October 21， 2025
US real estate firm Peterson Companies has taken a significant step toward developing a substantial data center campus in Stafford County, Virginia, by filing a permit application with the US Army Corps of Engineers.
The application, submitted via the Timmons Group on behalf of Peterson-linked affiliate Real Estate Pursuits 2 LC, seeks approval for work affecting waters near the Rappahannock River. The proposed project, known as "Project Sisson," is planned for a site on the banks of the river, off Kings Highway near Albion Lane.
Plans for the campus outline the construction of 16 two-story data center buildings, totaling 3.8 million square feet (353,030 square meters), along with four electrical substations. Cooling water for the facility will be sourced from the nearby Little Falls Wastewater Treatment Plant, located less than two miles away. The development is anticipated to impact approximately four acres of wetlands and open water.
According to the application, the location was selected for its "robust infrastructure" and "proximity to the Northern Virginia data center network, where approximately 70 percent of global Internet traffic passes through."
This filing follows a summer request by Real Estate Pursuits 2 LC to rezone 850 acres of land for the 'Forest Lane Data Center,' changing its designation from agricultural and light industrial to heavy industrial. Peterson's involvement is confirmed by matching addresses and email contacts within the application documents.
Stafford County, situated south of the major data center hub of Prince William County, has recently made efforts to attract such developments by lowering taxes on data center equipment. Peterson Companies was previously developing the 1GW Stafford Technology Campus in the county, a project that has since been taken over by Stack Infrastructure.
Adam Cook, Peterson’s managing director for development, has previously stated that the company was drawn to Stafford County due to an existing landbank and the area's suitable utility and technology infrastructure.
The application also notes that two alternative sites in Stafford County were considered but rejected. One, referred to as the ‘Ren Fair’ site, would have impacted more wetlands, while the other, the Blaisdell Site, would have affected more streams, was farther from the treatment plant, and was closer to a residential area.
Peterson Companies, a private developer founded in 1965, is expanding its data center ventures with additional projects planned in Virginia's Culpeper and Loudoun counties.
SOURCE DCD
