Prince William County leaders vote to approve controversial Devlin Technology Park data center project

Prince William County leaders have voted to rezone land to accept data centers to the region.

The decision came after an all-night meeting that began Tuesday evening and continued into the early morning hours Wednesday.

The vote was split along party lines with five Democrats voting yes to rezone the land and three Republicans voting no.

Prince William County leaders vote to approve controversial Devlin Technology Park data center project

READ MORE: Controversial data center debate continues as Prince William County Board votes against proposed land use hold

The Devlin Technology Park project prompted one of the region's biggest land-use disputes in decades.

Proponents say it will create jobs and increase land values in the region.

Residents and others who oppose the plan say they are concerned that the data centers are noisy, ugly, and consume massive amounts of electricity. 

They say noise pollution from the air conditioning systems required to cool the massive buildings, and the lengthy construction time required to build them, would be detrimental to the area.