(The Center Square) – Louisa County Supervisor Duane Adams says he plans to vote against Amazon Web Services’ proposal for a third data center campus in his district, citing concerns from residents about traffic, water supply and quality of life.
Adams announced his position at a town hall last week, telling residents he had heard their concerns and believed the county should pause before approving another large-scale data center project.
“My job as an elected representative is to vote to protect the citizens of the area that I represent and the citizens of Louisa County,” Adams said at the meeting. “I don’t support this project. When this proposal comes before the board of supervisors, I will vote no.
“I work for you. I don’t work for AWS.”
Amazon Web Services has applied for a conditional use permit to build the campus on 1,370 acres near the Northeast Creek Reservoir in central Louisa, according to Engage Louisa, a local government newsletter.
According to a report by Data Center Dynamics, the project would include up to 7.2 million square feet of data center space, developed in phases, and up to seven substations on the property. The land is currently zoned for agricultural use and is located near Louisa County High School.
The proposed project follows last week’s announcement that EdgeCore plans to build a $17 billion high-density data center campus in Louisa’s Shannon Hill Regional Business Park, expanding the county’s role in Virginia’s fast-growing data center industry.
Data centers are often pursued by localities for the tax revenue they generate, largely from real estate and equipment taxes.
Adams has supported other Amazon data center projects in Louisa for their revenue potential but said the county should see how existing campuses impact infrastructure and residents before moving forward with additional development.
The proposed project comes as demand for artificial intelligence and cloud computing drives rapid data center expansion across Virginia.
A report from the Department of Energy and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory projects that data centers could use up to 12% of all U.S. electricity by 2028 as artificial intelligence use grows. OpenAI has said the average ChatGPT prompt uses about 0.34 watt-hours of electricity, while generating AI videos and images can require more power, adding to overall energy demand from data centers.
In Louisa, residents have raised concerns about how additional data centers could affect water supplies, increase traffic on rural roads and generate noise.
Amazon has said previously that having multiple entrances to its proposed site would help spread out construction traffic and that the company would work with state and local agencies on traffic mitigation and water planning.
Adams, seeking reelection in November, has joined his opponent, independent David Rogers, in opposing the proposed campus.
Amazon Web Services’ application will go before the Louisa County Planning Commission for a public hearing before heading to the Board of Supervisors for a final vote. Hearing dates have not yet been scheduled.
