New conceptual plans for Convergent Technology Park in Remington, Fauquier County Virginia, have been submitted.
Fauquier County residents were shown the new plans by data center developer Covergent VA LLC at a recent neighborhood meeting.
Convergent VA first applied to develop a data center complex on a 140-acre parcel between James Madison Street and James Madison Highway in February 2019. Those plans sought to see six data center buildings built on the site, an electrical substation, and a 500,000-gallon water tank for fire impression.
The development was approved in May 2019, though the application was then withdrawn.
According to Jeffrey Price, a partner in Convergent VA, the proposal was withdrawn due to the complexity of study and evaluation needed. "It's not just the rezoning, the line of sights, or the sewer and the water, it also has to do with power and fiber. It's very complex to develop these properties, that's one of the reasons,” said Price. Additionally, several neighbors were expressing concerns about the visual impact, noise pollution, and water use.
The reworked proposal will be for four 60-foot-tall data centers spanning 1 million sq ft (92,903 sqm), on the property.
According to Convergent VA, the construction cost is expected to exceed $1 billion, and to take three to four years to complete. No end-user has been named.
In a letter to Dominion Energy, Convergent VA said that the campus would need 240MW to be powered, and there would likely be 16 diesel generators per building.
Noise will not exceed the county limit of 65 decibels and the company will conduct a sound study. All buildings will be set back 440 feet behind 12-foot berms to screen the buildings.
The previously proposed on-site substation has been removed, and power distribution lines will be buried underground.
Finally, Convergent VA proposes a walking trail along a portion of the property, and will retain its promise to donate 39 acres in the southern end for a passive, county park.
The campus would generate around 200 full-time jobs for the area, and Convergent VA estimates that the data centers, when complete, could generate $15-20m in annual revenue for the county. The new proposal has yet to be officially submitted to the county.
A Plan B for the site would be Ellerslie Farm subdivision, a residential project for 198 single-family lots.
The Convergent Technology Park is one of four data center projects proposed for the farmland area north of Remington.
Other developers, including SAMX Data LLC and Gigaland, are currently pitching projects to county planners, and PointOne's Remington Technology Park is preparing to break ground.
