A D.C.-based real estate investment firm is shifting gears with one of its properties in Chantilly, dropping previous plans to build an auto sales facility and instead seeking a rezoning to build data centers.

In August, an affiliate of Penzance Management LLC acquired a large, vacant parcel adjacent to an auto dealership cluster, about a mile south of Dulles International Airport, for $10 million. While much of it sits in a floodplain, about 12 acres of the lot are developable, adjacent to Ourisman Chantilly Toyota at 4135 Auto Park Circle. Fairfax County rezoned that part of the property under different ownership in 2019, approving the development of a vehicle sales, rental and service facilities, plus a used car storage lot. Those plans never came to fruition and the lot remains vacant.

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