PRINCE WILLIAM COUNTY, VA – QTS Realty Trust announced a series of major new commitments, Nov. 1, in response to a Prince William County Planning Commission Staff Report on the Prince William Digital Gateway.
By directly addressing the feedback of Prince William citizens, QTS continues to demonstrate its commitment to be a productive partner with the entire County to ensure the Digital Gateway’s benefits are fully realized.
The legally binding concessions made by QTS address building height, location, layout; architectural aspects; cultural and historic preservation concerns; and environmental impacts of the data center campus in Prince William County.
“We are grateful to the Planning Commission and the County’s dedicated staff for their continued efforts and partnership. We are confident that our major concessions to the County directly respond to that feedback,” said QTS Director of Public Policy and Economic Development Nick Blessing. “It is our top priority to work productively with the County to address community concerns and advance the Digital Gateway, which will boost tax revenues and support the County’s educational and public safety priorities.”
Major concessions in response to the Planning Commission staff report include:
Building Height and Architectural Commitments
QTS has provided the Planning Commission with additional highly detailed site plans to address building height and location concerns, including additional mitigation measures to ensure buildings are not visible from the Manassas National Battlefield Park. QTS has gone above and beyond previously set requirements to demonstrate to the County and the community its thoughtful development plan, which will preserve the aesthetic beauty of the area as well as significant amounts of greenspace.
Cultural and Historical Preservation
QTS is providing additional guarantees protecting historical areas in Prince William County, such as the Manassas National Battlefield Park. QTS has provided expert analysis affirming that views from the Battlefield will not be impacted. The lower building heights, additional mitigation measures, and clearly defined layouts confirm this detailed analysis. To convey QTS’ prioritization of historical preservation, QTS has agreed to conduct extensive, additional cultural and historic analyses before the commencement of any land disturbance. QTS has proffered to retain an expert Civil War historian to assist with on-site findings and invites the County to access and inspect the site prior to any construction.
Environmental Impacts
Maintaining the natural beauty of Prince William County is of utmost importance to QTS. To that end, QTS has committed to a minimum of 265+ acres of environmental protection. QTS has also committed to significant tree and forest preservation, stream protections, extensive reforestation, as well as a one-for-one replacement-to-removal ratio. QTS will be responsible for tree and vegetation replacement resulting from the installation of electrical or other utility infrastructure improvements within its land bays.
QTS looks forward to serving as a valued community partner in Prince William County. QTS Data Centers has a long history of supporting local communities, contributing almost $2 million in charitable donations to 179 organizations and serving 7,903 volunteer hours in 2022. As a part of the Prince William community, QTS hopes to extend this support further. In August of 2023, QTS contributed $20,000 to the Greater Manassas Baseball League to support their journey to the Senior Babe Ruth World Series in Cape Girardeau, Missouri, the first time in their over 65-year history. The QTS team also participates in bi-annual blood donation events, raises money through our annual fundraiser for Loudoun County's Hunger Relief organization, and donates hundreds of onsite construction hours to help at-risk youths at the Mobile Hope organization.
QTS is bound through these legal commitments to work with County officials to address any additional concerns with the Digital Gateway rezoning application.
The Planning Commission will hold a public hearing on the Prince William Digital Gateway rezoning, Nov. 8, with citizen time starting at 2 p.m. and extending as long as needed. Citizens can sign up to speak as early as noon.
About QTS Data Centers
QTS Realty Trust, LLC is a leading provider of data center solutions across a diverse footprint spanning more than 9 million square feet of owned mega-scale data center space within North America and Europe. Through its software-defined technology platform, QTS is able to deliver secure, compliant infrastructure solutions, robust connectivity and premium customer service to leading hyperscale technology companies, enterprises, and government entities. QTS is a Blackstone portfolio company.
Visit QTS at www.qtsdatacenters.com, or follow on Twitter (X) @DataCenters_QTS.
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