A coalition of environmental advocacy organizations is asking Fairfax County officials for more information about the proposed sale of 42 acres in Chantilly to a data center developer.
County supervisors have set a March 17 public hearing to consider selling a portion of the county-owned parcel at 3721 Stonecroft Blvd where the Fairfax County Police Department has several training facilities.
Starwood Capital Group (SGC Global Holdings LLC) made the unsolicited $166.8 million offer to purchase the southernmost one-third of the 128-acre property, located immediately south of Dulles International Airport and west of the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center.
“The site remains an important location for police training, but the current facilities are spread out in a way that leaves portions of the property underutilized,” county officials said in announcing the potential sale on Feb. 11.
“The funds from the sale will defray costs to ensure Fairfax County has a modern police training facility,” county officials said in the news release.
A sale also would add the 41.7 acres to the county’s tax base.
“While the estimated tax revenue will depend on the final design and development of the data center, we anticipate in excess of $20 million in tax revenue the first year after completion of the project,” county officials said.
But in a March 4 letter to Board of Supervisors Chairman Jeff McKay, the environmental groups argue that not enough information has been made available to the public.
“Due to the size and nature of the proposed sale, and the limited amount of information that has been shared with Fairfax County residents so far, we ask that you elaborate on the specifics of the deal and the process that resulted in the current proposal,” said representatives of the Sierra Club Great Falls Group, Nature Forward, Faith Alliance for Climate Solutions, Chesapeake Climate Action Network and Friends of Holmes Run.
Among the information sought by the groups:
- “Has Fairfax County signed any agreements (such as a Memorandum of Understanding) with Starwood Capital Group or its affiliates? If yes, can you make those agreements available to the public?”
- “Other than the sales price and the acreage, which has been shared with the public, what are the terms of the agreement(s)?”
- “Please elaborate on how the consideration of this proposal originated. Did Fairfax County encourage the developer SCG to solicit an offer or was this offer unsolicited without any county or Board encouragement?”
- “Were other developers considered or explored to ensure the highest and best use, sale price and public benefit of this transaction?”
- “What are the opportunity costs of selling county land to a private developer? Did the county consider alternative uses for this land sale?”
- “Have there been discussions about utilizing the revenue from the sale of the 41.7 acres to fund other county priorities, such as renewable energy, affordable housing or recreational facilities?
- “Has the county considered the potential health impacts such as air quality on low-income communities?”
- “How will these data centers add to the total carbon emissions of the county? Will the county require the use of backup battery storage as primary storage, or will it agree to utilize diesel generators?”
In a separate letter sent earlier to McKay, four civic leaders and the president of an environmental organization suggested that county officials should work out a land swap with SCG Global Holdings instead of taking cash for the Stonecroft site.
The Stonecroft property could be exchanged for the Plaza 500 site at 6295 Edsall Road in Lincolnia, which is currently owned by SCG, the writers said in the Feb. 16 letter.
Within walking distance of the Van Dorn Street Metro station, the 500,000-square-foot site currently houses warehouses but is being targeted for a data center, to the consternation of some residents.
A property exchange “could provide the county with a once-in-a-generation land swap for a prime transit-oriented 1,000+ unit affordable housing development,” the writers told McKay.
That letter was signed by presidents of the Bren Pointe Homeowners Association, Jefferson Green Homeowners Association, Ridges at Edsall Homeowners Association and Landmark Mews Community Association. The fifth signature was the president of the Overlook Foundation.
In a March 2 response, McKay called the proposal “creative” but “not something that we can pursue.”
“The development of Plaza 500 is a separate and unrelated matter that will be reviewed independently on its own merits,” McKay wrote.
