What This Archive Does
This site preserves and organizes public records. It is source-based and non-advocacy in tone. When records appear in multiple official or curated forms, each archived copy remains available rather than being silently replaced.
Current scope boundary: this archive is Loch-first. Records from Skye, Peanut, or other projects are added only when they provide clear Loch-crossover evidence (shared infrastructure, reused regulatory interpretation, or material clarification/contradiction affecting Loch).
Preservation Notes
Archive-first handling: every public document currently in this repository is preserved locally under docs/. Older records are kept even when later materials suggest that the proposal evolved.
Credential safety: one preserved PDF contains an expired DoD SAFE transfer notice as historical evidence of how the initial package was transmitted. The file remains archived, but this public site does not expose that expired transfer link or passcode as a clickable source.
How To Read The Record
This archive separates what different sources are doing in the record. That helps avoid treating an applicant submission, an agency question, and a verified agency determination as the same kind of evidence.
Applicant Assertions
Application volumes and response packages show what Google and its consultants submitted in support of the proposal. These materials describe design choices, avoidance claims, and mitigation proposals, but they are not final agency determinations.
Agency Comments
DEQ additional-information requests and related correspondence show what regulators still wanted explained or documented during review.
Established Facts
The USACE public notice and the VMRC non-jurisdiction letter establish specific public-record facts, such as the existence of the federal notice, the published comment period, and VMRC's stated jurisdictional position.
Unresolved Questions
The archive does not identify final federal or state permit decisions. It also shows an evolving mitigation approach, which means some early-filed materials should not be assumed to describe the latest proposal.
What Changed?
County records publicly tied Project Loch to Aeris and then to Google
Chesterfield's June 25, 2025 materials used the name Project Loch (Aeris) for a proposed data center tax-rate agreement. County minutes from August 27, 2025 then publicly stated that Project Loch (Aeris) was Google.
Mitigation approach appears to have shifted
The main project location is in Chesterfield County, but the federal notice also described a separate proposed compensatory-mitigation site at Wauford in Cumberland County. Later July correspondence shows DEQ asking whether the applicant was withdrawing the SSWD tied to that separate mitigation site, followed by the applicant's confirmation.
Review remained active through July 2026
DEQ issued multiple additional-information requests and the archive includes a July 2 applicant response package. That pattern indicates ongoing review rather than a settled administrative record as of the latest archived correspondence here.
The archive now documents duplicate public copies transparently
Several records exist both as curated filenames and as VMRC docket copies. The new manifest keeps each archived copy, publishes matching hashes, and makes those duplicates visible instead of silently collapsing them.
Timeline
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2025-06-25: Chesterfield approved a fixed tax rate agreement for Project Loch (Aeris)
County Board of Supervisors materials now include the agenda packet, Aeris agreement, and meeting minutes recording formal approval of the Project Loch tax agreement.
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2025-08-27: Chesterfield minutes publicly linked Project Loch (Aeris) to Google
Board minutes state that Google was the entity behind Project Peanut and that Project Loch (Aeris) and Project Skye (Skyward) were also Google.
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2026-01-29: Initial application package transmitted
The archive includes the applicant's transmittal record and the two large companion application volumes.
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2026-02-18 and 2026-03-31: DEQ sought additional information
Two early DEQ requests show that review questions remained open after the initial filing.
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2026-04-29: VMRC issued a non-jurisdiction letter
VMRC stated that no authorization from that agency would be required for the proposal as submitted to it.
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2026-03-19 and 2026-04-16: Chesterfield EDA minutes tracked site work and Upper Magnolia progress
EDA minutes reported active grading at Google's Bermuda Hundred site, projected first-building operations in late 2027, and continued permit and infrastructure activity at Upper Magnolia Green.
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2026-05-21 and 2026-05-27: County records discussed Google infrastructure and land transactions
EDA minutes described infrastructure grant funding for water, sewer, and roadway work serving the Google campus, and a county presentation referenced Project Loch and Skye Google transactions.
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2026-05-13: USACE published the federal public notice
The notice established the published federal comment period and described the project and mitigation proposal based on applicant-furnished information.
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2026-06-18 to 2026-07-08: Further DEQ correspondence and applicant responses
The latest archived materials concern DEQ's fourth information request, the applicant's July 2 response, and July 8 correspondence about withdrawal of the Wauford SSWD.
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2026-07-15 and 2026-07-16: Google held first public open-house meetings in Chesterfield
A local news report states Google held a first public meeting on July 15 at Brightpoint Community College and scheduled a second meeting on July 16 at Cosby High School to present campus details and take questions.
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Latest archive state represented here
No final federal or state permit decision document was identified among the archived files currently present in this repository.
Key Document Summaries
These one-page summaries cover the 10 records that currently do the most work in explaining the project, the county record, agency review, and later changes in mitigation approach.
Aeris tax agreement
County agreement text describing a proposed large-scale data center project on about 342 acres and the tax treatment Chesterfield was prepared to offer.
August 27, 2025 county minutes
Board minutes containing the public statement that Project Loch (Aeris) and Project Skye were Google projects.
Joint permit application package
The main application volume organizing the permit request, project footprint, and supporting forms for the proposed campus.
Environmental report and appendices
The companion technical volume that details aquatic-resource inventory and proposed wetland and stream impacts.
DEQ additional information request 1
DEQ's first formal request for missing items needed to complete the Virginia Water Protection application.
VMRC non-jurisdiction letter
VMRC's statement that the proposal, as submitted to it, did not require authorization from that agency.
DEQ additional information request 4
DEQ's June 2026 request focusing on compensatory mitigation issues, including whether the separate Wauford mitigation proposal should be used.
July 2 response to DEQ request 4
The response package in which the applicant said the separate permittee-responsible mitigation-site approach would no longer be pursued.
DEQ request to confirm Wauford withdrawal
DEQ's July 8 follow-up asking whether the applicant was withdrawing the SSWD for the originally proposed PRM site.
Google confirmation of Wauford withdrawal
The applicant's short confirmation email agreeing that the Wauford SSWD should be withdrawn.
Document Library
Each entry below links to the archived repository copy and to an official source. Status values indicate how the document is treated in this archive, not whether the project has been approved or denied.
Missing Or Not Yet Archived
These items are referenced inside archived records and are likely extant. Some have now been recovered and preserved locally; remaining items are still pending.
Relevance labels: core directly tied to Loch permitting; supporting likely informs permitting context; peripheral potentially useful but not clearly central.
DEQ Enclosures: Property Access Agreement and Single-and-Complete Worksheet
Where referenced: DEQ Additional Information Request 1 states these were enclosed.
Likely content: DEQ access authorization form(s) and completeness checklist needed to deem the VWP application complete.
Archived here: Property Access Agreement (DOCX) and Single-and-Complete Worksheet (DOCX).
DEQ PEEP Record Trail: Loch SSWD-000659
Where referenced: the StoryMap source text and PEEP screenshots mention Loch SSWD-000659 with revised target dates.
Likely content: request metadata, status history, assigned program context, and potentially linked application notes that establish DEQ processing milestones for Loch's SSWD track.
Status note: this archive now preserves DEQ PEEP provenance at docs/source-pages/virginia-deq-track-a-permit-peep.html, but the request-level SSWD-000659 export itself remains not yet archived.
Applicant Response Package Submitted March 16, 2026
Where referenced: DEQ Additional Information Request 2 says DEQ reviewed response materials received March 16.
Likely content: first full applicant response set to DEQ Request 1, including updated narrative, forms, and supporting exhibits.
Applicant Response Package Submitted June 3, 2026
Where referenced: DEQ Additional Information Request 4 and later July correspondence repeatedly reference this submittal.
Likely content: mitigation strategy updates and supporting documentation that DEQ evaluated before issuing Request 4.
Attachment 1 and Attachment 2 in July 2 DEQ Response
Where referenced: Google Response to DEQ Request 4 cites both attachments explicitly.
Likely content: Attachment 1 appears to be mitigation-credit availability support; Attachment 2 appears to be updated wetland mapping for Offsite Alternative 1 (Hickory Hill Road).
Enclosed Mitigation Plan and Bank-Sponsor Agreements
Where referenced: Google Response to DEQ Request 4 mentions an enclosed mitigation plan and executed agreements.
Likely content: project mitigation credit ledger, bank commitment terms, and obligations for offsetting authorized impacts.
Wauford SSWD No. 000855 Record Trail
Where referenced: DEQ Request 4 and July 8 DEQ email reference the Wauford SSWD and withdrawal update.
Likely content: SSWD request package, correspondence, and any DEQ status or closure artifact for that mitigation-site determination.
USACE Mitigation Bank Notices and Approval Records (Bobwhite and Bridgeport)
Where referenced: Google Response to DEQ Request 4 cites Bobwhite and Bridgeport public-notice/approval history.
Likely content: prospectus notices, public comments, and approval instruments for banks used to source wetland and stream credits.
Status note: public-notice source pages for NAO-2025-01976 (Bobwhite) and NAO-2025-00979 (Bridgeport) are now archived; related prospectus/approval package files in restricted RIBITS areas remain pending.
DEQ Air Permit Public-Notice Files for the Chesterfield Campuses
Where referenced: the July 16 Times-Dispatch article states Google was working to obtain air-emission permits.
Likely content: draft permit notices, application summaries, emissions modeling references, and comment-period postings for generator-related permits.
County/EDA Supporting Attachments Mentioned in Minutes
Where referenced: multiple county records in BOS agenda packet and EDA minutes mention attached summaries, financial reports, and related meeting records.
Likely content: staff recommendation sheets, recurring financial reports, and linked prior-meeting documents that support board and authority actions.
Archived here: embedded BOS packet audit-log files were extracted as docs/chesterfield/2025-06-25_Proof_Document_Audit_Log_1.pdf through docs/chesterfield/2025-06-25_Proof_Document_Audit_Log_5.pdf.
Upper Magnolia Context Files Referenced in Loch-Focused StoryMap
Where referenced: StoryMap Loch section links to Upper Magnolia context resources for technology-park framing and conceptual layout.
Archived here: county zoning news page snapshot and Upper Magnolia concept-plan exhibit PDF.
Targeted Acquisition Plan (Loch-First)
Priority 1: obtain the Loch SSWD-000659 request-level record trail (request package, correspondence, and outcome artifact) from DEQ PEEP and related records channels.
Priority 2: obtain remaining Loch DEQ-referenced response sets not currently posted in the VMRC 26-0171 additional-documents table (March 16 and June 3 response materials, and July 2 package attachments).
Acquisition channels: (1) DEQ records/public portal export pathways, (2) VMRC 26-0171 docket-linked document IDs, and (3) USACE/permit cross-references for cited mitigation support files.
Archive Downloads
The manifest is generated from the files actually present under docs/, not from crawler state.
docs/manifest.json
Download docs/manifest.csv
Saved Chesterfield Google announcement page
Saved Chesterfield Upper Magnolia zoning page
Saved Chesterfield economic development article
Saved DEQ Track-a-Permit (PEEP) page
Saved DEQ PEEP high-level public data export
Saved USACE NAO-2025-01976 Bobwhite public notice page
Saved USACE NAO-2025-00979 Bridgeport public notice page
Saved USACE RRS public notices search snapshot
Saved USACE public notice page
Saved VMRC docket source page
Newly Archived: Chesterfield Data Center Microsite
On July 16, 2026, the archive added linked project-plan and background files from chesterfieldvadatacenter.com and preserved the source homepage snapshot.
Project Loch overall site plan
One-page PDF plan linked from the microsite for the Loch campus footprint and basic layout.
Project Loch contextual site plan
Companion contextual plan linked by the microsite for surrounding road and area framing.
Project Skye overall site plan
Microsite-linked Skye plan showing the larger campus concept at this archive snapshot date.
Project Skye contextual site plan
Microsite-linked contextual Skye plan used to frame nearby transportation and area context.
Virginia JLARC data center study
Background policy report referenced by the microsite and preserved as cited context.
Google water stewardship report (2026)
Latest microsite-linked water stewardship report at time of archive capture.
Source-page preservation: the captured homepage is stored at docs/source-pages/chesterfieldvadatacenter-home-2026-07-16.html.