(Pages 19 - 22)

Below is a summary of the recommendations included in the text of this report. These recommendations are presented for Comprehensive Plan guidelines and Zoning Ordinance standards that could be established for data centers to be approved by [Special Exception (SE)] in conventional zoning districts and rezoning/development plan approval in planned districts, where permitted. As previously noted, data centers could continue to be allowed by right; however, some of the recommendations, such as a review of noise studies and building design and encouraging increased open space, tree planting, and stormwater treatment, may be more effectively implemented through an SE review. The SE review process would ensure a robust County review with careful consideration of potential impacts and allow for public hearings to solicit community feedback.

1. Land Use and Site Design
Zoning Ordinance:

• Consider revising permissions to require SE approval for data centers, regardless of size, in the C-3, C-4, and I-2 through I-6 Districts. In addition to recommendations included below under other topic areas, standards for special exception review should include the consideration of the size of a proposed data center and its distance (buildings and generators) from surrounding existing and planned residential development.

• Where data centers are allowed in the Planned Districts, add a standard to clarify that the use must be specifically identified on the approved development plan, including the location, size, height, and setbacks.

Comprehensive Plan:

• Create a new appendix to the Land Use Element of the Policy Plan for data centers with updated performance criteria. The new appendix should include guidelines that would be utilized in the review of all data centers through the rezoning or special exception process, not just those seeking additional intensity in industrial areas. The guidelines could include consideration of compatibility with future planned uses for the property and surrounding properties.

• Consider recommendations for enhanced buffering for data centers located near residential, noise sensitive uses, and environmentally sensitive areas.

• Consider guidelines for distances from existing or planned substations or transmission lines that can service the data center.

2. Energy Demand
Zoning Ordinance:

• Add zoning application submission requirements for rezoning and SE applications for assessments of future energy needs that will be used in staff’s review in accordance with Comprehensive Plan guidelines.

Comprehensive Plan:

• Consider adding an energy performance standard like PUE to promote energy efficiency data centers undergoing rezoning or SE review.

• Encourage LEED-Data Center Silver certification or greater for data centers undergoing rezoning or SE review.

• Encourage data centers to install onsite solar and invest in offsite renewable energy to offset their energy demand and carbon footprint for data centers undergoing rezoning or SE review.

Other Recommendations:

• Establish a new process for coordination with Dominion and NOVEC about proposed data centers during the review of zoning applications, which may include assessments of future energy needs as it relates to existing and planned power infrastructure.

• Pursue partnerships with data center operators for the voluntary sharing of facility energy consumption to assist the County in measuring the achievement of CECAP goals.

3. Water Quality
Zoning Ordinance:

• Consider adding SE standards in the Zoning Ordinance (or amending another chapter of the County Code) for fuel tanks smaller than 25,000 gallons for proper surface grading, berms, or other additional containment practices to protect surface water and ground water by ensuring that if the tank were to fail or if a spill were to occur during filling, the fuel does not enter the stormwater system or open space areas.

Comprehensive Plan:

• Encourage data centers to address potential water quality concerns through the monitoring of cooling system discharge into the wastewater system and, if needed, providing pre-treatment.

• To avoid potential impacts on potable water, within the UOSA service area, encourage the use of cooling systems that do not discharge to the wastewater or stormwater systems, or non-chemical and non-water-based cooling systems. 

• Encourage projects subject to rezoning or SE review to exceed minimum requirements for open space and tree preservation and planting.

4. Air Quality

Comprehensive Plan:

• Encourage data centers undergoing rezoning or SE review to minimize air quality impacts through a variety of approaches:

  • • Apply state of the art technology to minimize air pollution from backup generators.

    • Encourage the use of Tier IV backup generators, and replacement of existing Tier II generators with Tier IV generators.

Other Recommendations:

• Request DEQ to install additional air quality monitoring stations in Fairfax County.

5. Noise

Zoning Ordinance:

• Consider adding zoning application submission requirements for data centers undergoing rezoning or SE review to quantify the increase in noise on adjacent uses, support review in accordance with Comprehensive Plan guidelines, and demonstrate compliance with the Noise Ordinance.

• Consider expanding the current Zoning Ordinance equipment enclosure requirement to apply in all zoning districts where data centers and other similar industrial uses are allowed.

Noise Ordinance:

• Consider amending the Noise Ordinance to remove exemptions for uses with large numbers of backup generators and require the testing and maintenance as well as the full emergency use of backup generators to comply with the Noise Ordinance standards.

Comprehensive Plan:

• Noise studies for projects undergoing rezoning or SE review could include an evaluation of impacts on residential uses and sensitive habitats. Noise mitigation equipment should be considered to avoid noise impacts to both the human environment and the habitats of local fauna. 

• Consider amending the Plan to recommend that data center proposals evaluate and mitigate potential noise impacts:

  • • Noise studies could be submitted as part of a rezoning or SE application, for pre-construction (prior to building permit approval) and post-construction (prior to issuance of a Nonresidential Use Permit) to quantify the increase in noise on adjacent uses and demonstrate compliance with the Noise Ordinance.

    • Noise modeling could address the worst-case scenario, including all cooling equipment at full operational load, as well as the maximum number of generators that may be tested at one time.

    • Noise modeling could also address the backup use of backup generators.

    • Noise modeling could include the frequency octave band limits.

Other Recommendations:

• Conduct additional research on establishing standards for lower frequencies in the Noise Ordinance.

6. Building Design

Zoning Ordinance:

• Consider adding submission requirements for rezoning and SE applications to include:

  • • Architectural elevations (to address the large massing and scale of data centers)

    • Materials and color palette

    • Sight line studies, including renderings or perspectives from the right-of-way and nearby residential uses.

Comprehensive Plan:

• Review the current guidelines for Building Design in Appendix 12 and consider applying them to projects undergoing rezoning or SE review, including consideration of facade variation, a defined entrance feature, screening of equipment, and other techniques to improve the view of the building from public roads and nearby residential uses.

Chairman Jeff McKay

• "If we are going to do any data centers in Fairfax County, even if its one-fifth or one-tenth of what other people are going to do, the ones we do in this County are going to be done at the highest standard we can possibly foresee."

• "I will also support making sure that this is the standard on any data center that comes into Fairfax County, because frankly we need to be setting the nationwide standard on these. And I believe that we can do that and that’s what we asked for and this application will do that."

• "Our job is to do a land use analysis to look at this application and weigh at against what our standards are, question ourselves whether our standards are the highest in the Commonwealth and I would argue probably put them up against most in the nation in dealing with data centers. Are they at that standard? And they are. Does this application meet those standards? It does." 

• "There are times where commitments are made through the land use process that people think will not be upheld. And that’s why I’m making sure not only we got some things on the record but also making sure that the proffers are so extensive. The proffers are legally binding. They exceed the zoning ordinance standard, The protections for noise for people related to this property are better than the protections for noise anybody else living around industrial properties in Fairfax County unless there’s a proffer like this in here. And most industrial cases don’t have that…There are some elements of the proffer here that most certainly exceed what our own county requirements are for industrial/commercial properties in other parts of the county. And for me that's a bellwether for if we should make this change. Are we doing better than what our own zoning ordinance tells us that we need to be doing? And I think that this application does that."

Vice-Chairman Kathy Smith (Sully District)

• "Applicant agreed to restrict noise significantly below the noise ordinance standard."

• "Enclosing of generators, a measure not required in I-5 Districts."

• "The proposed use will not adversely affect neighboring properties due to its extraordinary buffering and distance from residential area."

• "Again, I really appreciate the public participation, that input helped to prompt real improvements to the application."

Supervisor Andres Jimenez (Mason District)

• [Nothing on the record.]

Supervisor James Walkinshaw (Braddock District)

• "This is an issue that we really as a county have to get right."

• "We also have an opportunity to establish standards that are the highest in the Commonwealth if not the highest in the nation and I think the work of this application and the work that staff has done with our data center report put us on that path. I think as we move forward into the future we will be able to put in place standards that are even higher than what we are talking about today and that were in the data center report."

• "The challenge is if we can establish the highest standards here and hold data centers to those standards we can do better than other places where they would be build if they were not built here."

• "This case meets all of our existing standards and meets all of the higher standards that we are likely to consider in the years to come."

Supervisor James Bierman, Jr. (Dranesville District)

• "What message would it send that we’re accepting a data center without stuff from the data center report? But I got news for you, there’s a lot of proffers here, there’s a lot here with this data center that matches this report."

• "The report here says you should work on water treatment and consider water treatment before it goes in your watershed. Do we proffer about water treatment? We do. There’s something in here about proffers based on lower noise requirements. We’ve already been over that. We proffered lower noise requirements. There was literally something in here about a post-construction noise study and we’ve got that right here as well."

• "We asked and we got a lot out of this applicant to make this a responsible plan."

Supervisor Rodney Lusk (Franconia District)

• [Nothing on the record.]

Supervisor Walter Alcorn (Hunter Mill District)

• [Not present.]

Supervisor Daniel Storck (Mount Vernon District)

• "Recognize where data centers should and shouldn’t be. Recognize the ability to put them in industrial centers. I think that’s why we’ve created that opportunity and option. I think even some commercial places it’s appropriate. Obviously where it’s not is areas that are at residential locations."

• "I want to support that need [of data centers] but I want to do it in a way that minimizes its impact because every time you do a data center, every time you do a major construction like this there is an impact."

Supervisor Dalia Palchik (Providence District)

• [Nothing on the record.]

Supervisor Pat Herrity (Springfield District)

• "It comes before the board has been able to discuss and issue our guidance on data centers."

• "Springfield garage looms over the neighboring church and as I drive by that thing and look at what we did to that church it bothers me what we’re going to do here and it’s out of character with that area in the county."