Critics seek more public review of Frederick County’s proposed $110 million data center agreement
Lawmakers, candidates and activists are asking Frederick County to slow the process surrounding a proposed Catellus agreement that would provide community benefits while locking in certain development rights.
HERE'S WHAT WE KNOW
The proposed Catellus agreement is valued at $110 million in community benefits. It is connected to the Frederick Digital Campus near Adamstown. The proposal has not yet been executed. The county says it still requires Planning Commission review, a public hearing and County Council action. Several lawmakers, candidates and activists are calling for more public review. The county says proposed benefits include major investments in schools, recreation, workforce development and land preservation.
Pressure is growing on Frederick County officials to allow more public review of a proposed $110 million community-benefits agreement with Catellus Real Estate Development tied to the Frederick Digital Campus near Adamstown.
The tentative agreement would provide money for community projects while also freezing certain zoning rules on Catellus properties where data centers are being developed.
County Executive Jessica Fitzwater announced the proposal earlier this month. The county says the package would include major investments in schools, recreation, workforce development, agricultural preservation, landscaping and community solar. An official county release says the agreement would also reduce the planned data center square footage, cut potable water use and preserve hundreds of acres as a nature reserve.
The proposal has not been executed. County materials say it still must go through Planning Commission review, a public hearing and County Council action.
Several elected officials and political candidates are asking the county to slow down.
State Sen. William Folden and Delegates April Miller, Barrie Ciliberti and Jesse Pippy sent a letter asking for an extended public-comment period, saying residents need more time to study the agreement and its long-term implications.
State Sen. Karen Lewis Young also raised concerns during a protest outside a county data-center information event in Urbana. She said major decisions should wait until a state data-center impact study is released and called for additional community listening sessions before the agreement moves forward.
Fitzwater has defended the process, saying the agreement reflects concerns raised during previous community meetings and describing the application as the beginning of a public review rather than the end of one.
The official county announcement says the proposed benefits include $30 million for Carroll Manor Elementary School, $40 million for a community center and recreational space, $14.5 million for workforce and career-technical education, $10.5 million for agricultural land preservation and other investments.
Critics at the Urbana protest argued that the agreement is too complicated and consequential to move quickly, especially so close to an election and before the incoming County Council has taken office.
The agreement will ultimately require additional public proceedings before it can take effect.
WHAT IT MEANS
The debate is less about whether the agreement is final — it is not — and more about how much time the public should have to examine a complex deal that could shape data-center development for years.
Supporters of the agreement point to significant community investments and environmental concessions. Critics are focused on transparency, timing and whether future elected officials would have enough flexibility once development rights are locked in.
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