In Prince William County, residents, lawmakers, big tech, and Ken Burns, the famous Hollywood documentarian, are fighting to see whether or not another data center will be coming to NoVA. The major difference? This one is set to be built on Manassas Battlefield. Here’s everything you need to know about the changes that could be coming to the historic landmark.
The 5,000-acre Manassas Battlefield in Prince William County is one of the most important in Civil War history. Two battles were fought there, including the war’s first major skirmish: the First Battle of Manassas in July 1861. Both that and the Second Battle of Manassas in August 1862 were won by the Confederate army. Some 4,000 men were killed.
A new battle is brewing over part of what is, for many, sacred ground. Approximately 800 acres in PWC are being considered for data-center development, and 107 of those acres are designated as “core battlefield areas,” where combat occurred during the Battles of Manassas. The proposed new technology corridor along Pageland Lane would border the west side of the battlefield grounds.
The project brings together a lot of hot-button issues that are happening more often as the outside-the-Beltway development continues. Like proper land use, big tax revenue, and emotions about old Civil War battlefields.
On one hand: history. “I’ve never been supportive of ruining our rural area,” says Prince William County Superintendent Jeanine Lawson. “I’ve had a long record of defending it from the threat of intense development, whether it’s commercial or residential. And this certainly is what I would say is the most disastrous development proposal that we’ve seen.”
On the other hand: the march of progress. Proponents of the gateway point to Loudoun County as a success story of a rural community that allowed business development. Loudoun has developed one of the largest and most successful data-center corridors in the country, at 25 million square feet. Those businesses provide the county with $528 million in tax revenue. In PWC, there are already 5.4 million square feet of data centers, and they created $79 million in tax revenue in 2020, according to Christina Winn, executive director of Prince William County Department of Economic Development.
Even Ken Burns has jumped into the fray. The famous Civil War documentarian wrote in a letter to Ann Wheeler, chair of the Prince William Board of County Supervisors: “As a student and chronicler of American history for more than 40 years, I can attest to how fragile our precious heritage is and how susceptible it can be to the ravages of ‘progress.’”
So have people who actually live there. Some longtime PWC residents who want to sell their land for the Pageland Lane corridor development are senior citizens who say that they are tired of the farming life. “Not only have we aged out of the laborious effort to run a farm, but farms in our area are money drains,” a group wrote in February 2022 to Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA), Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA), and Rep. Jennifer Wexton (D-VA).
The fireworks have started. Lawson believes that everybody who speaks or emails in favor of the PWC Digital Gateway project personally stands to gain, pointing to construction jobs that Democrats are pushing. “We’ve never had labor unions weigh in on land-use matters until now. So they are desperate,” she says. “You know how toxic these people are on Pageland who want this project so badly because they’re intoxicated by the lure of money? They have the audacity to call Ken Burns a son of the Confederacy. That’s how low they’re going.”
Decisions about the land use are due sometime this month. Public hearings and more development ideas are currently underway—assuming everyone can talk through their differences.
This story originally ran in our May issue. For more stories like this, subscribe to our monthly magazine.