Prince William County surpasses 5 million square feet of Data Center space
Prince William County today announced that it is now home to over 5 million square feet of data center space.
Prince William County today announced that it is now home to over 5 million square feet of data center space. As part of the Northern Virginia data center market – the largest in the world, Prince William County shows no signs of slowing down.
To date, the County’s Department of Economic Development has logged 41 projects that have invested $9 billion in capital investment and created over 1,170 highly-skilled jobs, as well as bringing hundreds of construction jobs and indirect jobs into Prince William County.
Given the expected exponential growth in information communications technology and commensurate data storage infrastructure needs, the Prince William Board of County Supervisors approved the amended zoning ordinance text (#DPA2019-00002) for the Data Center Opportunity Zone (DCOZ) Overlay District, in June. As such, “Data Centers are now permitted an increased Floor Area Ration (FAR) within the DCOZ Overlay District up to 1.0 FAR. Data Centers outside of the DCOZ may request an increase in FAR through a special use permit process, as described and allowed in Sec. 32-400.04 of the Zoning Ordinance,” as stated in the new ordinance.
“We are pleased to announce the achievement of such a significant milestone within our existing data center industry,” said Corey Stewart, Chairman At-Large, Prince William Board of County Supervisors. “Our success within this systemically important industry is as much a testament to positive underlying market fundamentals as it is to the sound leadership of this community. It underscores the fact that we are decidedly pro-business and are willing to take the necessary steps to provide the framework in which businesses can grow as evidenced in the recent changes we’ve made in the zoning text amendments,” he added.
“Being home to 5.2 million square feet of data center space is an achievement of which we are very proud,” said Jeanine Lawson, Brentsville District Supervisor, Prince William Board of County Supervisors.
“This overlay district fosters more efficient land use and offers greater consistency and clarity to guide future development,” said Christina M. Winn, Executive Director, Prince William County Department of Economic Development. “Companies in the Information Communications Technology industry typically look for locations with: resilient and affordable power; commercial zoning; connectivity/latency; and existing water capacity, which is what makes Prince William County one of the nation’s industry leaders.”
The amendment follows last year’s COPT announcement to build two Data Center facilities in Innovation Park and most recently the completion of a total of 6 data center projects in Fiscal Year 2019 by the Department of Economic Development.
From all indications, the County is well-poised to continue along its positive growth trajectory along with the rest of the Northern Virginia market, according to JLL’s Global Data Center Outlook. As of Year End 2018, Northern Virginia continues to dominate the Global Data Center Market with over 30% of the market share and a record 270.0 Mega-Watts (MW) absorption of the total 775.0 MW in the world.
To learn more about this targeted industry sector in Prince William County, check out the Data Center Overview here, obtain valuable business data on the economic intelligence online tool or sign-up for our E-Newsletter today.
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