Data Center Opposition Group Urges Residents To Attend Upcoming Agritourism Meetings

PRINCE WILLIAM COUNTY, VA – The Prince William County Department of Economic Development & Tourism is holding a series of meetings on the future of agritourism in the county at the end of the month. Data center opponents are urging residents to attend and push the county to invest in that economic direction.

Members of the county’s board of supervisors as well as the general public are invited to the meetings, which are slated for July 27, 28 and 29.

According to the county, the meetings are part of its ongoing Agribusiness & Agritourism Study. They are intended to allow residents, farmers, agricultural businesses and community stakeholders to ask questions about the study, its progress and its goals.

According to one anti-data center group, a successful agricultural economy depends on protection from development.

“An agro economy requires a healthy rural area,” Executive Director for the Coalition to Protect Prince William Elena Schlossberg told Patch. “And a healthy rural area can only survive with a robust purchase and development rights program.”

Prince William County approved its purchase and development rights program in 2021. The program allows landowners to sell development rights on their land to the county. The land is then put under a permanent open-space easement, meaning its scenic, historic or recreational value is recognized and development on it will be strictly limited. The land remains privately owned and can be used for agriculture, forestry or other similar uses.

Agritourism depends on a county that is green and beautiful, and that county program is a way to ensure that, Schlossberg said.

“The reason the coalition is making sure people understand the agricultural opportunities is because we also see that tie to the PDR program, and those things cannot survive unless the board stops approving development in the remaining rural areas,” Schlossberg said.

“The decision to not approve Dulles Cloud South should send a strong message. My concern is that we could have a board that is looking at rural areas as empty space, which, of course, is not true.”

Dulles Cloud South was a huge new proposed data center that the county rejected earlier in July.

Coles District Supervisor Yesli Vega, who in 2024 directed that an agribusiness plan be developed, posted the schedule and told Prince William County residents, “If you care about the future of our farms, rural economy, and historic communities, I encourage you to attend and share your ideas. Your input will help shape the future of western Prince William County.”