The council voted unanimously to initiate the process of changing the comprehensive plan to allow a Technology Overlay Zoning District that would allow the development of data centers.
The centers would be in Celebrate Virginia South, an area off Interstate 95 anchored by Wegmans and the Fredericksburg Expo Center. Tuesday's vote sends the complex issue to the planning commission for study and a recommendation.
The commission and the council held a joint work session addressing various technical aspects of the development Tuesday just before the regular council meeting.
The current plan calls for another joint work session between the two bodies next week, followed by a Planning Commission public hearing on Feb. 12 and a public hearing at the Feb. 25 City Council. Some final decisions would come sometime after that.
Council members say they owe it to city residents to get some of the millions of dollars in revenue that they believe data centers will bring in. They say the centers are coming whether the city participates or not, and say it would not be prudent to let all of the potential revenue go to surrounding jurisdictions.
"We have to find ways to ease the burden on the taxpayers and this is a great opportunity to do just that," Councilman Jason Graham said.
Though there was no official public hearing Tuesday night, a number of residents addressed the council on the data center issue anyway. Few expressed outright opposition to the concept, but several residents expressed concern that the city was moving so swiftly.
"Why such a rush?" said city resident Anne Little, who listed a number of environmental and other issues that she and others don't believe have been adequately addressed. "Transparency by the city government is sorely lacking sometimes."
Paula Chow said she is not opposed to data centers but is concerned about the protections the city will require, while Libby Wasem expressed concerns about the environment and urged the council to "please protect our city."
Sue Sergeant said unlike the larger surrounding counties, the city doesn't have space to waste by rushing. "Fredericksburg is only 10 square miles and we're running out of space," she said.
Others, including Lee Murray, said the city would be "foolish" not to take advantage of revenue a data center could bring. "We're late to the party," he said. "This should have been done years ago."
Council members insist that they are being sensitive to environmental and other concerns, and Vice Mayor Charlie Frye scoffed at a suggestion that the council is trying to sneak something by the citizens.
"We are as open as we can be," Frye said. "There is no behind the scenes."
The only disagreement on council during Tuesday's discussion came from Councilman Jonathan Gerlach, who initially said he could not support the minimum of 150 acres of contiguous property for a data center campus that other council members supported. Gerlach said the city staff has suggested 75 acres, and the council should at least start off there.
Others said they'd rather start with the larger number and work down if necessary. Council member Jannan Holmes said the 150-acre idea makes it more likely the city will be able to keep its data center campus in one place.
Gerlach eventually voted with the majority, saying he'd decided "not to die on this hill."
© 2025 The Free Lance-Star (Fredericksburg, Va.). Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
