Botetourt County supervisors vote to create board appointed water study commission

BOTEOTURT COUNTY, Va. (WDBJ) - The Botetourt County Board of Supervisors voted 3-1 Tuesday to create a new commission to study the impact a Google data center will have on the region’s water resources, drawing strong opposition from residents who wanted the county’s planning commission to lead the effort.

Residents packed the meeting and voiced frustration over the vote and the future of the data center.

“You have stolen my peace,” said Chelsea Wimer, a Botetourt County resident.

“The data center is not a feather in the cap but a dagger in the heart,” said Nancy Hartman, also a county resident.

“It’s distressing on so many levels that the leaders of this community value money over human life,” said Kathy Benefield, a Botetourt County resident.

“It’s too late. You have lost the trust and confidence of the citizens that you supposedly represent,” said Linda Mikalauskas, a county resident.

Kathryn Hatam, a Botetourt County resident and member of the Southwest Virginia Data Center Transparency Alliance, said residents support the idea of an independent water commission but take issue with how the board’s proposal was developed.

“They instead decided for us,” Hatam said. “And what we have said we wanted is a committee that has teeth, that is able to bring in outside independent experts, as well as bring answers to bear from both the Board of Supervisors, the Planning Commission and the Western Virginia Water Authority, as well as Google themselves.”

Supervisors will select five people to serve on the new commission. Members will be unpaid and cannot be affiliated with Google or the county government. No date has been set for their appointment, but the commission will have six months to conduct the study.

Some residents said they do not trust the board to make those selections.

“Because I don’t trust you all, I don’t trust your decision to select people on your own to form this committee to look into the water situation,” said Judy Wilhelm, a Botetourt County resident.

Residents opposed to the data center said they would have more confidence in the planning commission overseeing the study. The county said the planning commission would not have all the authority needed to conduct a proper investigation.

Hatam said residents are concerned that the proposal before the board Tuesday was not what the planning commission originally put forward.

“Please don’t hide behind shadowy appointed committees,” Hatam said. “This is important.”

Supervisors who voted in favor of the staff’s plan also said the planning commission would be biased, citing member Mark Tyson’s public concerns about the data center. That argument led to a heated exchange between supervisors Linda Rottman and Tim Snyder.

“I would state that my opinion is that the planning commission is biased. So you’re asking for an opportunity to provide advisement to a board for a commissioner to do the work that you’re afraid to do. Because I’m not afraid to do this work,” Snyder said.

“Oh, for crying out loud! I’m not afraid to do the work. You were on the planning commission when Google was approved!” Rottman responded.

Rottman was the lone vote against the staff’s plan. She called it a gigantic middle finger to everyone in the crowd.