Starwood Advances 226K

Starwood Advances 226K-SF Data Center in Fairfax County, Va. The project would rely on a new substation less than 100 feet from nearby homes By Greg Cornfield July 21, 2026 5:35 pm reprintsStarwood Capital Group is advancing plans for a pair of data centers in Fairfax County, Va., near the Alexandria border. The investment firm filed plans last week for the first building at its Plaza 500 development, according to the Business Journals, which cited Fairfax County records. Plaza 500 South, the proposed two-story data center, would span 226,469 square feet and rise 75 feet. The first phase of construction on the building shell is estimated to cost $5 million. An affiliate of Miami-based Starwood acquired the 34-acre site, adjacent to the Bren Mar neighborhood, for $165 million in 2022. The company is also awaiting approval for a proposed electrical substation that would sit less than 100 feet from nearby homes. The plans have drawn opposition from residents, who earlier this year proposed that Fairfax County swap the Plaza 500 property for a Chantilly site the county plans to sell to Starwood for data center development. Under that proposal, affordable housing would instead be developed near Bren Mar. County officials rejected the idea and are expected to close on the $167 million Chantilly property sale to Starwood next spring. Residents are planning to rally against the Edsall Road substation when the proposal goes before the planning commission in September. Starwood is also developing several other major data center projects in Northern Virginia. The firm is redeveloping the former Washington Commanders training facility in Herndon into two data centers near its Renaissance Tech Park, which is expected to span 2.3 million square feet at full buildout and become Fairfax County’s largest data center complex. Amazon is slated to use the property. Gregory Cornfield can be reached at gcornfield@commercialobserver.com.