The Campbell County Board of Supervisors is evaluating a proposal that could led to the construction of three new data centers in the region, joining the many already located in the Commonwealth.The proposed location is near route 460 and Cabin Field Road, within the Concord district, but the plan is facing opposition from some local residents.

Bill Carson, a resident of Cabin Field Road, voiced his concerns:

“I think that our quality of life would be greatly disrupted by this extended construction of a data center. Once built, a data center will produce noise pollution in the form of a constant hum. There will be diesel generators that will start up at the first sign of a power outage.We also will have light pollution; it puts out a lot of light at night. There’s a strain on our electrical service, I’m sure,”

MESH Capital LLC has submitted the proposal, seeking to rezone 57.42 acres from heavy industrial (with conditions) to simply heavy industrial,which would permit the construction of a data center. Currently, the property has a proffer requiring progress to adhere to a specific site plan, a requirement the applicant aims to eliminate.The plan outlines the construction of three 150,000 square foot data centers on the site.

Carson urged local citizens to contact their supervisors and vote against the proposal:

“I’d like to appeal to every citizen in every district of Campbell County. I would ask you to please contact your supervisor and ask him to vote ‘no’ on this proposal. Once the door is opened, once thay build a data center here, it’ll be your community next,” Carson said. “I just felt like this whole thing was done really quickly. I think it’s a vrey important decision. I think it will greatly impact our quality of life.”

Ashby Smith, who owns property adjacent to the proposed site, believes approving the proposal would be a mistake. He stated,

“Do we as Campbell County citizens want the government to be able to put data centers wherever they want to? I don’t think so,” Smith said. “The only reason that they haven’t put this thing up here already is as that proffer is in place.

Supervisors Delay Decision,Citing Need for Full Representation

“I don’t think that constitutes all the neighbors of the proposal,” Carson said.

The Campbell County Board of Supervisors postponed a decision on the rezoning during an early september meeting because Concord supervisor Matt Cline was absent. Carson explained, “I asked for that because I didn’t feel like we were represented. I thought it very strange that they would hold a meeting and vote on something like this, so critically important to our community, and our representative wasn’t even there… Though, the chairman of the board of supervisors closed the public hearing, that means only those people who were there that night are allowed to speak. We didn’t have time enough to get enough people there.”

Carson and Smith pointed out that only 13 property owners adjacent to the site were notified about the proposal, with six of them not residing permanently on Cabin Field Road. Carson argued, “I don’t think that constitutes all the neighbors of the proposal.”

Residents are also concerned about increased traffic in a potentially dangerous area, the potential use of over one million gallons of water daily straining the water supply, and the impact of blasts from a nearby rock quarry on the data centers.

Rachel Branning spoke with Cline about these concerns, asking if he shared the residents’ worries about potential negative impacts. Cline responded, “Absolutely. You know, the residents at Cabin Field would definitely be negatively affected by this data center. You’ve got light pollution, noise pollution, physical pollution, environmental concerns. There are a lot of concerns with where this data center would be placed. If you know the property, the property does not lend itself well to development. it’s been zoned heavy industrial for 25 years, and no one’s ever put anything on it. That’s as the topography is basically straight up and down. To get it leveled off to put three large buildings that they’d like to put on the property, it would be a important lift.”

Cline stated he is considering all feedback from his constituents. “There are people who have reached out and said that they were for it because they have a failing well and would love to have a water line run in front of their house. It really is a tough balance for me as an elected representative to make a decision that’s best for everybody in the county,” Cline said.

While Cline said he will not decide how he will vote until the vote is called, he suggested that there might be better locations for a data center. “There are better heavy industrial sites in the county,if the county wanted a data center,than this one. We should be looking at those areas instead of somewhere that currently has no infrastructure for it and a lot of local residential properties,” he said.

Carson and Smith are urging supervisors to vote against the proposal and encouraging others to voice their opinions. Carson stated, “They’re not seeing how this is going to impact the real people.” Smith added, “Our voices as a public can be heard and we can know that our government actually works for us, as opposed to the other way around.”

MESH Capital, which submitted the proposal, has not yet responded to requests for comment. The board’s next meeting is scheduled for October 7 at 6 p.m.