Data center light and noise pollution rankle Reston residents

Residents of a Northern Virginia neighborhood say a data center just steps from their backyards cuts into their quality of life with too much noise and light pollution.

Those residents on Cocquina Drive in Reston say the company CoreSite’s data center expansion near Fairfax County Parkway has been an issue over the past 10 years.

“I’m ticked off, upset,” said one resident who wished to remain anonymous.

“The noise level, electricity, and, oh, randomly people that come from here and come across your property and expect you to understand,” he explained.

“Drilling, blasting, chipping at metal, excavation,” his list went on. “Lights at night during the construction.”

Video taken from a neighbor’s backyard shows bright lights from the data center at night. It even peaks through blackout curtains, residents said.

Other neighbors shared videos of what they say are cracks in their homes from the vibration from the drilling for the expansion.

“It does absolutely nothing to mitigate the noise, which goes on all day long,” resident Maggie Urbanik said. “When you look at the size of the building that is behind these people’s home and the lights shining into their bedrooms.”

Residents say that last year CoreSite planned to expand its data center with a 75-foot-tall facility 97 feet away from those living in the neighborhood.

Residents say they were unable to challenge the expansion due to prior approval the development went through before the county’s new data center regulations, which prohibit facilities within 200 feet of residential neighborhoods.

Residents who’ve lived there for decades told News4 they never wanted the data center to be so close.

CoreSite broke ground on the building more than 10 years ago, and since then, neighbors say, the construction has led to quality-of-life issues.

Homeowners say they have met with CoreSite and Fairfax County leaders and would like to see changes.

“I was clear to let them understand that the noise, the vibration and the light, the light bill, it rendered our property almost completely useless,” said the anonymous resident.

News4 reached out to CoreSite and awaits a response.