$3B Data Center Plan Sparks Pushback in Appomattox County

The Commonwealth has long been recognized as the data center capital of the world, with an increasing number of cloud storage facilities establishing themselves across the state. One of the most recent and controversial projects is a three-billion-dollar hyperscale data center campus spanning 452 acres in Appomattox County. Known as Project Hercules, this development will be constructed by AVAIO Digital at 267 Industrial Park Ln. in Appomattox.

Garet Bosiger, Chairman of the Appomattox County Economic Development Authority, highlighted the potential benefits of the project. “It gives us a tremendous boost in our tax base because data centers invest a lot of money, and it creates high-paying jobs,” he said. The project was initially announced in December of 2024, but according to Bosiger, it had been in the works for some time before that.

“The data center came and said, ‘You sell us the land, we’ll develop it, and we’ll pay for everything,'” Bosiger explained. This approach has sparked discussions about the balance between economic growth and community concerns.

Many residents near the proposed site are raising questions about the move, including Robin Foutz, who lives approximately a mile and a half away from the location. “It’s just beautiful out here, the peacefulness of it. I don’t want that robbed,” she said. Foutz expressed concerns about the decision-making process, noting that many of the decisions were made behind closed doors without involving the community.

“I think the developers needed to come in well in advance to just say, ‘Here’s what we’re doing. This is the direction we want to go in.’ I think that demonstrates appropriate business acumen, even from your leadership, to say, ‘Let’s communicate this. These are the people who are paying for me to be in this role, who are paying taxes in the community.’ That’s a big deal. We’ve elected you. We voted for you to make these decisions, and so I think that is where our area has missed the mark,” Foutz added.

ABC13 reached out to AVAIO, the data center developer, for comment, but no response was received. Foutz believes that if county leaders had communicated about the data center earlier, there would be less backlash now.

“People feel like they are literally losing their land, in some ways, or losing their resources, and then at the same time they figuratively feel like they’re losing ground,” Foutz said. “We’re a small community, and there are ways that our leadership really could have reduced some of this fear, and I don’t know why they didn’t do it; it just wasn’t done.”

Residents also worry that the data center may not provide a long-term solution to economic challenges. “You have not had a long-term perspective up to this point, and there is a desperation, I think, from our leadership to say, ‘We must gravitate to this and grab that golden ticket,’ as I call it,” Foutz said. She pointed to the Thomasville plant, which sits empty, as an example of past missteps.

When asked about the risks of entering a volatile market, Bosiger responded, “If 20 years down the line, maybe data centers, AI, becomes obsolete, is that something you’re concerned about? Or do you believe the fix for right now is needed?” He said, “Well, anything is possible, but if we can get huge job numbers and tax revenues for 20 years, I’d be happy with that. If someone invests three to five billion dollars, they aren’t likely to walk away from it.”

Foutz and other residents are also worried about the environmental impact of the data center, particularly regarding light and noise pollution, as well as water usage. “I want to be able to sit on my back patio and see the stars in the sky, and for that not to be hindered by the light from an industry a mile away. I want to be able to sit on my back patio and hear the crickets and the frogs and not have that be inhibited by the sound from the industrial park,” she said.

Bosiger, however, is confident that AVAIO will address these concerns. “I’ve been to the data centers. I’ve been to one; I was 20, 30 yards away. If you’re in your vehicle, you rolled up your window, and you couldn’t hear it. If you’re outside and the car went by, the car was louder than the data center. So, they’ve made wonderful progress on noise mitigation. There’s light inside, but they won’t let you inside; it’s not so light on the outside,” he said.

The EDA’s next meeting is scheduled for Monday, March 23, at 5 p.m. During that meeting, the authority and representatives from AVAIO are set to hold a public information session for the community. Foutz said she is glad they are addressing the community’s concerns, but it feels like it’s too little, too late.

“Am I hopeful it will bring clarity? Yes. Will it unite this community? I don’t think so. I think it will be good for our people to have a little bit more education, but I also think that there are folks here that are already rooted in their beliefs about the data center, and I think it’s going to be a challenge to pull those roots up and replant,” she said.

Community members won’t be allowed to ask questions during the meeting; however, Bosiger said any unanswered questions will be answered in written form at a later date.