Leesburg council denies Oak Lawn rezoning for data center and linked affordable housing plan after weeks of public comment

The Leesburg Town Council on Jan. 28 denied rezoning application TLREZN2023-0001, a proposal to revise the Oak Lawn concept plan to allow up to 450,000 square feet of data center space on Land Bay A, add a 3.7-acre public-park dedication on Land Bay A and a roughly 5.2-acre park on Land Bay C, and to develop up to 184 affordable multifamily dwellings on Land Bay MUC 2.

Town planning staff presented the application and recommended denial, saying the proposed data center uses would be incompatible with surrounding residential, school and park uses and with the town plan’s vision for a walkable, mixed-use center. Staff and the Planning Commission raised concerns about building scale, 24-hour operations, mechanical noise, security fencing and uncertainty over future electric infrastructure. The application originally proposed 700,000 square feet of data center space in three buildings and an on-site electrical substation; the applicant reduced the proposal during review to 450,000 square feet in two buildings, removed the substation from the concept and added park dedications.

Planning staff detailed several areas of concern: the land-use plan for Oak Lawn designates the property as an area to “transform or evolve” into a mixed-use innovation center with office, retail, community facilities and high-density residential; data centers, staff said, tend to isolate themselves—providing limited employment and restricted access—and can be incompatible with the neighborhood character envisioned for…