Residents urged to come out in force for the hearing on the Edsall substation
Opponents of Dominion Energy’s proposal for a five-acre substation to serve a data center on Edsall Road are hoping for a huge turnout at the Fairfax County Planning Commission hearing on Dec. 2.
The Save Bren Mar Coalition, a grassroots group that has been fighting against the data center and the substation for years, organized a canvass on Nov. 7 to inform nearby residents in the Jefferson Green, Edsall Ridge, and Bren Mar Park neighborhoods about the upcoming hearing and urge them to attend.
The coalition’s founder, Tyler Ray, told the volunteers before they fanned out to knock on doors, “The Planning Commission public hearing on December 2nd will decide the fate of the Edsall data center substation, and potentially the data center itself.” In addition to local residents, the event drew volunteers from Reston and Arlington.
Related story: Planning Commission defers hearing on substation to Dec. 2
About 28,000 residents of Mason District and the City of Alexandria live within a mile of the proposed data center campus at the Plaza 500 site on Edsall Road. The substation would be just 67 feet from homes in the Bren Pointe townhouse community.
The data center, to be constructed by Starwood Capital, is a by-right project, which means it doesn’t need to go through a hearing process or approval by the Board of Supervisors. The State Corporation Commission has already approved a high-voltage transmission line for a future substation.
Starwood won’t be able to go forward with the data center, however, unless there’s a substation to support it. The only chance residents have to stop the project is if the Planning Commission rejects a 2232 Public Facilities Review of the proposed substation.
The Planning Commission hearing will be held in the Board Auditorium at the Fairfax County Government Center at 12000 Government Center Parkway, Fairfax, on Dec. 2. The hearing starts at 7:30 p.m.
Related story: Community members speak out against a substation at Plaza 500
To speak at the hearing, sign up here. Testimony can also be submitted by written statement, phone, or pre-recorded YouTube video.
The Mason District Land Use Committee will vote Nov. 30 on whether to recommend approval or denial. The public is urged to come to the MDLUC meeting, which will be held at Belvedere Elementary School, 6540 Columbia Pike, at 7:30 p.m.
When the data center was proposed, “Bren Mar was thrown under the bus,” Del. Vivian Watts told volunteers before the canvass. “It should never have gone forward; at least it should never have gone forward as a by-right project.”
“On the local level, you change things by the numbers of people showing up,” Watts said. “Members of the Planning Commission and Board of Supervisors think they know their district. You’ve got to show them otherwise, that we understand what’s happening and that this is wrong.”
The Save Bren Mar Coalition plans to host canvass events on Veterans Day, Nov. 11, and every weekend between now and Dec. 2. The goal is to pack the room at the Planning Commission hearing.
Related story: Residents urge Virginia to impose a data center moratorium