Prince William supervisors press on noise ordinance after residents cite data‑center hums

Dozens of residents, members of the county's Data Center Ordinance Advisory Group and county staff pressed the Prince William County Board of Supervisors on June 10 over whether and how the county can regulate low‑frequency, continuous noise coming from nearby data centers.

The residents said the noise — a persistent low frequency hum that they say shakes walls and disrupts sleep — has harmed quality of life in neighborhoods such as Great Oak and surrounding districts. County staff described several rounds of technical testing, multiple consultants on the project and a short timeline to complete further work before presenting a draft ordinance to the board this fall.

The issue matters because the county has approved or is considering a large amount of data center development clustered in parts of the county. Residents and advisory‑group members argue that an enforceable noise standard is needed to protect health and property; staff and legal advisers warned that enforcement must be based on measurement methods the Commonwealth Attorney and courts will accept.

Public comments and advisory‑group reports

Residents and members of the Data Center Ordinance Advisory Group (DCOAG) described years of measurements and daily disruption. "An image of the Great Oak neighborhood with the surrounding data centers and, and, substations...the previous version of this had 13 data centers...We've now gone to 14," said Rob Pixley during the public comment period, noting that many centers are either operational, under construction or approved nearby.

Catherine Kulick, vice chair of a homeowners association roundtable and a DCOAG member, said the problem exists across the county and listed separate facilities that she said had been heard miles away during tests: "Data center noise is not just a Great Oak or Amazon…