Board Vote Initiates Study Phase for Pageland, Compton CPAs

Tuesday night, Prince William residents again demonstrated that this community cares deeply about the balance between progress and preservation. The three hours of Public Comment Time were largely centered on whether the Board should initiate a Comprehensive Plan Amendment (CPA) for the “Prince William Digital Gateway.” A little over half of the residents who spoke urged approval of the initiation; all who spoke were impassioned. Following this testimony and extensive deliberation, the Board voted in favor of initiating CPAs for the Digital Gateway (Pageland Lane in Gainesville) and the Compton Property in Manassas. 

These initiations do not change existing policy. Rather, they enable staff to begin a detailed analysis of the proposed CPAs, examining whether the land use changes would be appropriate for the area, conducting a study of potential impacts (traffic, environmental, viewshed, infrastructure, historic resources, etc.), projecting potential economic benefits (job creation, commercial tax revenue), and overseeing additional public engagement. 

Following an amendment that I offered, the study will look at the entirety of the corridor, from Route 29 to Sudley Road. This encompasses the areas along and around Pageland and Compton, as well as a data center project at Gainesville Crossing that was approved by the prior Board, addressing concerns about impacts on the surrounding neighborhoods and environmental resources. 

I also heard - and support - those who spoke of the need for sensitivity towards the Conway Robinson State Park and Manassas Battlefield, which are adjacent to Pageland Lane and parts of Gainesville Crossing. To that end, I directed staff to examine native plant buffering, alternative land use designations for protecting environmental resources, and open space strategies that could create the County's first Open Space Corridor, striking that balance between progress and preservation. 

These CPAs, which will be studied in tandem with the Data Center Overlay and Design Standards Zoning Text Amendment, will include commitments made as part of that larger study. Study results will include recommendations for improved design standards, sustainability and green infrastructure guidelines, and environmental justice principles.

Although the Pageland landowners have requested the “tech flex” designation, staff will be looking beyond data centers as they consider the highest and best use for that area. Without this CPA, Pageland would likely be divided into 80 estates on 10-acre lots by-right, with the potential to have more homes added under the “family subdivision” provision, which requires no mitigation of impacts to the surrounding area.

The desire to keep things as they have been is natural and understandable. But the reality is that the change has already started. The Pageland area has been bisected by high-tension power lines and a gas pipeline runs under the land that was once the "family farm" for many of the Digital Gateway applicants. 

The question now becomes: how can we manage that change to create the best outcomes for our community moving forward? The results of these CPA initiations will help to shape the answer. I look forward to reviewing the findings with the public and my colleagues on the Board in the months ahead. (View the July 20 meeting online.)