Loudoun BOS denies Hiddenwood Industrial Rezoning

 By Sophia Clifton

After more than a year of negotiations, public hearings, and revisions, the Loudoun County Board of Supervisors voted on July 15, to deny the Hiddenwood Assemblage’s request to rezone their community for industrial use—a decision that leaves 20 families in limbo.

The Hiddenwood Assemblage is made up of 20 parcels totaling nearly 29 acres along Hiddenwood Lane near Arcola. Residents there have watched their once-rural neighborhood become surrounded by massive data center projects, following county approvals that some supervisors have since admitted were mistakes. To the south lies the sprawling JK2 data center complex; to the west, more data center developments are under construction.

Faced with heavy truck traffic, airport overflights, and constant construction noise, residents argued that the character of their neighborhood had been permanently altered. They asked the county to rezone their land to allow compatible uses— first for data centers, and later for light industrial and commercial development— so they could sell their homes and move elsewhere.

During the July 15 board meeting, Scott Bell and Patricia Cave, both Hiddenwood residents, and Chase Stewart, a Loudoun County industrial real estate broker, delivered public comments in support of their latest industrial rezoning application. 

“Tonight, I don’t just ask that you hear me, I ask that you see me,” Hiddenwood resident Scott Bell began. “I ask that you see me and you see us, this Hiddenwood community, not just as applicants. I ask that you see the people who are seated behind me. See us, not as applicants, but as proud contributing residents of Loudoun County.”

Bell continued, “We have approached this process with patience, respect, and a willingness to address every concern raised… We are proud of the way we’ve conducted ourselves and the lives we lead here in this county. But at times we have felt unseen. At times we have felt that we don’t matter. I stand before you again… to represent a community of people who simply want the dignity of peace & stability.”

Another Hiddenwood Lane homeowner, Patricia Cave, echoed Bell’s sentiments. “Our proposal, while it may not be perfect, is a reasonable solution that corrects numerous wrongs to Hiddenwood and mitigates impacts to Briarfield without causing the same wrongs.”

Cave concluded by asking the Board to consider the human element of the application. “We’ve lost so much of our lives to this process over the last several years that it’s difficult to put into words the anguish that we’ve experienced and continue to experience. With your support, we can finally put this terrible period of uncertainty behind us and we can move on with our lives.”  

Real estate broker Chase Stewart later asked the Board to consider the economic benefits of the Hiddenwood application: “We’re facing a shortage of quality industrial space in this market… This proposed development is exactly the kind of project that can support local business, attract investment, and create long-term tax revenue and job opportunities for the county. I urge you to consider what [this project] brings to Loudoun County’s economic future,” Stewart concluded.

The Hiddenwood assemblage initially proposed a rezoning to allow 756,029 square feet of data center space. But that sparked strong opposition from Briarfield Estates, the residential community just north of Hiddenwood. Briarfield homeowners warned that approving additional data centers would simply push industrial impacts closer to their homes.

In response, Hiddenwood residents revised their application with significant concessions. They agreed to limit building heights, install noise mitigation walls up to 15 feet tall, move generators behind buildings, increase setbacks from Briarfield, and even contribute $75,000 for new landscaping buffers in the neighboring community.

In May 2024, the Planning Commission narrowly recommended approval of the revised data center plan on a 4-3-1 vote. But the proposal lacked the support of a majority of supervisors. In a last effort to find middle ground, the assemblage submitted a new plan last September— this time removing data centers entirely.

The second application sought rezoning for 334,000 square feet of light and medium industrial and commercial uses, which residents argued would be far less intensive than data centers. Even so, the Planning Commission again recommended denial in a close 5-4 vote, saying the impacts on Briarfield Estates would still be too great.

On July 15, supervisors echoed those same concerns. District Supervisor Matthew F. Letourneau (R-Dulles), who represents the area, made the motion to deny the rezoning.

“I take no pleasure whatsoever in making that motion, and it’s an unfortunate series of events and circumstances that have led us to this,” Letourneau said. “But in making the motion I am attempting to not further the unfortunate events and circumstances.”

“They say that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result. I do believe if we were to approve this application, we are setting ourselves up for the same situation… with another neighborhood,” Letourneau explained. 

He argued that approving any new industrial or commercial uses so close to existing homes would only worsen the problem. “Ultimately, I am seeking a solution which puts an end to the expansion of industrial development in an area of our county that calls for residential development,” he added.

Supervisor Laura A. TeKrony (D-Little River) agreed with Letourneau. “I really can’t support converting countryside residential to commercial. I’m concerned about the precedent this sets for other existing residential communities that are in a similar situation… it’s a slippery slope.”

But Board Chair Phyllis J. Randall (D-At Large) pushed back. She argued that the situations facing Briarfield and Hiddenwood are not equivalent, and that supervisors share responsibility for the current conditions.

“One community bought their homes many, many years ago before they could have possibly known what was going to be there … and we made decisions, and those decisions were bad,” Randall said. “Supervisors should correct those decisions.”

Randall voted against the denial, along with Supervisors Kristen C. Umstattd (D-Leesburg), Caleb A. Kershner (R-Catoctin), and Sylvia R. Glass (D-Broad Run). But the motion carried in a narrow 5-4 vote, leaving the assemblage’s future uncertain.

With the denial, the Hiddenwood community remains zoned for residential use, even as their surroundings become increasingly industrial. For residents, it’s a bitter outcome.

“Our families are unable to enjoy quiet residential lives due to airport noise, construction dust, and the intensive development all around us,” the assemblage said in a statement after the vote. “We sought a rezoning to give us the financial ability to relocate.”

Their statement noted that the neighborhood “predates the establishment of Dulles Airport” but is now plagued by noise from both air traffic and nonstop construction. Without a path to sell their homes, Hiddenwood families are effectively trapped. “The Loudoun Board’s 5-4 denial functionally sentences us to continue our residential lives in a place where quiet living is simply not possible anymore.”