On October 20, Goochland County released an updated version
of the TOD/TZ proposals that will be considered for approval by the Board of
Supervisors at a public hearing to be held in the high school auditorium on Thursday,
November 6, beginning at 6:30 p.m.
Since it was introduced at a July community meeting, TOD/TZ has
generated robust opposition. Constructive input from community meetings and
sessions with smaller groups was incorporated in the October 20 documents. Go
to https://www.goochlandva.us/1408/Technology-Overlay-District-Technology-Z
for the latest information. Due to legal restrictions, the proposals cannot be amended
before the public hearing.
As written, small nuclear reactors (SMR) and gas “peaker”
plants must obtain conditional use permits (CUP), a process which mandates
at least one community meeting and public hearings before both the planning commission
and supervisors subject to conditions imposed by the county. Water used for
commercial purposes must come from public sources, not wells.
The addition of approximately 900 acres roughly between Mosaic,
the Richmond Country Club, and Hockett Road, now identified as “TOD west” to
the TOD/TZ footprint has been tempered with the requirement that any proposal for
data centers there obtain a CUP. These parcels are illustrated with cross hatching
on the map.
Changes made in the November 6 proposal, including
restrictions on height, noise, and generator operation were made in response to
concerns expressed by citizen engagement.
The statement on the county website also addresses rumors
about “a done deal” concerning data centers in the TOD west parcels. “…the County has been made aware of
discussions between a private developer and several landowners regarding a
contract for a potential data center project on approximately 900+ acres near
Mosaic and Richmond Country Club. This information was shared with the County
after those private discussions had already taken place. Goochland County has
not been involved in or a party to any negotiations or contracts related to
this property. However, the County recognizes that this is likely the beginning
of continued interest from technology-related businesses seeking to invest in
Goochland.”
Will this iteration of the TOD/TZ make everyone involved
happy? No, but it does impose more stringent noise, height, buffer, setback, and
generator operation requirements for data centers than currently exist. Rules
for land in West Creek, which was zoned in the 1980’s, will not change. One goal
of the TOD is to provide attractive incentives to encourage developers to accept
the restrictions.
The October 20 TOD map seems to indicate that no landowners
in its original footprint have opted out. The deadline to do so was October 10.
We do live in interesting times.
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