Update July 10: The Planning Commission held its public hearing on Wednesday, July 8. In the pre-meeting, Planning reported they had received over 140 comments and emails raising concerns about data centers. In the hearing, 26 people spoke about their concerns with the proposed ordinance.
The amendments approved by the Planning Commission significantly improve the proposed documents and address several of the concerns we raised, especially on setbacks and noise levels. The proposal now goes forward to the City Council, with a hearing either on August 18 or 25. It will be critical to continue to voice concerns about data centers to the City Council members in advance of their final consideration to make sure the amendments approved by the Planning Commission are not weakened during the final hearing.
There are still several areas where the proposal can be further improved, including:
- Noise
- The draft ordinance should more clearly establish the steps for noise enforcement when data centers exceed permitted levels. Current City ordinances exempt noise from HVAC systems, Backup Generators, and lawful activities in the M-1 Light Industrial, M-2 General Industrial zones, from enforcement.
- Criteria for modeling noise levels during plan approval are not spelled out in the policy. If the simulation incorrectly models the equipment, the analysis will result in inaccurate noise predictions.
- Decommissioning Plan
- The policy indicates a Decommission Plan should be considered during the Conditional Use process, but does not include details. We would like to see it specify a timeframe for the safe removal of equipment and infrastructure and the return of the site to a stable and appropriate post-use condition. If state law allows, we should consider requiring the operator to provide a bond in the event that they go bankrupt and are not financially able to decommission the site.
- Efficiency Standards
- The policy states an intent that data center developments should be designed to meet high standards of energy efficiency and sustainability. But no standards are defined. We recommend that Data Centers adopt a Power Usage Effectiveness of 1.2 or better and a Water Usage Effectiveness (WUE) ratio below 1.0 liters per kilowatt-hour (L/kWh) for a closed-loop cooling system. https://www.energy.gov/sites/default/files/2024-07/best-practice-guide-data-centerdesign_0.pdf
- Coastal Virginia Commerce Park (a.k.a. FT Williams site)
- We were surprised to learn during the Planning Commission meeting that the proposed ordinance does not apply to the Coastal Virginia Commerce Park Planned Unit Development (PUD). The PUD document approved in 2022 sets its own zoning requirements for the 1200-acre property off Route 17 at the North Carolina border, and it states that data centers are a Permitted Use. Data Centers in this PUD would not require a Conditional Use approval. We support applying the same level of data center regulation in the Coastal Virginia Commerce Park as in the rest of the city.
Background: Under current zoning regulations, data centers can be built "By Right", without any City Council oversight, in any business, commercial, or industrial zoning district. The proposed ordinance will continue to allow Data Centers to be built in Chesapeake with a Conditional Use Permit in Industrial zoning districts (M-1 and M-2) and also within the Fentress Overlay. It establishes conditions and guidelines for granting such a Conditional Use Permit. The proposed ordinance and policy can be found at https://www.cityofchesapeake.net/3783/Data-Center-Ordinance-and-Policy
The draft ordinance permits data centers by Conditional Use in the Fentress Overlay. The associated policy document sets the preferred siting to be within 0.5 miles of existing electric transmission corridors or other suitable power sources. While the 2045 Comp Plan states that "Industrial and commercial uses that are compatible with rural infrastructure and aesthetic and noise levels commonly produced during Fentress operations are appropriate" in the Overlay, the cumulative impacts of encouraging a “data center alley” must be considered. The heat island effects, air and noise pollution, visual impacts, and the permanent loss of farm lands would profoundly alter the rural character of the area. The increased setback requirements of 1320' (1/4 mile) from the property line and 2640' (1/2 mile) from existing residences approved by the Planning Commission help address these concerns.
The original draft had considered the same low-frequency noise levels recently adopted by Prince William County with a maximum daytime noise level at 73dB(C) and a maximum nighttime level at 68 dB(C). But Prince William County Board of Supervisors adopted levels louder than recommended by their own consultants, in order not to negatively impact existing data centers; data centers which people complained about as too loud. https://www.princewilliamtimes.com/news/supervisors-ok-compromise-noise-ordinance-aimed-at-data-centers/article_1288e464-5559-4c12-ab8f-2a28ca28d819.html . The Planning Commission amended the allowable noise levels to 55 dBC at night and 60 dbC during the day.
- Plans and components required in a Conditional Use Permit Application
- Back-up Power Generator restrictions
- Lighting Standards
- Landscaping and Buffering Standards