Virginia

Google has purchased some 312 acres in Botetourt County, Va., for $14 million in order to potentially build a data center in the future, the county announced Tuesday.

More than 500 data centers populate Northern Virginia and about 200 of them are clustered around Ashburn and Sterling in east Loudoun County, earning the area the nickname Data Center Alley.

Drones as first responders is a growing program in police departments across the country, and Virginia Beach will soon be the first city in its region to use the technology.

In working with Kyndryl to replace its mainframe with the company’s MAX platform, the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles looks to give visitors more options and have staff handle complex tasks.

The state wants to improve the customer experience for people who use the DMV, as well as boost security against digital criminals. This move is just the latest tech upgrade for DMVs in the U.S.

Charles City County, Va., is considering a large data center campus with the promise of a multimillion-dollar tax windfall, which would require rezoning a 515-acre tract of woods in a rural area.

Administrative support for the Office of Data Governance and Analytics has moved to the Virginia Information Technologies Agency, in an effort to improve efficiency and further enable teamwork.

CIO, Virginia

A bill introduced to the House of Representatives this week would ban cellphones from school classrooms, with exceptions for students with disabilities or other needs, such as lack of English language proficiency.

Harrison, who previously served as the IT director for nearby Stafford County, will step in as Fairfax County’s CIO this April, bringing more than two decades of tech expertise to the role.

The project would be located near the historic Belmont Estates, and it would include a campus of three data center buildings, totaling 1.5 million square feet across 181 acres.

While Spotsylvania County has already approved various data center developments, staff and the Board of Supervisors are still trying to hammer out regulations on the exploding industry.

One piece of proposed legislation that would have increased state review died in committee last week. Another, which would if passed enable noise and land site reviews, is, for now, advancing.

Fredericksburg City Council continued its aggressive push toward bringing a data center or centers to the city Tuesday night, despite pleas from some residents to slow the pace.

Chief Technical Officer Gregory Scott, who heads the county’s Department of Information Technology, is preparing to retire after nearly six years in the role. He has helped the local government refine its resident experience.

Motorists traveling in Tazewell County are used to seeing sheriff's deputies in police cruisers patrolling, but they will soon be seeing deputies on motorcycles patrolling the roads as well.

A new state online portal, the Virginia Veterans Network connects veterans, military service members and their families with everything from health care to legal and employment support. The site provides links to hundreds of organizations.

The Virginia Information Technologies Agency is spearheading work to improve the accessibility and usability of state sites. It is providing oversight, tools and resources to other agencies to update their online presence.