Botetourt County Sued to Void Google Data Center Agreement

A Botetourt County, Virginia, resident sued the county on Nov. 2 to void its June 24, 2025 performance agreement with Google for a planned 312-acre data center campus, alleging violations of the Virginia Freedom of Information Act (VFOIA).

The petition, Robert L. Dallas v. Botetourt County Board of Supervisors, et al., was filed in Botetourt County Circuit Court by Fishwick & Associates. WSLS, which obtained the 72-page filing, reports that it also names the county's Economic Development Authority and a Google-owned shell company. Dallas is a retired anesthesiologist who lives about half a mile from the site, on land under a conservation easement, according to his lawyers' statement published by WDBJ.

The agreement, as described in the petition, was made between the county, the Economic Development Authority and Helio Capital LLC, an entity wholly owned by Google. WSET reports that the agreement finalized the land purchase, committed the county to expedite permitting, and set performance grants that effectively cap the project's personal-property-tax burden. If a court voided it, the permitting and tax terms the agreement sets for the campus would be in question.

What the Lawsuit Alleges

Dallas argues that the Board of Supervisors went into closed session on June 24, 2025 and agreed to adopt the agreement, then reconvened in open session and approved it by reference, without disclosing its substance. Virginia Code § 2.2-3711(B) bars a contract agreed in closed meeting from taking effect until the public body reconvenes and votes in open meeting, and VFOIA requires closed-meeting subjects to be identified. The petition says neither happened properly. It describes an "atmosphere of secrecy" in the 18 months before the vote, according to WDBJ's copy of the statement.

The relief sought is wide. Per WSLS, Dallas asks the court to declare the Performance Agreement Resolution and the Performance Agreement null and void, to bar further board action on them, and to reverse anything done under the agreement after June 24, 2025. WSLS says that would include the expedited permits issued to Google and Google's eligibility for the county's Third Party Inspection Program. He also asks the court to order the board to follow VFOIA in future votes of this kind.

Where the Case Stands

Botetourt County declined to address the allegations. In a statement from its communications office, it said the matter involves pending litigation and the county "will not comment on the specific allegations." Google had not commented in the reports reviewed. Attorney Fishwick told WSET the goal is a hearing in the near future on voiding the agreement. WSET also notes that Google has already begun breaking ground.

The case adds to a wider pattern of local fights over how data-center deals are approved. Voltgrid News has tracked data center ballot fights across the US, and Google has separately confirmed a study for a potential 1,200 MW campus in Goochland County, also in Virginia.

What Is Not Confirmed Yet

No hearing date has been reported, and none of the allegations has been tested in court. The reports reviewed do not give the campus's power capacity, investment figure or grid-supply arrangements, and Google's response to the suit has not been reported. The Southwest Virginia Data Center Transparency Alliance has publicly backed the case, according to WDBJ.