Updated at 8:18 p.m., Aug. 7
The Prince William Digital Gateway, the largest commercial development in the recent history of Prince William County, is void, a judge ruled Thursday.
Prince William County Circuit Court Judge Kimberly Irving ruled in favor of the Oak Valley Homeowners’ Association and a group of individual homeowners who live near the development, which proposes 37 data centers at the edge of Manassas National Battlefield Park.
Nearly two years ago, the Prince William Board of County Supervisors approved the Prince William Digital Gateway, one of the largest data center developments in the world. But even before the final vote, a group of nearby residents began challenging the project in court.Now, they are awaiting a judge’s decision on their case, but her refusal to dismiss their lawsuit has fueled a cautious optimism that the residents might prevail.
The ruling comes several weeks after Irving conducted a June trial in the case, during which she heard testimony from several of the plaintiffs and other witnesses and considered thousands of pieces of evidence.
Irving said the Prince William Board of County Supervisors’ decision to rezone 1,700 acres of homes and farms for the data center development is “void” because the county failed to comply with state and local notice requirements in advance of the public hearings, which were held in December 2023.
Irving found the defects in the county’s advertised notices “were solely caused by the county, not the Washington Post.”
The judge also found that the county failed to make the Digital Gateway plans, ordinances or amendments referenced in the public notices available to the public.
Irving found that most of the plaintiffs provided credible testimony showing a substantial risk of particularized harm and that they also proved they lived in close proximity to the rezonings.
“Each of them is situated differently from the public as a whole, and, as such, they each have standing to bring this suit,” Irving wrote.
Mac Haddow, president of the Oak Valley Homeowners’ Association, said the plaintiffs are “ecstatic” about the judge’s ruling.
“It is a victory for every resident who wants government to be accountable,” Haddow said Thursday afternoon, when Irving’s order was released. “We just wanted (the supervisors) to re-advertise, re-hear and revote, and we want them to do it in a transparent way.”
Haddow said the plaintiffs expect that the data center companies will appeal the ruling. But he also said they hope the county will not join an appeal if one is filed.
In a statement, Compass Datacenters, one of two companies involved in the Digital Gateway, said it was still assessing the judge’s ruling.
“We are disappointed in the court’s decision and are assessing our options moving forward. We remain committed to building a first-class data center campus in Prince William County and will provide further comment as events warrant,” the statement said.
The county has already spent close to $1 million defending the Digital Gateway, according to invoices for legal work obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request.
“We hope this board will say, ‘We’re foregoing any appeal and we’re just going to do the right thing,’” Haddow said.
This is a breaking news story. It will be updated.
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