Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Zoning topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Planning staff presents Emerging Technologies District amendment; commission recommends it to supervisors
Summary
Dinwiddie County planning staff presented a draft zoning text amendment to create an Emerging Technologies District (ETD) that would place proposed high-energy or tech uses under conditional use permits; the Planning Commission voted to recommend the amendment to the Board of Supervisors.
Planning staff presented a proposed text amendment, Case A-24-1, to create an Emerging Technologies District and to update section 22-6 of the county zoning ordinance; the Planning Commission voted to recommend the amendment to the Board of Supervisors.
Culberth presented the draft and summarized its structure: "This is a text amendment to the zoning ordinance to establish the Emerging Technologies District," and said that proposed uses would be reviewed as conditional use permits rather than being allowed by right. The draft adds definitions, site-development regulations (screening, maximum height and an exemption process), and an application process that mirrors the county's existing rezoning procedures.
Staff said the CUP approach was chosen to let the commission and board attach site-specific conditions instead of using an overlay that might "pick winners and losers." Commissioners pressed staff about siting and utilities; staff said no landowners have been publicly identified and that applicants would likely prefer locations near high-voltage power lines. A commissioner raised state-level developments, noting a recent General Assembly document about data centers that could influence local decision-making. Commissioners repeatedly flagged water and power use as likely permitting concerns.
After discussion, a motion recommending the zoning ordinance amendments (Case A-24-1) as presented was made and the commission recorded six members present for the vote; the motion carried and the recommendation will be forwarded to the Board of Supervisors for consideration. The commission did not identify specific prospective sites during the hearing; staff said site selection discussions have been limited by economic-development confidentiality.
The next procedural step is Board of Supervisors consideration; staff advised that CUP applications would be the mechanism for reviewing any future project under the ETD.
