Amazon has agreed to withdraw its plan for 800,000 square feet of data centers at the former George Washington University Virginia Science and Technology Campus in Loudoun County, Virginia. The October 20 agreement, called Project Potomac Promise, replaces the data center application with a 25 acre land donation and rezoning for mixed use development.
Board of Supervisors Chair Phyllis Randall of Loudoun County announced the agreement at a press conference alongside Josh Weissman, vice president for data center delivery at Amazon Web Services. Amazon will dedicate about 25 acres, which Randall valued at roughly $65 million, for a community arts center and indoor sports facility, rezone the remaining land for mixed use and residential development, and contribute $5 million to the county’s Housing Fund. Amazon has also agreed to forgo legal action over data center development on the site, and Randall said the rezoned land will not allow data centers even by special exception. The outcome ends a months long dispute over whether Amazon needed county approval to build.
Meanwhile, a similar siting dispute has moved the other way in New York, where the $1.5 billion Niagara Digital Campus proposed by Niagara Falls Redevelopment won a settlement from the Niagara Falls City Council in June 2026 despite resident objections. The first phase has since shifted from the Parcel 0 site in earlier plans to land on 15th Street, according to the Niagara Gazette, and Governor Kathy Hochul signed an executive order in July imposing a moratorium of up to a year on data centers above 50 megawatts. The campus is planned at 135 megawatts, and Niagara Falls Redevelopment had no comment on how the order could affect the project.
Virginia Science and Technology Campus Deal Replaces Data Centers With Arts, Sports and Housing
Under Project Potomac Promise, Amazon will withdraw its application for four data center buildings totaling more than 800,000 square feet. The plan, which Amazon called the Bridgefield Tech Center, was filed as a concept site plan in late July.
The 25 acres Amazon will dedicate to the county are earmarked for a community arts center and an indoor sports facility. Furthermore, Amazon has committed to rezone the remaining land for mixed use and what Randall described as needed residential uses, according to the county release.
Weissman said Amazon chose to work with the county on a shared vision for the campus rather than pursue litigation. Randall also said Loudoun will be a focus community in 2027 for an Amazon initiative to fund tuition and fees for community college students seeking credentials in fields such as electrical trades, HVAC and fiber optics.
Virginia Science and Technology Campus Sale and Zoning Dispute Led to the Withdrawal
George Washington University sold roughly 122 acres to Amazon Data Services for $427,299,350, about $3.5 million an acre, according to real estate records, with the deal announced in late February 2026. The sale lets the university stay on site for up to five years while it relocates programs such as the School of Nursing, and Amazon has said it would begin construction only after the campus is fully vacated.
Opposition built quickly after the filing. District Supervisor Juli Briskman vowed to fight the proposal, residents circulated a petition for a data center moratorium citing resource use, traffic, noise and pollution, and GW students joined the calls to halt the plan.
County officials argued that Amazon needed county approval to build. Zoning Administrator Teresa Miller said in October that a zoning determination states data centers are not permitted as a primary use on the property.
Virginia Science and Technology Campus Withdrawal Lands in the World’s Densest Data Center Market
Loudoun County has the highest concentration of data centers in the world, with 54 million square feet already built, according to county figures. As of July 2026, Northern Virginia had 266 operational data centers, with 23 under construction and 99 planned, according to DCMap.
The Board of Supervisors was set to consider a temporary pause on new data center projects at its Tuesday meeting, but moved that discussion to a November meeting. Randall said the Amazon agreement can serve as a model for continuing to curb data center development “aggressively and decisively,” choosing negotiation over “reflexive disagreement.”
Amazon and the county have not yet published a construction timeline for the mixed use development, arts center or sports facility.
Project Overview
- Project Name: Amazon Bridgefield Tech Center data center proposal, replaced by Project Potomac Promise
- Developer: Amazon Data Services, part of Amazon Web Services
- Location: Virginia Science and Technology Campus, Ashburn area, Loudoun County, Virginia
- Site Size: About 120 to 122 acres
- Purchase Price: $427 million ($427,299,350 per real estate records), about $3.5 million an acre
- Original Plan: Four data center buildings totaling more than 800,000 square feet
- Agreement Announced: October 20, 2026
- Land Donation: About 25 acres valued at roughly $65 million, for a community arts center and indoor sports facility
- Rezoning: Remaining land to be rezoned for mixed use and residential development, in a district that bars data centers
- Housing Contribution: $5 million to Loudoun County’s Housing Fund
- Legal Position: Amazon forgoes legal action over data center development at the site
- University Occupancy: GW may remain up to five years while relocating programs, including the School of Nursing
- Status: Agreement announced by the county, with rezoning still to be processed
- Construction Timeline: Not yet published
- Market Context: Loudoun County has 54 million square feet of data centers already built
Project Team
Owner and Developer
- Developer: Amazon Web Services
- Seller: George Washington University
Public Bodies
- Local Government: Loudoun County
Contractors
- Design and Construction Team for Mixed Use Plan: Not publicly disclosed
Related Project: Niagara Digital Campus
- Developer: Niagara Falls Redevelopment
- Development Partner: Urbacon
- Local Government: City of Niagara Falls
- State Government: Governor of New York
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