In a September 11, 2026 article, Augusta Free Press reported the on-the-record question put to City Hall: was a data center coming to Staunton Crossing? Councilor Brad Arrowood answered it by email, and he let the paper republish his response. "There are no plans for a data center, and there have not been any plans under consideration during my term," he wrote. The city put out a formal statement from Mayor Michele Edwards the same day.
For Winnbrook, the timing matters. The subdivision sits on New Hope Road near the city limits, very close to where New Hope Road meets Interstate 81. Staunton Crossing is the city's business park on the north side of Richmond Avenue, with I-81 along its eastern edge. Both are on the same interstate corridor. The tall new tower on that skyline is the clearest sign that the park is close to ready. What gets built there is still being decided, and the city says the next step will be a public meeting this fall.
What the Tower Was Built to Do
Anyone who drove I-81 around Thanksgiving last year saw the tank go up. In November 2025, crews lifted the 264-ton steel bowl up its concrete pedestal with jacks and cables. The top of the tank now stands about 240 feet above the ground. The artwork on the outside combines the Blue Ridge Mountains with parts of Staunton's historic skyline. The city meant the tower to serve as a landmark at the entrance to Staunton Crossing.
The engineering is less obvious. The tank's overflow level sits at the same elevation as the clearwell at the city's Water Treatment Plant, on the opposite side of Staunton. Gravity fills the tank, so no pumps are needed. City Engineer Lyle Hartt said this design means the water system doesn't need an additional pressure zone. The city says the tower improves fire flow, reliability, and long-term water capacity.
The money came from a $9 million Virginia Business Ready Sites Program grant awarded in August 2024. The grant paid for the 1-million-gallon tower and the supply lines on the site, with the stated goal of making the land more appealing to developers. Staunton was one of 23 localities to get awards that round. In other words, the tower is site preparation, and it was built before any large tenant has been named.
The last public status report came from the Economic Development Authority's June 25, 2026 meeting. Staff said the tank would start filling the following Monday and that filling would take about a week. They also said some residents had asked about better water pressure, and they explained that the tank was not yet in service. No later public update says when it went into service, so the City Manager's Office is the best place to ask about the current status.
What Has Opened in the Past Year
Most of the large Staunton Crossing site is still empty. The city says less than 10 percent of it has been developed, and that portion already brings in more than $1 million in tax revenue a year. In September 2024, Virginia Business described the developed 25-acre frontage area as having two hotels, four restaurants, and a 7-Eleven. Since then, several new places have opened or started construction:
- Columbia Gas of Virginia's Staunton Operations Center at 102 Valley Center Dr. held its grand opening on Thursday, July 23, 2026. The building holds more than 70 employees. It has a warehouse with a drive-through loading lane, and it serves Staunton, Fishersville, Waynesboro, Verona, Stuarts Draft, and the company's Northwest operating area. It is an operations center. The company's headquarters remains in Chesterfield County. The building also does not accept bill payments, so customers with billing questions should call Columbia Gas's Customer Care Center at 800-543-8911.
- Wawa at 1031 Richmond Ave., the city's first, celebrated its grand opening with a ribbon cutting on November 6, 2025. This past August 20, Staunton Police were scheduled to hold a Special Olympics Virginia fundraiser there.
- A new Verizon store was under construction this summer. At the June EDA meeting, staff said they believed it would replace the existing Verizon store at Staunton Crossing, not add a second one.
All of these are on the edges of the site, near Richmond Avenue and Valley Center Drive. Crossing Way was finished in summer 2024 and opened up the remaining 275 acres. Those 275 acres are what the tower was built to serve, and they are the subject of this fall's planning work.
Where the Data Center Question Came From
The rumor started with a real document. In 2019, the city adopted a marketing framework for Staunton Crossing after an EDA planning process that included public input. That framework listed data centers among many possible industries for the site.
There was also real interest. The EDA's agenda for its February 5, 2026 meeting describes ongoing data center inquiries, with possible facilities ranging from about 100 acres to more than 300. The agenda calls these inquiries exploratory and notes that the developers had not committed. The same agenda noted a separate inquiry from a food and beverage manufacturer that needed rail access. In February 2026, the EDA voted unanimously to support updating the 2019 plan. City Council discussed a possible refresh at its April 9 work session. The city says public discussion picked up after that April session.
Mayor Edwards addressed those concerns directly in her September statement:
"Across Virginia, communities are asking serious questions about data centers, the significant amount of electricity and water they use, potential noise, visual impact, and whether rising demand could affect residential utility customers. Those are legitimate questions."
She went on to say that no data center is being built at Staunton Crossing, no application has been submitted, and no facility has been approved. In his email, Arrowood pointed out that the 2019 plan was written "four years before the most senior members of this City Council were seated." He said he would like the data center recommendation removed from the list of proposed uses.
What Any Proposal Would Have to Clear
The mayor's statement also explained why Staunton has not passed a moratorium the way some Virginia localities have. Data centers are not a permitted use in any zoning district under the city's current ordinance, either by right or with a special use permit. A moratorium pauses permission a locality already grants, and Staunton doesn't grant this one.
According to the city, any use the current code doesn't allow, at Staunton Crossing or anywhere in the city, would have to go through these steps:
- Review against the Comprehensive Plan.
- A public hearing before the Planning Commission.
- A second public hearing before City Council.
- A Council vote on a land-use or zoning amendment.
Staunton Crossing has one more safeguard. The city owns it. The Economic Development Authority bought the property in 2009, and because it is public land, the city can approve or deny any proposed sale through several review stages.
Interest from other kinds of businesses has continued. In late June, EDA staff said the Virginia Economic Development Partnership had sent two requests for information that week. One was about manufacturing at Staunton Crossing. Staff described activity as picking back up after a brief lull. No company has been named.
The Work Session Is When Residents Can Weigh In
The EDA and engineering firm Timmons Group are reviewing current market conditions so they can update the site's marketing plan. The city says the recommendations will go to City Council at a public work session "later this fall," and that residents will be able to review the findings and give input. The EDA's summer minutes say Timmons Group's scope of work had been signed and a progress update was expected. They did not include any findings. As of early October, Council's presentations page listed items through September 24. The only Staunton Crossing item on it was the April 9 "Update on Staunton Crossing business Plan," and no fall presentation of the marketing plan had been posted.
That plan will shape what the city tries to recruit to the remaining acreage. The long-range plans already on file allow offices, medical facilities, manufacturing, and limited retail. Whether the data center listing stays in the plan, as Arrowood asked, will be part of the same discussion.
The city recommends three ways to keep up: watch the official meeting agendas, contact the City Manager's Office, and attend public hearings as they're scheduled. The mayor's full September 10 statement is posted as a video on the City of Staunton's YouTube channel.
Our agents at Nest Realty - Shenandoah Valley track planning decisions like this one because they affect life on Staunton's side of I-81. If you live in Winnbrook and want to know what the Staunton Crossing work session could mean for your corner of the city, reach out to us any time.
This article is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Consult a qualified professional about your situation.
