County board approves Independent Hill plan on party-line vote

The Prince William Board of County Supervisors has approved a controversial plan paving the way for new development around Independent Hill that would allow up to 200 new homes, a shopping center and significantly more acreage for industrial uses. The plan also carves about 40 acres from the existing “rural crescent” that could become a new data center. 

The board approved the plan at 2 a.m. Wednesday morning on a 5-3, party-line vote with all five Democrats voting in favor and the board’s three Republicans voting against it. 

The debate over the proposal was marred by arguments between Democratic and Republican board members, and was nearly scuttled after two Republican supervisors – Yesli Vega, R-Coles, and Jeanine Lawson, R-Brentsville – abruptly left the meeting at 1 a.m. in what appeared to be an attempt to break the meeting’s quorum and delay the vote.

Because Supervisors Pete Candland, R-Gainesville, and Victor Angry, D-Neabsco, were participating in the meeting virtually, it left only four Democratic supervisors to vote in-person, which was not enough to approve the plan. 

The board was forced to take a recess so Angry could drive from his Neabsco office to the board chambers to create the quorum needed for a vote. 

While Angry was driving to the board meeting, Vega and Lawson returned to the board chambers. When the meeting resumed, Vega apologized for leaving the meeting. Vega said she left the meeting because she became frustrated by Democratic board members support for the proposal, part of which is in her district.

The plan, known as the “Independent Hill Small Area Plan,” is a blueprint for future development for about 544 acres in the mid-county area, stretching from the county landfill to the edge of Prince William Forest Park along the Va. 234 corridor. It’s one of several “small area plans” already approved or in the works for parts of the county.

The county planning commission recommended the board deny the Independent Hill plan on 5-3 vote in December.

The most controversial aspect of the plan would allow 41 acres of a 160-acre parcel of land in the county’s designated rural area to be rezoned for “public facility/office,” a designation that could allow for a new data center or office uses. The plan designates the remaining 120 acres of the parcel as “parks and open space” that would act as a buffer between the 41-acre “public facility/office” area and Prince William Forest Park. 

Under the county’s current rural area zoning rules, the entire 160-acre parcel could be sold and subdivided into 16 10-acre residential lots with septic systems.

The board’s three Republicans and about two dozen advocates of existing rural area zoning rules spoke during citizens’ comment time to adamantly oppose removing any land from the rural area for development and voiced opposition to any plan for a data center so close to the park. The approval marks the second time in just a few months that the supervisors have removed land from the rural crescent by altering zoning rules in the area. 

“Putting a data center or other industrial uses next to Prince William Forest Park jeopardizes the forest,” said Kim Hosen, executive director of the nonprofit Prince William Conservation Alliance.

The county designated rural area, also known as the “rural crescent,” makes up about 52% of the county’s total land mass and includes Prince William Forest Park, Marine Corps Base Quantico and Manassas National Battlefield Park. In the areas that permit residential building, only single-family homes can be built and only on 10-acre lots. Connections to public sewer are also generally prohibited.

Chris Alfred, acting Superintendent for Prince William Forest Park, said the park did have some concerns about any development being considered near the park, including the impacts of stormwater runoff on the headwaters of Quantico Creek and the threat of invasive plant species. 

But Alfred also said the park “sees the benefits” of nearby residential development with easy access to the park for county residents. 

Some supervisors said during the meeting that the owners of the 160-acre parcel in the rural area had approached them with plans to eventually site a data center on the property. The land is bisected by a high voltage transmission line but is outside the county’s data center overlay district. Data centers require a large amount of electricity. 

Any plan for a data center would still require a board-approved rezoning and special use permit, according to county staff. So, while the board approved the small area plan, it does not guarantee a data center will be built. 

“There will be other opportunities for community input,” said Supervisor Andrea Bailey, D-Potomac. 

Other parts of the plan received less pushback from board members and the public. Outside the rural area, the plan allows for a residential and commercial mixed-use community with up to 200 homes and allows a large swath of agricultural-zoned land next to the landfill to be rezoned for technology and industrial uses such as warehousing and data centers. 

It could also open the door to expanding Va. 234 from four lanes to six lanes in the area of the proposed plan. 

Prince William County planning Director Parag Agrawal said the plan has the potential to create a pedestrian-friendly, mixed-use community in the Independent Hill area near employment centers such as the Kelly Leadership Center, the Prince William County landfill and Colgan High School. The plan calls for the creation of 3.6 miles of new trails that could potentially connect the development with Prince William Forest Park and Colgan High School. 

Agrawal said the plan would also result in increased economic development in the county by allowing for potential new commercial uses along the Va. 234 corridor.

The board’s five Democrats and more than a dozen county residents spoke in support of the plan, including for its potential economic benefits. Democratic supervisors have been pushing for increased data center uses, as well as industrial, commercial and “mixed-use projects” that combine residential and commercial development in the county to increase the county’s commercial tax base. 

Some have said that increasing the commercial tax base will allow the board to better fund the county school system and possibly reduce the county’s residential tax rate. 

“We have to look out for our constituents in terms of taxes,” Bailey said during the meeting. 

Several county residents, and some who live in the “rural crescent,” said the county could benefit from the added tax revenues that could come from development in the Independent Hill area, including from siting data centers in the rural area. 

“Progress happens,” said Gainesville District resident John Brower. “I think the county could use the revenue.”

Reach Daniel Berti at dberti@fauquier.com