that would be so you want

[10:04:51] me to read them again i um yes please um victory lakes i think you already have linear farms covered uh in there sheffield manor crossman creek broadlewood manor and then um there's another community uh it was a gadband project and i forgot the name of it it's like one long street of homes across from the can you repeat i'm sorry i don't write as fast as you talk it was done at victory lakes so can you just repeat it one more time sorry sure um i know

[10:05:25] true it's really familiar with these neighborhoods um lanier farm sheffield manor crossman creek broadlewood manor and i can't think of the name of that like it's i think it was a development by gadband where it's like that long street it's kind of up by the walgreens area across directly across from walgreens i do not know the name of that community it's autumn oh i don't that sounds

[10:06:05] if michelle figures out the community and sends you a message we can okay um and you got broadlewood manor yes and then the catholics for housing so that's kind of blended in with broadlewood manor it's those townhouses right are they under the same hoa or no i don't think so we're happy to okay include them also um and we're going to set up an email distribution list theoretically and just a function of who's on it and then um i think yeah i'll see if michelle's

[10:06:42] looking up the name of that community okay um and then um similar to the the um other proper specifically hunter uh for any non-data uses any non-data will you proffer a limit of 65 is it 60 or 65 it's 60 feet but i think our height proffer gets you there supervisor sir lawson because it um specifically says the maximum finished height of any data center building

[10:07:18] on the property shall be 81 feet in height so if it's not a data center building it would be limited to the height in m2 okay i'm looking at miss roble sorry to do you want me to repeat that for you okay so the can if you don't mind me repeat the concern the specific ask was could we proffer that any non-data center building be 60 feet in height? And I told her I think that we already have that covered. Our proffer 5 says pursuant to section 32-400-03.2 of the zoning

[10:07:54] ordinance, the maximum finished height of any data center building, including any rooftop mechanical equipment and rooftop screening walls on land bay B shall be limited to 81 feet in height. So that assumes if you're not a data center building you would be limited to the height and the zoning ordinance in m2 does planning staff agree with that analysis and your your enforcement of it

[10:08:27] would be as such yes she shook her head yes sorry supervisor lawson was looking at you thank you um okay um so let's talk about well i'm still really troubled by the sustainability lack thereof of meaningful sustainability proffers and I you know think that great if if the sustainability officer wants to weigh in before site plan great letter but I hope that in the

[10:09:06] future the the county the the future board really digs in and makes these proffers a lot more meaningful with with you know with true sustained sustainability measures um what's that she should be a review right and that yeah that's absolutely uh so anyway i'll take that up on a different day back to grading elevation supervisor bode asks those questions i do want to finish this line

[10:09:46] of questions regarding noise but before we go there um do you have your are you able to um proffer a a site layout i know i asked you back in october and you couldn't we cannot but we did provide where the buildings the footprints in which the buildings could be located that like big puzzle piece yes um and um you're you're you're still not able to provide a site layout no ma'am yeah that's a huge problem for me i mean i i went with a bubble plant bubble plan on the

[10:10:22] hunter project and i learned the hard way and uh that and i'm i'm not willing to repeat that problem and for this area i think there's a difference in that we've proffered um not just a bubble plan but a specific setback distance in that block for data center buildings um so a principal data center building could only be located within that area yeah when you say a

[10:10:54] principal data center building you're just saying like if there that's the first time i've seen language that specifically says principal data center building is is that so for example if there is a guard gate with the fence to get in that would not be a principal data center building right okay that's the security building correct it's just i haven't seen the word principle thrown in front of data center building before okay and that's why i was trying to make sure

[10:11:29] there was no distinction um what about the what'd you find out about the substations proper we will get rid of proffer e it's e but i would like to be clear for everybody that it's a number before e sorry oh hang on i better get it i got it it is 27e right 20 so you're striking 27 we have stricken 27e can you tell me what that says so that says adjustments to the foregoing standards in this proffer and or location number size and height of the substations may be proposed by the applicant

[10:12:08] and allowed by the planning director without the need for an amendment to the proffers and or gdp approval of a public facilities review. So we have removed that. Okay. Will you proffer that you will remove Land Bay A from the overlay? No. I think I said that earlier. Well, that was hours ago. Oh, no, I'm sorry. When we started the question, well, it has been hours ago because you went into closed session. I apologize. No, we will not do that. So you will not proffer to remove

[10:12:45] uh 85 acres which you have design you will designate as open space correct you will not remove the overlay no from it okay um all right i guess i'll finish my last series of questions

[10:13:15] here on noise is it for me or staff probably both of you okay so chandler arizona um is conducting noise studies for five years. And I think everybody is familiar with Chandler, Arizona, because I've certainly learned a lot about Chandler from the residents and the noise problems they've had down there with their data center complexes. And it's my understanding that they

[10:13:49] are now doing noise studies for five years because a lot of these data centers are in full operation like with within six months so they're waiting for them to be completely under a hundred percent operation is that fair I don't know anything about Chandler so I don't want but you know enough to know that within six months a lot of data centers are still building out kind of like how we build out residential communities they do phasing of land bays I think that's

[10:14:25] fair to say that that is true for the the massive data centers as well so one of the things that has evolved is a front from the last few years of this evolving industry is a data center ordinance advisory group with a lot of different stakeholders and they are at the this board's direction working together to change the noise ordinance because of all the problems that have been created and great oak is certainly something that we're all familiar with

[10:15:04] my biggest concern is is when that noise ordinance is changed will the proffers today related to the noise ordinance apply to a change in the future i don't know if that's county staff it's probably county staff or miss roble but i'll go to county staff first uh so no the um the if we make more restrictive uh changes to the noise

[10:15:43] ordinance um then those would supersede or be the more restrictive that's going to apply so the more restrictive noise ordinance if that's what uh we come up with would apply and they would have to meet that the new the new noise ordinance um okay and so there's no grandfathering no grandfathering no okay that's good news um so here you go miss cameron will you proffer um that whatever changes are made to the county noise ordinance um will will comply and so i think what

[10:16:23] you're asking for and I want to I like to phrase it in the way I would proffer it to make sure it gets you there and then we can have the discussion and I'll ask Truett but I think what you're asking for is in the event the noise ordinance changes and has more restrictive requirements the applicant would be required to meet the more restrictive requirement is that what you're asking for yes okay I will get with Truett and it's my understanding that the noise ordinance sorry to I don't want to sound like I'm trying to be dramatic here, but it's part of the criminal code.

[10:17:00] Is that right? Enforcement is through Prince William County Police. Right. Well, does that mean that people who are designing the buildings and building them, if they're in violation, are also part of the subject to enforcement of the criminal code?

[10:17:17] I mean, that's part of the problem with this exploratory noise proper is that as much as I appreciate the, you know, zoning side of it, the zoning violations. We don't have an enforcement mechanism on a Saturday night to go out and measure decibels from hums and the aggregate hums from other complexes in the area. And I'm going to do everything I can to try and protect it from happening. I think I understand what you're saying, but I do want to make it clear

[10:17:55] that just because it's in our proffers does not mean that the noise ordinance doesn't apply so there are two proffers that apply here so if on a saturday there's an issue prince william county police they still have the authority to enforce the noise ordinance i hope i'm saying that correctly madam chair members of the board if there is a violation of the noise ordinance the police would be the ones to investigate it and enforce it if there is an alleged violation of a zoning ordinance the proffers on any particular rezoning that's neighborhood services property code enforcement they are the ones that go out and investigate and determine whether there is a violation

[10:18:34] and that is civil and we don't have staff on saturdays weekends or evenings to do property code but in this instance both have the authority to enforce yeah it's just really tough because as the county attorney said the obvious is I mean maybe someday there will be staff for that that's something the county executive and and the board will have to take up but want to point out the obvious that we don't have like a neighborhood services uh noise squad on Saturday night but you

[10:19:11] do have the police on Saturday night yeah but they're not trained to you know take decibel readings for hums because it's a tone it's a it's tonal they don't hit the tonal noise you're correct correct um all right so it sounds like you will consider that like strengthening that proper i'm going to ask truitt yes thank you ma'am um uh shoot i think uh i lost my other train of thought on go ahead i'll let you follow up with him on that are you through can other people speak

[10:19:51] now supervisor angry thank you madam chair it's actually for yeah i rather answer all of the questions so that way i only have to go in the hallway once to get proper answers if that's okay And this is good because I want to just ask and see what can be done.

[10:20:13] So I'm going to get into a little bit different. So profit number 18 on page 7 of 22 of the profits, emergency operations, the term emergency shall mean any situation arising from sudden and reasonable unforeseen events beyond the control of the facility, which situation requires the immediate use of the emergency generators to restore normal operations of the facility.

[10:20:37] So my first question on the emergency generators, and I'll start by saying this. I know we don't have an end user, so really it's going to come down to who is in this facility. But when it comes to those emergency generators, the issue we always hear is about they're loud.

[10:20:55] So on a decibel reading, do we have any data on those? I can ask somebody if they can give me on average, if that's okay. I think that's going to be important. And with that also becomes, I don't know if there are different types of backup generators.

[10:21:15] And whoever this end user is, whatever the most efficient backup generator is that really has the lower dBs and sound, I don't know if we can ask for that, but that's something I really think they should look into because these backup generators are an issue.

[10:21:32] Thirdly to that is about this whole diesel issue and the whole black soot that comes out of those. I know that there's been some discussion about fossil fuels and trying to get that into a different... I don't know if anybody's doing that yet, or is there anything different to that?

[10:21:48] Is it always diesel for these backup generators? Yeah, I don't know. I can ask that question, too. Yeah, because if it's not and it doesn't have to be, I think that's something that we should definitely be paying attention to. And then just when it comes to, because the emergency piece I just read, you don't know when you're going to have an emergency.

[10:22:09] So these generators can go off at any time. And I think that's why that noise, that sound becomes an issue at that point. But I will say this. I've heard the backup generators go off at the schools, and those things are loud. Okay, so if it's anything like that, then we really should be trying to figure out how we can work that.

[10:22:28] I don't know if that's something we can add. I don't know if you had any properties in here that talked about backup generators and any of that. We did not, because normally a backup generator, the emergency is if for some reason the power goes out. That's when that emergency kicks in, but we didn't have anything pertaining to that.

[10:22:49] And this is a good slide right here, too, because I guess, and we don't know this because there's no end users, but how many backup generators would you need? And then, I guess, location and placement, if they could be placed behind, out of the way, like maybe somehow contained into a soundproof area if that's the case.

[10:23:06] But just discussions on generators. Okay, thank you. Okay, thanks. Supervisor Vega? Jonelle, refresh my memory. How many buildings are we potentially looking at?

[10:23:22] Let me get that answer. I don't have that answer. I think you went to the restroom. I'll get that answer for you. I apologize. Was that the only question you had? Well, I need it answered in order for me to move on. To the next question?

[10:23:37] Okay. Hold on one second.

[10:23:53] Yep, you. how many buildings approximately how many buildings somewhere between seven and nine ish seven and nine ish so anywhere between seven and nine around buildings right okay can um we please put the slide up that has the boundary outline and then the school right next to it i think it might be slide two on your end yes is there any way you can zoom into that

[10:24:32] yeah how how far what's the distance between the school property lining and and your property do Do you know? Chris Young Elementary School is 2,350 feet. From our...

[10:24:47] I'm sorry, from the property line or from the building line? So I think this might be a really good slide to show you. So the data center building line, from where you can have the data center building to the school, we proffered that at 2,200 feet.

[10:25:15] Okay. I think that answers the other questions that I had. Okay. But I do have a follow-up question for staff. Have we ever had an issue where school property was damaged due to blasting?

[10:25:39] This is for county staff? No, we don't know. No? Okay, and the only reason why I ask going back to blasting, again, I'm going to refer back to the situation that we've had in the Coles District with Great Oak and their blasting woes. Whether it was cracked driveways, broken windows, or even impacts to foundation, I know that there have been several conversations about, you know, we have a fire marshal's office for a reason.

[10:26:04] I will tell folks that it's taken about a year, over a year, I would argue, for these folks to resolve their issues, because oftentimes they were told to file claims with their insurance companies, and then the insurance company comes back and asks for supporting evidence from the fire marshal's office.

[10:26:21] So the reason why I ask is because we've had these issues with residential properties. I don't know if we're prepared to handle the same scenario should it present itself if there is any damage caused to the school so that's the reason why I'm asking but your answer is no I don't know no one is on the list for speaking sure thank you so I have concern back to land bay a and your unwillingness to remove it from the

[10:26:58] data center overlay oh well I'll ask staff this well there so the way the overlay works they can can they build a utility station a substation by right if it's in the overlay so if it's in the overlay then a substation requires a public facility review so they so so

[10:27:35] right now the way they have agreed to proper land bay a as open space but not remove it from the overlay they cannot buy right build a substation that's correct there's no buy right substations you you're either have to do a public facility review for your substation or you have to do a special use permit if you're outside the overlay there's no buy right but my point is is they're

[10:28:10] not they would you know you would you would argue that they're in the overlay if the board approves it yes and you're go ahead i don't think and i'm looking to michelle and david but it's specifically designated as open space i don't think we can then put a substation there because that designation is open space well i just want to make sure because you're not willing to remove the overlay i understood what your line of questioning was i heard it in the hallway but i just wanted to make sure that i was stating that correctly i will wait for the two experts that deal with public facilities reviews?

[10:28:53] As I said, any public, there's no buy-write substations. Any substation would have to either go through a public facility review process or a special use permit process or have been shown already on a rezoning plan.

[10:29:13] Say that again or what? If it was already shown on a GDP. Which this isn't, obviously. Right. So that's why I don't understand why they won't remove it from the overlay.

[10:29:30] I don't think it has any bearing on the development of the property. Once it's designated open space, it doesn't matter. So hence, ease my concern and remove it.

[10:29:47] At the moment, they've said no. Do you have other questions? Because Supervisor Weir now has other things. Oh, yeah. I thought, I'm sorry. No. Supervisor Weir. Thank you, Madam Chair.

[10:30:03] I have another question for staff. Walk me through this. In addition to the rezoning, this is a request to add this to the data center overlay district with an FAR of 0.3, correct?

[10:30:24] That's correct. Okay. I'm going to ask a rhetorical question. Are you aware of any other applications currently under review or recently under review whereby an application for a data center that had been previously approved came in with a rezoning or amendment to the proffers for a rezoning case to increase the FAR?

[10:30:46] I can answer that question. Yes. It was a rhetorical question I heard, too, but I have cases in several districts in which you have to come back to increase the FAR, but that requires a board action, so the board would have to approve an FAR modification.

[10:31:11] I understand it, but the answer is yes. Yes. Multiple yeses. Yes, but you can increase, I would say you can make any changes to the proffers via a proffer amendment. But I wanted to answer your rhetorical question. The reason for the rhetorical question is this.

[10:31:32] In my office, I have under review several applications for prior rezonings at lower FARs. You have an FAR of three incorporating this open space area, which is included in this overlay achieved by, in my view, questionable practices.

[10:31:56] There is nothing, absolutely nothing to preclude the applicant or the end purchaser from coming back in six months from now and doing what every other applicant is doing in the district and increasing the FAR from 3 to 1.

[10:32:15] We see it every month. I just wanted to point that out. People come back for changes, and the board approves them or they don't approve them.

[10:32:33] So they do have to come back to the board. I think I'll point that out. I would also point out that if it wasn't in the overlay, we wouldn't be dealing with an FAR of 1 in the future. Supervisor Lawson, you're next. Can you add Foxborough to the list of notifications?

[10:33:04] And then the name of that community that I couldn't think of is Turning Leaf Estates, which is kind of across from, this is the GAD band development that I was referring to, across from Walgreens. We want to look at the distance for Foxborough and just confirm that name.

[10:33:21] Sure. Okay. Yeah, it's blended in with Kingsbrook. And are you saying Turn Leaf or Turn Leaves? Turning Leaf Estates. Okay. T-U-R-N-L-E-A-F? I believe so.

[10:33:38] Okay. Autumn Glory is the name of the street, and I'll wait to...

[10:34:16] Both of those are fine.

[10:34:56] Say that again. Both of those are fine. Thank you very much. I believe this is my last question with... I'm going to use nine because you're not certain how many buildings, but seven and nine, so I'm going to ask how many diesel generators will be included with this project with nine buildings and 3.3 million square feet.

[10:35:25] supervisor angry asked that question and we don't have that answer okay can you give me an estimate I cannot that's a problem we don't have any idea no and all of the data center people I could text are currently sleeping so no okay we don't know what the standard is I'm sorry we don't usually take answers just from just trying to help it's three o'clock in the morning I just so okay um

[10:36:03] Does anybody else have any questions while we're trying to learn how many diesel generators? No, I don't think we're going to have that answer tonight. Okay. All right. So is everybody done with Q&A?

[10:36:18] Tomorrow? I believe so. I think we're done with Q&A. Okay. Can I continue on? With Q&A? No. No, I just have the floor. Are you going to make a statement?

[10:36:36] Yeah. You can do that during discussion. Well, I'm going to make a motion. So I have the floor. As long as everybody's done with Q&A. and then are they going to before you make the motion do we need to break for five minutes yeah yeah yeah you have to do those proffers right yes please where do you want me to meet

[10:37:02] you we'll we'll take a recess for five minutes you think that'll be enough 10 minutes okay

[10:37:19] recess for 10 minutes you're back from recess um i assume you got your stuff finished if it's okay

[10:38:21] with you chair wheeler i would like to run through all of the proffer revisions that were made sounds like a great idea as long as it's succinct and quick it is succinct and quickly and if i don't reference the proffer number that means that proffer remain the same the date on the proffers is today november 29th 2023 the gdp was amended to remove the references to public park and park

[10:38:50] dedication proffer eight was updated it says and include a minimum of 30 percent fenestration and Layton Hall Road and Devlin Road were added.

[10:39:15] Proffer 22 for the pre-blast notices and inspections. It reads, in part, it reads, the applicant shall prepare a blasting schedule and provide it to the Lanier Farms, Amberley Station. Additions requested by Supervisor Lawson include Victory Lake, Sheffield Manor, Crossman Creek, Bridalwood Manor, Catholics for Housing, Foxborough, Turning Leaf Estates, and Silver Leaf Estates Homeowners Association boards.

[10:39:43] The properties located within 600 feet of the property into Chris Young Elementary School will receive the pre-blast and post-blast notice inspections. Proffer 27E was removed.

[10:40:07] Proffers 35 and 36 were removed, and that is it. Chair, if I can.

[10:40:22] Supervisor Lawson. Thank you. So back to the proffer number one, the GDP, I caught that you, now it was my turn to write while you spoke, that you removed the public park and public park and park dedication on the GDP? Correct so the GDP and it's best if I just do it this way if you don't mind sure what you what you see it's okay what you see on the GDP this public park

[10:40:58] was crossed out I honestly my eyes can't even on even when I'm right away go ahead because I honestly can't see it that well oh I thought you're just going to kind of read it and oh I don't need I don't need to like see it up front I'm just

[10:41:21] saying you can read it and so for the general public thank you all for zooming in this was

[10:42:06] crossed out and that was crossed out and the proffers in the preamble it says for perfect purposes of reference in this proffer statement the general development plan shall be the plan prepared by land design consultants entitled devlin technology park dated february 11th 2022 last revised november 29th 2023 proper properly referencing this gdp that we just showed you

[10:42:40] and the planning director and the county attorney have met and okay yeah we reviewed all the changes Okay. So, back to the question regarding diesel generators. I have spoken with somebody who says that it's fair to average about 50 per building. So, we'll say with nine buildings, you're looking at potentially 450 generators.

[10:43:17] What size are those generators? I said the average. Like what size? Kilowatts? I mean, that seems kind of swagging it. i am no like how big is a building no subject matter expert how big is the building are you doing it per square foot i mean you're just sort of throwing out a number and i want to make sure people aren't misled madam chair you're throwing out numbers too and i want to make sure people aren't misled by either one of us i'm just saying that there is questions concerns about diesel

[10:43:51] generators am i not that we two of us have asked questions that they weren't able to answer and i still don't have the answer but I was wondering if for those people that are streaming they're currently hearing music in the background and they're not

[10:44:05] hearing us clearly I think we should just carry on because okay the

[10:44:48] supervisor Lawson says everybody okay with us carrying on because I'm sure there's people online watching okay madam chair two of us asked questions related to the diesel generators the applicant was unable to answer and so I am absolutely making some estimations based on knowledge that was shared with

[10:45:20] me during the break I'm trying to get to some type of expectation of what how many diesel generators could be built with this complex if you want to fire back what you think is related to diesel generators by all means do so neither one of us are subject matter experts I certainly am NOT but I definitely have concerns about diesel generators and air quality and noise and everything else related to them that have been raised by so many people in the public over the

[10:45:58] last two years so I love your smirk I'm just simply trying to do my job as a representative of of the district so let me carry on please are you all right with that thank you so like i said nine buildings average was anywhere from 40 to 60 depending on the size of the building so i said okay well we'll land with 50. so that's a lot of diesel generators to be added

[10:46:33] to this site in addition to the other sites nearby and i definitely have those diesel generator concerns that do not seem to be properly addressed is there we having more i.t problems oh okay good good good good um so back to the proffers um miss cameron i am struggling with my repeated request

[10:47:05] to ask you to remove land bay a from the overlay and the applicant you know said that they had a series of community meetings it's part of the process for every land use case public outreach community meetings if he is generally serious about providing a benefit to the community As he has stated over and over again, for permanent open space for the public benefit, why won't you remove it from the overlay?

[10:47:49] The applicant is going to keep it within the overlay. Okay.

[10:48:05] So if he wants to extend a good faith effort to the community, I can't get there. Why they are so insistent that they will keep it in the overlay, other than to think that they are absolutely going to come back at a future date and request a board act i i concede it it will take a board action because of the gdp proffer that has been changed but the reality of it is is they are going to continue to own the land

[10:48:41] and land bay a and make no mistake about it there will be a future application to build data on land bay a otherwise they would be willing to remove it or they would have been willing to change the zoning which I asked earlier I'm sorry what's that yeah for open space but they won't take it out of the overlay that's that's my whole concern and and if it's if it's if the intent is for

[10:49:18] true open space and a gesture to the community that there will never be industrial buildings on that then why wouldn't they show a good faith effort to this community and remove it and they have repeatedly rejected and I believe it's because they want to continue to keep that land highly valued in the overlay and wait out this storm for the data center frenzy to calm down

[10:49:52] and then they will come back at a future date I certainly won't be on the board but that is absolutely what their intent will be it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure that out they you all have heard they've repeated over and over again they will not remove it from the overlay this is the same applicant who stood here tonight and said you're welcome to do this during discussion candidly are you ready to move on that the meetings were contentious we really

[10:50:28] candidly they get contentious because this is the same applicant that sends out glossy fires of colleges supervisor lawson at this point and my whole point my whole point is is that they can't be trusted they can't be trusted to do what's best for the community then vote against it and it's very it's very problem problematic for me so supervisor we have the diesel generators we have noise we have concerns with open space we have no demand letter we have one problem after

[10:51:02] another because of that i am not comfortable moving this project forward for approval therefore I will move for denial. Supervisor Lawson made a motion for denial. Motion was seconded by Supervisor Weir.

[10:51:21] Madam Chair, I did want to comment on something about the generator. We're no experts on this by far, but as I asked that question, I did get a response from a gentleman in the energy field that said, this area has never had a power outage with the grid, so the generators have never been used, but they are used in testing.

[10:51:52] So in testing is whatever, twice a day or whatever that looks like. I don't know. I can't validate that. I just want to relay what I'm told here that as I ask that question about generators, the fact of the matter is whatever that number is, this area hasn't had to use a backup generator because the grid has never gone out.

[10:52:14] But what they do do is test them. So they test them twice a day. And I'll add, I Googled and found a source that said that there were 13 generators per data center building. So, yeah, that's from the DEQ.

[10:52:30] So, Supervisor Angry. Madam Chair, with that, I'd like to make a secondary motion to approve this project with all the changes and amendments as discussed. You're doing a substitute motion? A substitute motion, yes, ma'am. Who's doing a substitute motion? Is there a second?

[10:52:47] Second. Second, the substitute motion seconded by Vice Chair Bodie. We're now in discussion on the substitute motion.

[10:53:06] Supervisor Weir, your first five minutes. It should come as no surprise that I am not going to support that motion. I noted earlier that this thing needed to be remanded back to the Planning Commission for further consideration.

[10:53:24] My position hasn't changed. In fact, it's strengthened because all we've done over the last three hours is slather even more lipstick on this pig. Since the Planning Commission last reviewed this, the GDP has changed at least twice, probably again tonight, multiple different iterations that they never reviewed.

[10:53:48] There have been significant proffer deletions in terms of what was published and the public had an expectation of getting. Whether the proffer was legitimate or not, there was a legitimate expectation by the public that they were going to achieve a park out of this and $5 million in proffer funds.

[10:54:07] I knew that wasn't going to happen. I knew that wasn't a legitimate proffer. I suspect a lot of the public did, but I think it was made just as part of a charade, a circus, that this application has become. Then there's the real red flag.

[10:54:24] The refusal by the applicant to remove Land Bay A from the overlay or even downzone it to an appropriate designation for parks and open space. I don't trust them. Supervisor Lawson doesn't trust them. We've got no reason to trust you.

[10:54:41] I have stacks of applications, stacks of them. One I received yesterday morning by the Courier for a change in FAR for exactly this type of circumstance. We see them almost monthly, if not weekly. Quite frankly, the process here is broken, and I'm not going to lay that on current staff. I asked the question, and I got the response. This process was circumvented by the prior planning director.

[10:55:20] These guys have inherited it. It's still a problem. We have not comported with our own zoning ordinances. We have not held this applicant to the same standard that we hold every other applicant to. The question is, what ramifications does that have? What ramifications does it have for applications that have already been approved with conditions that came about as a function of our review process? And what ramifications does that have for other applications that are currently

[10:55:54] within the process? You know, yet again, I'm sitting here where staff's unable to answer questions regarding timing process how things happened largely not their fault because the people responsible for making those decisions are no longer here they bailed or should i say fled before the court similarly i would argue that this thing should should never have come here tonight

[10:56:24] we talk about timing ordinance is pretty clear you make a substantive change that clock resets and the tolling starts all over again we've had multiple significant changes over the last nine months and the clock hasn't restarted. That's a management problem and I've raised this issue with staff and I've talked about this with Mitch Shorter as recently as last Tuesday and the fingers get

[10:57:00] pointed at executive management or at least a portion of it. That doesn't fly with me. We've had the applicants throw case law at us at the last moment which I don't believe anybody in this room has had the opportunity to review and having had a chance to briefly look at it I'm not sure even has any real significance as to what we were talking about doing and here we are at four o'clock in the morning after sitting here for 10 hours hastily reviewing proffers you explained to me

[10:57:35] how that's in the health benefit and welfare of the general public you know what hasn't been addressed by any of these changes not a single damn issue raised by the residents who spoke against it and let's be clear the residents were overwhelmingly opposed to this and this board and that staff and the applicant has not addressed a single issue.

[10:58:03] 13 diesel generators per building, horse hockey. I've got applications for similar structures, similar size, similar scale applications. We're talking about diesel generators numbering in the hundreds.

[10:58:20] Planning staff knows it. They've seen the prints. Sure, Wade does if he's here. He's got the site plans. I've got site plans sitting on my desk right now. It is 40, 50, or 60 diesel generators per building. sometimes time up next next person Supervisor Lawson yeah so this is regarding the substitute motion so I'm human we're all human we've all made

[10:58:57] mistakes I've absolutely learned in the last two years in particular a lot about the data center industry an evolving industry and I've if I could reverse the clock I would absolutely make some changes on some of my land use votes some in particular, data centers. What I do not want to do is repeat mistakes, especially ones that

[10:59:25] have serious impacts on residents. And I absolutely regret that even exploring this comp plan amendment a year and a half, two years ago, was worthy. I did make it clear that the applicant would have to seriously change the buffers and some other things. But one thing is

[11:00:05] for certain, I misread land use planning. I certainly misread what's now hyperscales. I didn't even know what hyperscales were. We were just coming out of the pandemic. The Hunter rezoning, literally one person was here after many attempts of community outreach. And the person that spoke spoke in favor of the data centers was more concerned about other uses i'm i made a mistake of uh supporting a rezoning with a bubble plan tonight this applicant can't even tell you

[11:00:43] what the site plan layout is i am not going to repeat the mistakes of of my past i i appreciate that supervisor bode voted against hunter in a seven to one vote voted against the initiation a year and a half ago here and I was thinking heck let's follow his lead but for whatever reason he's concluded that he's going to support this project at least I believe he's going to based on his

[11:01:19] second of the motion substitute motion but what I can lay my head on my pillow at night knowing is that I've learned I'm human and I'm absolutely going to represent the people that elected me and not special interest groups or I don't guarantee my votes to developers. We are elected by the people for reasons such as this. These are land use cases with public participation for a reason because zoning impacts other property owners. That's why there's a public process and

[11:01:59] I was elected by the public to represent you, not the interest of Stanley Martin or any other developer that has come into my office, applied for projects. Do I work with them? Yeah. For the best interest of the community, this is not one of those cases. This has not earned my support, nor the community's support. It was very clear in tonight's public hearing that the community boldly rejects this project. There are so many unanswered questions. If this board is serious

[11:02:35] about sustainability, we would have serious measures to mitigate it. And frankly, I don't think that you can continue to rezone a bunch of data center land and be serious about sustainability. You can't. They are like one of the biggest guzzlers of electricity and diesel generators and air quality and all kinds of other things. Noise. Noise is something else that has just come about, come to our attention the last year and a half. Noise is a serious concern.

[11:03:09] It would be irresponsible for me to just dismiss it. We've got many people that have dedicated so much of their personal time citizens to help with the noise ordinance and the data center working group. They can't even proffer site layout.

[11:03:28] There's so many things that they cannot tell us tonight. Repeatedly, they don't know. Staff didn't know. Staff was clearly forced to rush this through. Poor Scott Meyer, he's the latest to inherit this project.

[11:03:44] It started with Rebecca Horner, who's now in Seattle. Actually, it started with Bryce Barrett, who left planning and went to transportation. Good for him. And then Rebecca inherited it, and then Mika inherited it, and she left the county a week or two after she was forced to present the case last February.

[11:04:06] She's gone. Rebecca's gone to Seattle. Everybody in the planning department who had their fingerprints on this is long gone. Poor Scott inherited it this September. A year at a time, Supervisor Lawson. This is a disastrous project, and you're right. It will be the legacy of five members of this board, not mine.

[11:04:24] Next up is Supervisor Vega. You're probably not going to hear it from anybody else on this dais. When I say anybody else, I speak to the majority, the five Democrats on this board. But I want to apologize to you all.

[11:04:41] I really do. I'm sorry. There's nothing more frustrating than sitting on this dais for the last four years knowing exactly how every contentious land use vote is going to go down. you've seen it from day one it's been a five three vote why i can't explain it my colleagues up here are smart they're sharp they see what you and i see they just choose to ignore it and that's the flat-out truth and i'm sorry that you continue to come to these meetings and that you speak and that you stay up until what 4 45 in the morning thinking that just maybe clinging on to a little

[11:05:18] bit of hope is going to persuade somebody on here to stand up for you all. You've heard everything that I've had to add to this discussion since this proposal was first introduced to us because of Great Oak. I mean, what other example do my colleagues on this day is need? You're flat out ignoring those concerns. You're flat out ignoring the concerns that the district supervisor has raised and that Supervisor Weir has raised. The facts are what they are, and they're indisputable. But here we are yet again getting ready to vote and you know how the vote is going to go down. So because you're not going to hear it from them, I want to apologize to you all and

[11:05:56] say that I'm sorry that you continue to be dragged. It wasn't enough to shove 500 plus homes down your throat and you all got over it and you ate that piece of pie or the whole pie, but that wasn't enough. No, let's go ahead and pull the rug underneath you all and give you something far worse. Why is it far worse? Because it is absolutely going to impact their quality of life.

[11:06:20] It will. And I know without a shadow of a doubt, and I've said it before and I'm going to say it again until they get sick and tired of hearing it. They would never, ever, ever, ever vote to put seven to nine data centers behind their backyard. Never. And it's sickening and it's infuriating because people come here with a sense of entitlement. Applicants come here with a sense of entitlement. Just look at the way they speak to us, the way they address us, because they already know how the vote is going to go down. The pie has been baked a long time ago, and I would

[11:06:55] challenge anybody to correct me and say that I'm wrong. Nothing anybody that has said here is going to persuade you to vote differently. It's not going to happen. We're losing a very strong advocate in Supervisor Lawson, but January can't come fast enough. I had a conversation with the incoming chair, and I'm hopeful that we're going to see things turn around, but boy is she going to need you're supporting your prayers more than ever because you know how this works. The pressures and the powers that be are going to descend upon her so that the status quo can stay alive and well.

[11:07:32] I'm going to be done speaking here shortly, but you're going to hear my colleagues justify their yes vote when there is no justification in supporting this proposal. So once again, I apologize to you all, but I want to thank you for your courage, for your tenacity, for continuing to come, for continuing to show up, because nothing that I've just said right now is new to you all.

[11:07:57] You've known it. You've known it from day one. Yet you stayed in the fight, and I hope that you continue to do so. Because if there's something that makes politicians uncomfortable is when you, the people, hold us accountable. Supervisor Weir?

[11:08:15] Thank you, Madam Chair. I was looking at page 35 of the staff report, staff analysis. I almost have to giggle. It's a section dealing with the strategic plan, bullet point three.

[11:08:33] Resilient Economy, Objective RE3, create a positive brand slash image of Prince William County that reflects the diversity of the community, including its history, places, and people. I'd like to know how many people in this room think that tonight's proceedings or this whole application process creates anything approaching a positive brand or image of the county, because it doesn't.

[11:08:56] And that falls mostly on us. The application has been, without question, unnecessarily rushed. Whether that fault lies predominantly with the applicant, staff, or members of this board is yet to be determined.

[11:09:14] I have my suspicions. We've got park proffers of dubious origin. In fact, the narrative seems to indicate that those park proffers were sought, negotiated, asked for by either staff or worse, a member of this elected body.

[11:09:42] Everybody sitting behind this day should know better. And if you don't know better and you haven't read the proffer legislation and you don't know the case law, then you don't belong sitting back here making those kinds of deals. because they're not legal. This is Village Tech place on steroids. Village place is a relatively small place. The impact is confined largely to that condominium complex. The impact of this is

[11:10:17] far greater. But worst of all, above and beyond the precedents that we'll be establishing tonight, if this board adopts this, if it approves this application, in my personal view, it sets the stage for civil litigation. Civil litigation, which in my estimation, this county will most assuredly lose. Two words, arbitrary and capricious. Get used to it because you're going to probably

[11:10:54] see it a lot. Play stupid games, win stupid prizes. Try to be polite once. I really, I'm trying, you know, the decorum is, I guess, if you can't maintain it, I'll pray for you. So who's next?

[11:11:27] Nobody next? Pardon me? Nobody. Okay. So you want to take your second turn? Okay. So, Supervisor Vega, thank you for bringing up the chair-elect because I've had, you know, some encouraging conversations with her.

[11:11:55] And I do applaud her courage and leadership and the guts that she has shown as a candidate. And it is clear that the Democrat Party bosses have been driving these data projects, including members of the state delegation, and brought in the unions for land use cases.

[11:12:23] Like, I've never seen it until this board was elected. In my first five years serving, unions were never in this board chamber, certainly not for land use cases, if they were at all. it's remarkable to me that the politics that have taken shape in land use development cases and all these five three votes i had a town hall a couple weeks ago and about this project and a

[11:13:00] gentleman stood up and said because i was i was complimenting to shundra jefferson she beat me fair and square and i knew when i decided to run for chair to vacate this seat and run for chair it's because i wanted to make sure that we the people did everything we could to make sure that chair wheeler would not be sitting in that seat for the next four years and i have i have no regret i have i have no i will ask you to leave if you cannot control your adults whatsoever for for that and i told people i would absolutely rather lose to jachandra jefferson than ann wheeler and i'm

[11:13:37] glad I did. And she will need your support. She will absolutely need your support to stand up to the four up here that have completely sold out to the party bosses, the development community.

[11:13:54] You guys have referenced all the donations that have poured in. But I'm glad that when I leave office, Chair Wheeler leaves too, because it has been clear that she whips the votes for these projects. And that is going to be coming to an end, I pray, and I believe it will. And there's hope on the horizon because of it. What really troubles me is that the people that are pushing these projects up here, the board members up here, represent districts far away on the other end of

[11:14:31] the county. And I see the police reports, you guys see the news, and I think, why don't they concentrate on concerns in their districts more than they're out to ruin western Prince William County. They spend more time pushing these projects that the community rejects. And I just can't understand it other than it's just pure vindictive governing. It's vindictive governing.

[11:14:59] I've heard comments that they're going to stick it to the West because the East has been neglected. I can't understand that rationalization. That is not governing. You don't govern in that manner.

[11:15:14] I govern for good public policy for the benefit of everybody in this county, not just my constituents that elected me, but for everybody. I take a vote for everybody in Prince William County. Every time we take a vote, it can meaningfully affect everybody regardless of where they live for good public policy.

[11:15:37] What is really unfortunate is for four years, so much has been politicized, hyper-politicized at local government level that should never be that way. And I won't miss it. I will not miss that.

[11:15:55] I miss the days of a lot of bipartisan votes. I miss that Supervisor Frank Principe and I worked together closely on things because we shared the vision of the rural crescent and smart growth principles.

[11:16:11] it's really unfortunate that this board majority has politicized land use votes and and and the and the vindictive retaliations that they continue to show seeing no further discussion please vote motion passes five to three supervisors lawson vega and we're voting nay

[11:16:43] that moves us on to public comment time ms madden do we have anyone sign up for public comment time

[11:16:52] we are now on to public comment time each public commentator will get three minutes to speak please

[11:18:10] state your name and generally where you live at the beginning of your comments I will call people up five at a time and you're welcome to go to the microphone in the back um uh Clark Chitty Marilyn Karp I don't know Palmer Dom is still here Bill Billard and Kern Allen and I'll just

[11:18:44] go on and say Jay Hart Chris Carroll Donna Gallant Bethany Kelly and Laura Mahone please proceed I'm actually speechless, but what you have displayed...

[11:19:09] Can you please state your name and generally where you live in the county? My name is Marilyn Karp, and I'm here representing Tony Karp, my husband. And I live in the Gainesville District. And it is true, I don't know why you want to destroy us here.

[11:19:29] Kenny Bodie, Margaret Franklin, Victor Angry. What have we ever done for you when we passed Medicaid expansion that gave 400,000 underprivileged people who had no medical insurance? When we passed Medicaid expansion, were we doing harm to you?

[11:19:55] I think not. I think what you have done is a disgusting display. And Ann Wheeler, you are less than human. You are corrupt beyond corruption. And you should be put in jail.

[11:20:15] And I thank you, Janine Lawson. You are an incredible human being, and we need more people like you. And I thank you, Yesley Vega, for your words of encouragement, because we will not stop. We will be back.

[11:20:35] And Bob Weir, you know that I love you, and we will do whatever it is that takes, because you know what you've done tonight? You've just strengthened all resolve. And Kenny Bode, shame on you. Your mother is ashamed of you.

[11:20:55] next speaker please Chris Carroll Brentsville district um yeah I wasn't going to stay but since you guys have nothing to say yeah let's do it um so this is actually not for the board because you guys don't have any seemingly representation for us after hearing 80 plus people express their concerns on this so this is for Ms. Roble and Mr. Shorter um pursuant to the

[11:21:31] Virginia Freedom of Information Act. I think you know the code. I'd like to make a request for all of Supervisor Angri's and Chair Wheeler's text messages and emails that have been received or sent during this public hearing, and that's on both government and personal phones, and yeah, emails and text messages, and I'll follow up with Ms. Adorno in the morning with the written request, but my understanding of FOIA law that that can be a spoken request, and I'm making that request now, starting the clock. I do hope the two of you remind them public records cannot be deleted.

[11:22:06] Supervisor Franklin, Bailey, Bodie, stay tuned. And Supervisor Franklin, good luck on your congressional campaign. If this is how you're going to listen to constituents, I think you have an uphill battle. And if you think the way you're going to announce your candidacy is to plug your

[11:22:31] record on crime. Good luck. You're welcome. Next speaker, please. I'm Allie Stoger, Gainesville District. You all probably know who Matt Getz is, right? He's from a district where they won't unelect him because people believe, as he does, in the same Republican, conservative, whatever, whatever Matt Getz is. He felt safe. He could do whatever he wanted because his people in his

[11:23:11] community would still re-elect him, and yet he created havoc in our Congress. This is what you are doing. You are creating havoc because you know that you won't be unelected because of the democratic demographics of your districts. So you feel safe, and you're doing what Matt Getz did.

[11:23:33] You're doing whatever the heck you want to the people who are suffering in this community in vote after vote after vote 5-3 5-3 5-3 5-3 does that seem normal to anyone so if so the next time you think Matt gets is doing something bad in terms of what Republicans doing think again because this is exactly what you are doing next speaker please hi Bethany Kelly Brentsville district I

[11:24:09] want to start I want to thank you supervisor weir you have given us solid advice when we've needed it. You are the voice of reason. Supervisor Vega, you actually brought me to tears tonight. This is the first time in this. Thank you. And Supervisor Lawson, you don't need any words. You know how I feel. I am telling you right now, I have spent the last year and a half of my life working on this. You have caused problems in my marriage. You have caused problems in a lot of other marriages here. I have heard people tell me they are taking years off my life. There are

[11:24:48] people on blood pressure medication because of you. There are people concerned about having heart attacks because of you. But you know most of what I'm hearing? We're moving. We are leaving Prince William County and we will not look back. I have spent 17 years here. My husband spent 28 years in the Navy. This is finally somewhere we could pick and we called home. We're leaving. We are leaving.

[11:25:14] I own a business here. It will be closed up. My husband works remotely from home. We spend all our time and all our money in this county and we are leaving because of you supervisor franklin you chair wheeler you supervisor bailey you supervisor bodie and believe me i remember our conversation last week and you supervisor angry we are leaving we plan to stay here at least 10 to 15 more years we are leaving within three and a half when my daughter graduates college and we are leaving the the state of Virginia because of you so I hope you all can go home and sleep at night because

[11:25:54] none of us have been sleeping because of you and I am not a hateful person I am a kind person I am a giving person I have nothing for you next speaker please Laura Mahoney Brentsville district I mean do you guys want like a hand or something great job great job precedent set all around we can just pass, whatever we want, put it in lame duck session. No one's going to care. Let the developer

[11:26:27] come in. He's going to come in and ask for that one far or sell it. It's going to be great. We're going to have more data centers, more noise. You guys are ruining people's quality of life. Honestly, you guys are heartless. If you can listen to 80 people say that they don't want this project and you still shove it down their throats I mean how do you sleep at night do you want to pay back Miss Franklin I mean for people on the west I mean that's what that's the rumor

[11:27:00] that goes around I mean that's the rumor so I mean good luck on your your con your congressional campaign I hope whoever's running against you wins Chair Wheeler you talked about how you wanted to not make the same mistake specifically regarding Devlin last December you were talking about how you didn't want to repeat Hunter we should work on it let's talk to Supervisor Lawson but we know what kind of people come out Bailey Bailey you don't even know what time of day it is half the time Bodie you say it's not punishment for for us but you know you said oh well we got here because

[11:27:39] the Supervisor Lawson. Again, there's eight of you on the board. Eight of you. So if you voted for this, you're equally as guilty. You can't add it to your resume. Oh, I voted for Hunter. I didn't vote for Hunter. I have that on my resume. Good. Good for you. Pat on the back. It's the only thing you've done. That's the only thing that you've done. So you've just set a precedence to open the door for more data centers against residential. And angry, you just sit up there looking pretty, taking money. You don't care. I know it's a bother for you to be here really late at night and listen

[11:28:13] to people. So you listen, but you guys don't really care. Next speaker, please. Donna Gallant, Brentsville District. So I'll ask each one of you on the board. Chair Wheeler, you sit there on the dais and you preach decorum, decorum. I'm going to ask the same from you. The chitter chatter, the back and forth is 100% disrespectful to every person that comes in here and speaks to

[11:28:44] you. You're texting. You're talking. Give the people the respect that you ask for. And you know what they say, do unto others as they do unto you? We clap because you're disrespectful. The fact that Franklin, Bailey, Bodie, and Angry, shame on the four of you. You all, and I don't know if you can do it for females, but every single one of you has been castrated. You have no individual thought.

[11:29:24] None. You know this is wrong, but you tow the party line. At the expense of who? The residents. 80 residents and those on the phone that came here and spoke in opposition. For what? The almighty campaign dollar? Franklin, I have made it my personal mission that I will campaign for your opponent. Heck, I may move to your district just so I can vote against you. Because you,

[11:30:00] ma'am? Bailey? Bodie? Angry? I am appalled at the lack of ethical conduct and individual thought process that each one of you is lacking. The fact that you can vote yes. Angry. You didn't even get your questions answered about the generator, so let me tell you what you just did to this community.

[11:30:28] 400 generators will run every single week because guess what? Each generator has to be tested for 15 minutes so 400 times that you can do the math okay each one of them will pollute the air Bodie you speak about sustainability that's a far and a crock of bullshit because if you truly cared about sustainability you would have had a set of cojones to stand up against these developers

[11:31:02] but nope I think chair wheeler has castrated you because none of you have a set of balls to stand up for what is right and each one of you is wrong with the political process. Vega, Lawson, and Weir, thank you for your tenacity. Thank you for recognizing what us as residents have done. And don't tell me my time is up. I can read the clock.

[11:31:31] Thank you. Next speaker, please. There is no next speaker. I'm in. Shame on all of you. Motion to adjourn. Can I get a motion to adjourn, please? Second. Can I get a second? Second. Motion made by Supervisor Bailey, seconded by Supervisor Bodie.

[11:31:48] Any discussion? Seeing none, please vote. - Vote unanimous.

----------------------------------------------------------------------
Coraggio Consulting · aguyonx.com