Data center profile · Summit View Business Park, north of Rocky Mount, Franklin County, Virginia

Crusoe Franklin County Campus

50 to 100 MW data-center plan at Summit View Business Park near Rocky Mount, Virginia, reportedly linked to Crusoe, dropped Aug. 2026 before any application.

Cancelled, withdrawn. Franklin County said in mid-August 2026 the project was not moving forward; a tracker lists it withdrawn Aug. 17, 2026. No application, hearing, approval or site work was filed; neither Crusoe nor the county has confirmed Crusoe's role.
50 to 100 MW
size reported for the project (press)
range reported by trade press; load type not stated
150 acres
of the 540-acre county business park (press)
the park reportedly has grid and natural gas infrastructure
0
applications, hearings or approvals filed
the project never reached a public approval
OperatorCrusoe (named by local press and records requests; never confirmed by the company or county)
CustomerNone named
Planned IT capacity80 MW at full build-out (our estimate from the company or utility power figure)
Next stepNone scheduled: the project was withdrawn in August 2026
Permits

Permits checklist

1 draft · 1 checked, nothing on file

Approvals a campus like this normally needs, and what we found.

Risks

Why it stopped, what could revive it

Power

Power and the grid

Sources on record, size not disclosed

Getting on the grid

Timeline

What happened, and what is due

SitePaper trailConstructionPowerPermitsMoneyLegalUpcoming
  1. May 12, 2026
    Permits Franklin County drafts data-center zoning limits while no project has been announced News report · May 2026
  2. July 16, 2026
    Site Records requests reveal a proposed data center, code-named Project Flash, at Summit View Business Park; press names Crusoe as the interested company (in talks with the county since November) News report · July 2026
  3. Aug. 16, 2026
    Site A Boone District supervisor tells the public about the project (press) News report · Sept. 2026
  4. Aug. 17, 2026
    Site A Virginia project tracker records the project as withdrawn by the developer Dataset · Aug. 2026
  5. Aug. 18, 2026
    Legal The supervisor resigns during a board meeting; a formal complaint against county leadership follows (press) News report · Sept. 2026
  6. Oct. 3, 2026
    Site Public radio reports residents used public records requests to uncover the project and that the county said it was not moving forward News report · Oct. 2026
Who is involved

Owners, partners and builders

Owners
  • Franklin County, Virginia: owner of Summit View Business Park
Developer
  • Crusoe: linked by local press and records requests only
Decision-makers and critics
  • Mike Meredith: Boone District supervisor who resigned Aug. 18, 2026 (press)
Still unknown

Open questions

Where this comes from

20 records from 6 documents

Drawn from news reports, local government records and public and commercial datasets, each kept with its date and source. The bar shows documents by type.

News report 4Local government 1Dataset 1
Evidence

Every quote behind this page

Grade key: A = the primary record itself (permit, filing, exhibit) · B = a dated official statement · C = news reporting. Map distances are our own measurements on OpenStreetMap and carry no grade. Allegations in lawsuits are marked as such in the quotes.

Power (4)
  • County code: 51067
    “Utilities include electricity, natural gas, water/sewer, fiber/broadband, and is centrally located along U.S. 220 in Franklin County, Virginia, just 20 minutes from downtown Roanoke.”
    Local government · Oct. 2026 · grade B
  • A Virginia data center project tracker records the Crusoe/Summit View project as withdrawn by the developer on Aug 17, 2026, at 150 acres and 100 MW - the tracker's 100 MW is the top of DCD's reported 50-100MW range, wit
    “Rocky Mount, Franklin County Crusoe Withdrawn by the developer The data center proposed for Summit View Business Park will not be built.”
    Dataset · Aug. 2026 · grade B
  • Site acres: 150 acres
    “Few details are available, but Franklin County-owned Summit View Business Park may host the development if it goes ahead, and may total 50-100MW on some 150 acres.”
    News report · July 2026 · grade C
  • Park acres: 540 acres
    “Summit View Business Park totals 540 acres located along US 220, and reportedly includes grid and natural gas infrastructure.”
    News report · July 2026 · grade C
Permits and government (2)
  • County public position: As of May 2026 the county said data center companies had contacted it and that no projects had officially been announced in the county
    “The current draft zoning ordinance includes several restrictions aimed at limiting the impact of future data center development, though no projects have officially been announced in the county.”
    News report · May 2026 · grade C
  • While Project Flash was still unannounced, Franklin County was rewriting its zoning code with data center restrictions (200-foot setbacks from non-commercial districts, air-cooling preference, public-water requirements,
    “Under the proposal, any data center would have to be located at least 200 feet from non-commercial zoning districts.”
    News report · May 2026 · grade C
Site and other (5)
  • Site location: Summit View Business Park, just north of Rocky Mount, VA (county-owned business park along U.S. 220)
    “The project was later identified as a proposed data center development at Summit View Business Park, just north of Rocky Mount.”
    News report · Oct. 2026 · grade C
  • Project status: cancelled - withdrawn in August 2026 before any public approval, application or site work; the county announced in mid-August 2026 that the project was not moving forward
    “As details emerged, residents opposed the project, and the county announced in mid-August that it was not moving forward.”
    News report · Oct. 2026 · grade C
  • The project surfaced only through residents' FOIA requests and drew organized resident opposition; a supervisor's resignation and a formal complaint against county leadership followed in the ensuing transparency dispute.
    “Residents in Franklin and Roanoke counties used public records requests to uncover details about proposed data centers as scrutiny of the projects grows, WVTF reported.”
    News report · Oct. 2026 · grade C
  • Project code name: Project Flash
    “Local press, including WDBJ, 10News, and the Roanoke Times, report that officials have been in discussions with a data center developer about the potential 'Project Flash' data center.”
    News report · July 2026 · grade C
  • Developer linkage: Crusoe - linked by local press / FOIA reporting only; never confirmed by Franklin County or by Crusoe
    “The interested company behind the planned development is Crusoe. The company has been in discussions with county officials since November.”
    News report · July 2026 · grade C