A major data-centre campus planned beside a historic Civil War battlefield in Virginia has been abandoned after years of community opposition and legal challenges.
asserted
campus → plan → opposition
The Prince William Digital Gateway, proposed along Pageland Lane in Prince William County, would have brought up to 37 data-centre buildings to approximately 2,100 acres near Manassas National Battlefield Park.
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Gateway → propose → Park
Residents, landowners and preservation groups challenged the project’s approvals, arguing that the development threatened the area’s historic character and raised broader concerns about large-scale infrastructure.
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development → challenge → infrastructure
In March 2026, the Virginia Court of Appeals upheld a ruling invalidating the project’s three rezonings over defective public notices.
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Court → uphold → notices
QTS Data Centers later withdrew its appeal, ending the proposal in July 2026.
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Centers → withdraw → July
A 2,100-acre data-centre planned near Civil War history
The Digital Gateway was designed as a large-scale technology campus in rural western Prince William County.
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Gateway → plan → County
QTS Data Centers and Compass Datacenters planned to develop the site, with the proposed facilities expected to total more than 22 million square feet at full build-out.
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facilities → plan → out
QTS planned approximately 11.3 million square feet, while Compass proposed up to 11.55 million square feet.
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Compass → plan → feet
The completed campus would have included as many as 37 buildings and represented a multibillion-dollar investment in the region’s data-centre industry.
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campus → complete → industry
The proposed site stood beside Manassas National Battlefield Park, which preserves the landscape of two major Civil War battles: the First Battle of Manassas, also known as the First Battle of Bull Run, fought on 21 July 1861, and the Second Battle of Manassas, also known as the Second Battle of Bull Run, fought from 28 to 30 August 1862.
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Battle → propose → August
Preservationists argued that a major industrial development next to the park could damage the historic setting and views associated with the battlefield.
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development → argue → battlefield
Why residents and preservationists opposed it
Opposition came from local residents, landowners and organisations concerned about the proposed campus’s effect on the surrounding area.
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Opposition → oppose → area
Critics raised questions about the development’s scale, its proximity to the battlefield and the possible consequences for the rural landscape.
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Critics → raise → landscape
Environmental and infrastructure concerns also formed part of the wider debate surrounding the project.
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concerns → form → project
The American Battlefield Trust was among the groups challenging the development.
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Trust → challenge → development
Its opposition focused on protecting the historic landscape near Manassas National Battlefield Park.
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opposition → focus → Park
Residents also became involved in legal action against the county and the developers, arguing that the approvals had not followed the public-notice requirements established by law.
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approvals → become → law
The project had supporters as well.
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project → have → supporters
Developers said it would bring tens of billions of dollars in capital investment, substantial annual tax revenue and thousands of long-term jobs.
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it → say → jobs
The disagreement was therefore not limited to the question of construction near a historic site.
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disagreement → limit → site
It also involved competing views about economic development, land use and the future of data-centre infrastructure in Northern Virginia.
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It → involve → Virginia
County approves the project after a 27-hour hearing
The Prince William County Board of County Supervisors approved the three rezoning applications in December 2023.
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Board → approve → December
The decision followed a public meeting that lasted approximately 27 hours, during which residents and other participants debated the project.
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residents → follow → project
The rezonings were necessary to allow the proposed data-centre development on land that had previously been zoned for other uses.
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that → allow → uses
The approvals followed an earlier comprehensive plan amendment adopted by the county in November 2022.
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approvals → follow → November
That amendment established a policy framework for potential data-centre development in the Digital Gateway area, while the later rezoning decisions addressed the specific properties involved in the project.
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decisions → establish → project
Opponents subsequently filed lawsuits challenging the approvals.
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Opponents → file → approvals
Their central legal argument concerned the county’s compliance with public-notice requirements before the December 2023 hearing.
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argument → concern → hearing
The case would eventually turn on that procedural issue rather than on a general legal ban on data centres near Civil War battlefields.
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case → turn → battlefields
Lawsuits challenge the county’s public notices
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Lawsuits → challenge → notices
In August 2025, Prince William Circuit Court Judge Kimberly A. Irving ruled that the rezonings were void because the county had failed to comply with the applicable public-notice requirements.
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county → rule → requirements
The notices were required to be published in accordance with state law and the county’s zoning ordinance before the public hearing and vote.
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notices → require → hearing
The case involved challenges brought by landowners, including the Oak Valley Homeowners Association, and the American Battlefield Trust.
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case → involve → Association
The plaintiffs argued that the deficiencies in the notices made the rezoning approvals legally invalid.
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approvals → argue → notices
The Virginia Court of Appeals upheld the ruling on 31 March 2026.
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Court → uphold → March
The court found that the county’s advertising was deficient and affirmed the invalidation of the three rezonings.
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advertising → find → rezonings
The decision concerned the legality of the approval process.
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decision → concern → process
It did not establish that all future data-centre proposals in the area would be prohibited.
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proposals → establish → area
Developers withdraw from the legal battle
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Developers → withdraw → battle
Following the appeals court’s decision, Prince William County and Compass Datacenters chose not to continue their appeals.
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County → follow → appeals
…and 12 more, not listed.
The Aporia
