The county is not banning data centers. It is declining to approve new ones. For buyers, the practical effect is that the map is now close to final.
Jack Jacobs reported for Richmond BizSense on August 27 that Chesterfield County has decided it has enough data centers, and that the board of supervisors does not intend to approve the zoning approvals new projects would need. Deputy County Administrator Jesse Smith told reporters that staff would no longer recommend such applications, adding that “the board has indicated they don’t have an appetite for these.”
That is a policy posture rather than an ordinance, and the distinction matters. Developers can still apply through the conditional use permit process. What has changed is the likelihood of a yes.
What is already approved is what is coming
Chesterfield counts at least ten data center buildings either operating or under construction. The largest operator will be Google, which has three campuses in the pipeline across very different parts of the county.
| Project | Location | Buildings | Acreage | Timeline |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Project Peanut | 2700 Bermuda Hundred Road | 3+ | 300+ | First building operating late 2027, buildout 2028 |
| Project Skye | 4201 Moseley Road | 4 | ~850 | Construction starts 2027, operating 2029 |
| Project Loch | 750 Watkins Centre Parkway | 3 | ~350 | Site work early 2027 |
Project details as reported by Richmond BizSense, August 2026, from Chesterfield County filings.
Google’s combined investment is projected at $9 billion at full buildout, generating an estimated $31 million to $47 million in annual local revenue and around 600 local jobs split across the three sites. Maximum water usage across the campuses is quoted by the county at 8.6 million gallons per day.
Read the geography, because it splits the county
The three Google sites are not near each other, and that is the part a buyer needs to internalize.
Project Skye on Moseley Road sits in the far western growth corridor, the same corridor that contains Magnolia Green and runs toward Powhatan County. This is where much of Chesterfield’s new single-family construction has been going. Moseley itself does not have a community page on our site yet, so the closest comparables we cover in depth are Hallsley and Harpers Mill.
Project Loch on Watkins Centre Parkway is near Westchester Commons, which puts it within a short drive of Midlothian and Woodlake.
Project Peanut on Bermuda Hundred Road is on the other side of the county entirely, next to Meadowville Technology Park in the Chester area. Chester does not have a dedicated page on our site either, so start with the Chesterfield and Ettrick pages for the southern end of the county.
What we would actually tell a buyer
First, nothing about this decision removes an approved project. It caps the total; it does not shrink it.
Second, this is now a due-diligence question with a real answer rather than a rumor. The three campuses have addresses. If you are looking at a house within a mile or two of Moseley Road, Watkins Centre Parkway or Bermuda Hundred Road, you can find out exactly what is planned. Our guide to checking what is being built near a Richmond home walks through the parcel and agenda research step by step.
Third, watch construction traffic rather than the finished buildings. A 285,000 square foot building generates far more disruption while it goes up than once it is running. Project Peanut is under construction now. Skye and Loch start in 2027.
Fourth, do not assume a price effect that has not shown up. Chesterfield’s median single-family sale price was $440,000 in July 2026, down 3.3 percent year over year, with 1.8 months of supply. Henrico ran $475,000 and up 11.8 percent over the same month. Those are county-wide numbers and neither movement can be pinned on data centers. If you want the county-by-county picture, our post on whether it is cheaper to live outside Richmond lays out the tradeoffs, and what land and acreage costs around Richmond covers the rural edges.
The tax question is still open
Supervisors deferred a vote on an ordinance that would route incremental data center tax revenue toward lowering the personal property tax rate on vehicles. They said they wanted more study and more public input.
Chesterfield’s special tax rate on data center equipment is 24 cents per $100 of assessed value, and Google holds agreements freezing that rate for 30 years at the Peanut site and 10 years, with extensions, at the other two.
For homeowners, the thing to follow is not the data center rate. It is whether that revenue ends up offsetting residential tax bills, and that has not been decided.
Frequently asked questions
Is Chesterfield banning data centers?
No. Applications can still be filed through the conditional use permit process, which has been required for data centers since the start of 2026 following the county’s zoning ordinance overhaul. What the county has signaled is that staff will not recommend approval and the board is not inclined to grant it.
How many data centers does Chesterfield already have?
At least ten buildings built or under construction, by the county’s own count. Google will be the largest single operator with three campuses, and its conceptual plans suggest as many as ten buildings across those sites over time.
Will this lower my home value if I already live near one of the sites?
There is no local sales evidence either way yet, because the first Google building is not expected to be operating until late 2027. Chesterfield’s county-wide median was $440,000 in July 2026, down 3.3 percent year over year, which is a county-wide figure and not attributable to any one project. Treat it as an open question and a marketability factor rather than a known discount.
Which neighborhoods are closest to the approved campuses?
Moseley and the Magnolia Green area for Project Skye, the Westchester Commons and Midlothian side for Project Loch, and the Chester and Meadowville area for Project Peanut. Moseley and Chester do not have dedicated community pages on our site yet.
How much revenue will the county actually get?
Chesterfield projects $31 million to $47 million annually from Google’s three campuses at full buildout, against a projected $9 billion investment. Whether any of it reduces residential tax bills is undecided; the ordinance that would apply it to the vehicle tax rate was deferred.
Where can I read the county’s own material on this?
Chesterfield maintains a page on data center development, and board of supervisors agendas and minutes are posted publicly. Start at the county site and search agendas by road name rather than by project codename, since the codenames were not public when several of these cases were heard.
Following Chesterfield?
We track approvals and groundbreakings across the county as they happen. Browse new construction in the Richmond area, or see how we work with buyers if you want a read on a specific street.
Reporting credit: Jack Jacobs, Richmond BizSense, August 27 and 28, 2026. Analysis and local context are our own. Additional county detail from Chesterfield County and coverage in the Chesterfield Observer.
