Subject: A Trojan Horse at the Gate
On March 7th, members of the Heritage Hunt Homeowner’s Association met with representatives from QTS to hear about their plans for developing the adjacent Prince William Digital Gateway. They had previously met with representatives from Compass Datacenters on February 28th. The Heritage Hunt Board of Directors is justifiably wary of interlopers who have demonstrated they will employ any tactic that serves their interests. The Heritage Hunt Board wrote: “Our previously stated concerns that the Digital Gateway is inappropriate for the Pageland area and that there are more suitable uses for that land has not changed.”
Citizens of Prince William County are still irate over the unethical practices employed by QTS and Compass in strong-arming their way into our area despite broad public opposition. Both corporations negotiated plans secretly, under the cloak of non-disclosure agreements designed to inhibit public awareness (Data centers’ secrecy often keeps residents in the dark | News | princewilliamtimes.com). These tactics of preemptively co-opting elected officials while concurrently deceiving the public is a standard blueprint for wealthy big tech predators and the citizens of Prince William County are determined to expose their culpability and forewarn other localities of their treachery.
Even more nefarious, representatives of QTS were confronted with evidence that indicated their attorney suggested infiltrating our community working group and planting a “mole” within it for the purpose of undermining community opposition. These are the kind of disreputable people who now come and try to appease us with empty promises. They are a Trojan horse we are determined to repel.
Not to be overlooked is the complicity of our elected “representatives” in leading this Trojan horse to our gate. Corporate marauders like QTS and Compass have enjoyed the support of ethically challenged public officials who have conspired with them against their constituents. But those officials’ hold on power is tenuous as the citizenry awakens to their betrayal. The government-corporate collusion that threatens Heritage Hunt is also being menacingly directed at Great Oak, Amberleigh Station, Silver Leaf Estates, Victory Lakes, Lanier Farms, Sheffield Manor, Oak Valley, Village Place and other communities. The message is clear: we are in their way and our quality of life is expendable.
Who is next in the path of this juggernaut? Communities within Prince William County have realized that the resistance they demonstrate now will serve as a deterrent for the time when corporate raiders come for THEIR neighborhoods.
The attitude of our community, and our message to QTS and Compass, is simple and concise: GO AWAY. We are not buying insincere overtures designed to placate us while they concurrently plot to destroy us. There are more suitable areas to develop this project in a more welcoming jurisdiction. Citizens of western Prince William County implore QTS and Compass to execute a tactical retreat and develop transparently, and this time in good faith, in a more appropriate location. They will learn that cooperation is a better long-term strategy than deception.
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