SPECIAL EDITION - Advance Morning News
It's Saturday, February 22, 2025. Today, Mayor Kerry Devine and Council member Will Mackintosh share their thoughts on data centers. And the Week's Best.
BLACK HISTORY MONTH QUOTE
“Definitions belong to the definers, not the defined.”
— Toni Morrison, Beloved
Editor’s Note: This morning, we feature two opinion pieces. One by Mayor of Fredericksburg Kerry Devine and one by Council member Will Mackintosh. Each deals with a different aspect of the data center question, the fate of which now rests with City Council.
The Advance is committed to publishing opinions from across the spectrum on issues that affect our community. We also encourage readers to submit letters to the editor for consideration. To submit opinion pieces or letters, please direct them to the Editor — mdavis@fxbgadvance.com. While publication is not guaranteed, we will carefully review each submission we receive.
OPINION: Data Centers - Why here, why now
By Kerry Devine
This council takes the primary responsibility of economic development seriously, providing revenue for much needed services and to provide relief to taxpayers. Much has been debated about data centers to date. While I think the case has been made for why the city is pursuing this economic opportunity, I want to address the question of timing, or “speed,” with which this project is being managed.
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OPINION: Making Responsible Data Center Decisions
By Will Mackintosh
Last week, the City of Fredericksburg’s Planning Commission held a marathon five-hour meeting discussing the proposed Technology Overlay District (TOD) that would enable a data center campus in the Celebrate Virginia South area of the city. The meeting ended with a somewhat head-scratching result: the Planning Commission voted 4-3 against moving the TOD ordinance forward, but they also adopted a set of recommended changes to the ordinance that they voted against.
Read the full story
The Week’s Best
Analysis
Data Centers
Data Center Proposed in Historic Area of South Stafford
Education
Hugh Mercer School Principal to Transfer to Central Office
Stafford is in a School Funding Crisis, Says School Board Advisory Committee
Executive Order Project
Department of Education Letter Orders Virginia K-12 Schools to 'End Racial Preferences'
Humor
He’s Buying the Stairway to Heaven
Local Government
Judge Rules that City Council's Closed Sessions to Discuss Ward 3 Replacement Were Appropriate
Opinion
To Attack Waste, Go After the Source, Not the Patient
These Aren’t Normal Times. I’m Trying to Figure Out What That Means
Podcast
Political Cartoon
Did Someone Say 'Transparency'?
Local Obituaries
To view local obituaries or to send a note to family and loved ones, please visit the link that follows.
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