Fairfax County has approved plans for a 70-foot-tall data center just feet away from a mobile home community in Chantilly, Virginia.
Residents of the Meadows of Chantilly along Route 50 say the data center will create noise and cause a disruption for their community.
Data centers bring in millions of dollars in tax revenue for local governments, but critics say they're obtrusive, noisy and environmental hazards.
"They would put the generator yard, which is about the size of a football field in length, the dumpsters and the loading dock all behind these peoples' homes," said Cynthia Shang, an opponent of the data center.
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The lot is already zoned for a data center so the company building the data center needed little approval from the county.
News4 spoke to a couple of residents who said they didn't know about the plans to build the data center.
Fairfax County's Board of Supervisors is developing guidance on where to allow data centers and a board member noted that power company NOVEC estimates that in 10 to 15 years, data centers will consume 90% of its power supply while only accounting for 5% of its customer base.
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The board launched the project to rehaul it's data center guidance last year.
"They only work if they're in the proper location and have the proper environmental mitigations as well as are properly located in an appropriate place relative to residential properties and other uses," Board Chairman Jeff McKay said last year.
"Is this the highest standard they can possibly perceive? Fifty feet from a community that was supposed to be protected. When do you stop? When do you draw the line?" Shang said.
