Data Centers and the Community
The following article was published in Leesburg District Supervisor Kristen C. Umstattd’s constituent newsletter on February 1, 2023.
Data centers’ financial contributions to our county have been well documented. Loudoun’s data centers return more than $15 dollars in tax revenue to the county for every dollar in services they receive, enabling these data centers over the previous year to pay for almost the entire County operating budget. Compare this to housing. For every one dollar of taxes (real estate plus vehicles) paid by the average home with one LCPS student, the home will require $2.25 in school services, which cost about $18,000/year per student. Without data centers to support Loudoun’s economy, school and other public service costs would drive our projected tax rate up from $.88 to $1.43.
Over the past year, the Loudoun Board of Supervisors has heard from many Loudoun small businesses, including construction firms and contractors, restaurants, and professional service firms, about the immense impact and importance of the data center industry in driving economic development and employment in our community. The businesses that support and rely on Loudoun data centers employ over 40,000 people – equivalent to about 10% of our total population.
We know that data centers have a clear economic impact on our County. But, because data centers don’t often issue press releases, not as many people know about the tremendous contributions data centers make strengthening communities, like Loudoun, where their teams live and work. Below are a few examples from the past year:
Data centers have been committed to educating our students and cultivating an interest in STEM and related careers. In December, Amazon Web Services launched its latest Think Big Space at Simpson Middle School in Leesburg. A collaborative effort between Loudoun County Public Schools, Loudoun Education Foundation (LEF), and CodeVA, this educational hub is dedicated to encouraging Loudoun County students to explore hands-on approaches to solving real-world problems. The data center company Equinix has promoted opportunities within the industry at career days in the county, including hosting 10 LCPS students at their corporate offices in Ashburn. Since 2018, AFCOM’s local Potomac Chapter has provided paid internships for undergraduate students within the data center community.
Beyond their support of students and schools, data centers and their employees are committed to helping those in need in our County.
Data centers like AWS and Equinix have supported LEF’s Backpack Coalition to provide weekend meals to food-insecure students and their families.
Staff from STACK Infrastructure volunteered at a community farm in Purcellville, helping to harvest more than 400 pounds of food - the equivalent of 326 healthy meals, for local food pantry partners.
Teams from Vantage Data Centers packed nearly 400 meal kits for Loudoun Hunger Relief in September and donated 200 meal bags for Thanksgiving this year.
Leading up to the holidays, data center CyrusOne donated 10,000 square feet of office space in Sterling for collection, storage, and distribution for the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve’s Toys for Tots 2022 toy drive in Loudoun County.
In November, more than 100 volunteers from the data center industry came together to aid the local bee population and help feed the food insecure for years to come at a “DCs for Bees” event led by 7×24 DC Chapter and Loudoun County Economic Development, in partnership with Host in Ireland.
And Digital Realty’s 2022 Charity Golf Tournament and Annual Heart Walk this year raised over $93,000 in donations for the Greater Washington American Heart Association.
The Data Center Coalition (DCC) partnered with Loudoun County Economic Development and the American Red Cross of Loudoun and Prince William Counties to host the #DataCentersSleevesUp blood drive to help address the shortage of blood across the United States. 12 DCC member data center companies participated in the campaign, logging a total of 502 blood donations, enough to save approximately 1,500 lives. In April, DCC and its members donated reusable water bottles in support of Operation Allies Welcome.
Data centers also are actively helping to bridge the digital divide in our communities. In October, Google announced an initiative to provide free high speed wi-fi in sections of Purcellville in order to “open opportunities for learning, connection, and growth.”
In summary, data centers, their people and their business partners are good, contributing members in the communities they call home. While often unrecognized, their donations of time, money, and talent have had a tremendous impact for good in Loudoun County.
