Town Planning Commission Work Session focuses on Data Center Zoning proposal; spike in Short-term Tourist Rentals

At a June 1st work session of the Front Royal Planning Commission, members revisited a town council referral of a Zoning Ordinance change to allow Data Centers as a by-right use in the Industrial Employment (I-2) Zoning District. The Royal Examiner previously reported on this request here. Although the Town has pointed out that the program does not identify specific sites, the referral asks the commission to develop an amended zoning ordinance that would, under the current zoning map, affect the use of two areas in the town – the majority of the former Avtex site off Kendrick Lane, and an area adjacent to Shenandoah Shores Road and Progress Drive.

Commission Chairman Darryl Merchant indicated at the previous meeting and again at this work session, that he was concerned about the language that made the use by-right, rather than subject to Special Use Permit review. He reiterated that he believed that a data center could be a good developmental use for the community, but added, “It has to be done right.”

Town Planning Commission Chairman Darryl Merchant comments on the proposed Zoning Ordinance change that would allow Data Centers as a by-right use in the Industrial Employment (I-2) Zone.

Royal Examiner asked in our last article why the town council chose this time to propose a change to the Zoning Ordinance since part of the Comprehensive Plan rewrite project now underway will result in new Zoning Ordinance recommendations within a few months. That update is part of the deliverables from the Town Planning Department’s contract with Summit Engineering.

According to Front Royal Town Manager Steven Hicks, “The state has (a) Virginia’s Business Ready Sites Program, which establishes a pool of potential sites across the Commonwealth that are well prepared and positioned (pro-actively) for selection … of economic development projects.”

“The EDA, Town, and County frequently receive inquiries from prospective developers or companies that would like to relocate or expand in our area. The County and the Town are both going through this process to make sure we are in a position to entertain any economic opportunity that will expand the community’s tax base and create jobs,” Hicks said of the Zoning Ordinance proposal.

The potential for siting of a Data Center in the Town of Front Royal raises a lot of questions, including the inevitable “What will this mean for the town?” At first glance, a new employer and increased tax revenues seem like great benefits. But the planning commission and the town council will also have to consider the unintended consequences, including how much impact will there be on utilities?

Data centers use massive amounts of electricity, even as processors and data storage systems become ever more efficient. Nationwide, data centers consumed 73 million megawatt-hours (MWh) in 2020. That’s about a 4% increase since 2014, at the same time processing and storage capacity increased by about 900%, from 100 million Terabytes (Tb) to around 990 million Tb. According to the US Department of Energy, which conducts extensive research on energy use, Data Centers can consume up to 100 MWh, or enough power for 80,000 homes.

For perspective, the Dominion Energy power plant north of Front Royal generates 1300 MWh of power for the Northern Virginia area. Data centers also consume water for cooling, often pulling it directly from municipal water supplies, meaning that it is treated just like drinking water.

Finally, Data Centers are by necessity large-footprint facilities – the economics demand that as much capacity as possible is housed in a single building. The town, if it is to participate in the state’s program, will have to carefully plan for the consequences of attracting a Data Canter to locate in the town. For example, the maximum building height permitted under the current ordinance is 75 feet. The proposed ordinance allows a height of up to 100 feet if it is set back an additional five feet for each additional foot of height. A 100-foot-tall building is much more visible than a 75-foot tall one, no matter how far from the property line it is set back, and surrounding properties, particularly residentially zoned ones, would certainly be affected by the loss of viewshed. Commissioner Joshua Ingram questioned the need for a building height greater than the 75 feet already allowed in the I-2 Zone.

Commissioner Joshua Ingram reviews the proposed zoning ordinance change to building height standards.

The Planning Commission will vote at its June 15th meeting on whether to advertise a public hearing on the zoning ordinance change. The public hearing would then take place at the regular July meeting. Planning Director Lauren Kopishke pointed out that the County is producing a similar ordinance change.

In other business, the commissioners discussed two applications for special use permits for short-term tourist rentals that will be the subject of public hearings at their June 15th meeting. They are located at 108 Virginia Avenue and 201 East Main Street. Both application packages are complete and the planning staff has conducted site inspections.

Since these two applications were the first two for short-term tourist rentals under the Town’s jurisdiction, Chairman Merchant asked if all the questions from the previous meeting had been answered. There was some question about the parking facilities for the East Main Street building, the former Trout Drug Store building. The planning staff indicated that there would be adequate parking for the facility. It was not clear whether a parking space lease with the Town was complete.

Since there are now two more applications in the pipeline that will be considered at the June 15 meeting for authorization to advertise for a public hearing, one at 425 North Royal Avenue and the other at 18 East Stonewall Drive, it seems that short-term tourist rentals may become a regular workload for the commissioners.

Poe’s Rivers Edge, LLC is applying for a special exception to create a private road for improved access to its property at 508 Kendrick Lane. The proposal is to create a right-of-way that will allow the creation of a street that complies with town requirements and serves the intended use of the property. The commission previously recommended approval of a special use permit for a campground on that site.

Enterprise Rent-a-Car is seeking a zoning permit to build an addition to their building at 1500 North Shenandoah Avenue in the North entrance corridor.

Those two requests will be considered at the June 15th meeting for authorization to advertise a public hearing.

Front Royal Planning Director Lauryn Kopishke reports on the public engagement sessions for the Comprehensive Plan rewrite project currently underway by the Town Planning Commission.

The commissioners then discussed the current draft of the Future Land Use map being developed as part of the Comprehensive Plan rewrite. Chairman Merchant asked the members to complete their reviews and recommendations prior to the June 15th meeting. Planning Director Kopishke said that the public engagement sessions on May 20 and 21 were well attended and provided good feedback for the project. The contractor will provide a summary of the comments.

The next regular Planning Commission meeting will be held on June 15 at 7:00 pm at the Warren County Government Center.