Developer pulls 220-acre Frederick County data center rezoning
Equus Capital Partners withdrew its Virginia Technology Park rezoning request in Clear Brook two days before a county board hearing.
FREDERICK COUNTY — Equus Capital Partners withdrew its request to rezone 220 acres in Clear Brook for the Virginia Technology Park data center campus, the Winchester Star reported Oct. 26. The board of supervisors had moved the public hearing up to Oct. 28.
The Pennsylvania-based company sought to rezone three parcels south of Rest Church Road from Rural Areas to Technology Manufacturing. The plan called for 10 to 11 data center buildings, three substation pads, up to 288 diesel generators and 24,000 square feet of office space.
Equus Senior Vice President Daniel DiLella Jr. said the main reason for the withdrawal was a lack of time to make needed revisions. He wrote that the company felt blindsided by the earlier hearing date and said the political climate was not conducive to approval. The Star reported that the county planning commission had earlier recommended denial of the rezoning unanimously.
The board's Oct. 28 agenda also included a public hearing on a conditional-use permit for the Winchester Gateway data center campus in Kernstown: 72 acres, three data center buildings and an electrical substation. The planning commission unanimously recommended denial of that permit on Sept. 2. The outcome of the Oct. 28 hearing had not been confirmed when this story was published.
The Star separately reported that Equus's request was pulled from a July 8 board agenda and postponed after the planning commission's recommendation.
Frederick County shows how fast a data center plan can unravel once a rural county board pushes back, and the Winchester Gateway decision will show how far that goes.
What's next
- Oct. 28 Board of Supervisors public hearing on the Winchester Gateway conditional-use permit; result to be confirmed