The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors approved the sale of a part of the county’s police department training facility in Chantilly to a data center developer. The supervisors unanimously approved the sale at a public meeting on March 17.
Starwood Capital Group, under the name SCG Global Holdings, will purchase 41.7 acres of the 128-acre property at 3721 Stonecroft Blvd. for $166.8 million. The county will retain ownership of the remaining 86.2 acres.
The property is located just south of Dulles Airport and just west of the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center. Currently, it holds police training facilities including firearms training, K9 training, emergency vehicle operations facilities, and other supporting facilities. It will soon hold a new Criminal Justice Academy.
With the proceeds from the sale, the county plans to redevelop and replace facilities at the remaining portion of the police training campus. The fund will help in “providing modern facilities for police with minimal disruption,” according to the county presentation.
Planned improvements include:
- A new emergency vehicle operations driving track
- A modern firearms training center and firing ranges
- Support buildings and improved site infrastructure
SCG intends to create a data center, but it’s not guaranteed that they’ll be approved to build one. The facility will still need to go through the standard zoning review process to be approved for a data center. If it does become a data center, the tax revenue from this project will exceed $20 million, according to the presentation.
There will be a one-year contingency period starting around March 24. During this period, the county and SCG must obtain the necessary approvals for their proposed projects. If either party cannot get the approvals they need, they’ll be able to exit the deal.
If approved, the renovated police training facility is projected to be complete in spring 2031.
Community Response
Some community members at the public hearing raised concerns about the sale. “While data centers may generate tax revenue, they also come with real costs, a massive energy consumption, a strain on our power grid, increased water use for cooling, constant industrial noise, and heavy construction traffic,” said David Browning.
Rene Grebe, the Northern Virginia conservation advocate for Nature Forward, also spoke at the hearing. She raised concerns about “a troubling lack of transparency” regarding the sale. The county first publicized the proposed sale in February.
Grebe also protested the environmental impacts a data center could bring. “Our publicly owned land should be used to further our county climate goals, not undermine them,” she said.
Some speakers approved of the sale, like George Landrith, who said he supported the sale’s ability to improve the police training facility. “Better facilities mean better training, and better training ultimately means greater safety for both our officers and the public they serve,” he said.
Feature image courtesy Fairfax County
