Six Flags America in Prince George’s County officially closed this week, and the sales listing for the property gives a clearer picture of how its sellers think the land could be used.
A commercial real estate post by CBRE lists the 515 acres as a prime location for a mixed-use development with homes, stores and businesses – or a data center.
County Executive Aisha Braveboy ordered a temporary pause in September to all data center development in the county. It followed community pushback against the potential for a data center on the former Landover Mall site.
Six Flags permanently closed the Upper Marlboro staple at the end of this season, saying it would be more profitable to sell the land. The Washington Business Journal was first to publish a story on the listing. CBRE, the commercial realtor handing the sale, first advertised the site in May.
The suggestion for a data center on the Six Flags site is raising some red flags in the county.
County Councilmember Wala Blegay told News4 she won’t approve a zoning change that would allow a data center on the site in her district.
The real estate listing says there are extra-high-voltage electricity transmission lines on the site that could provide infrastructure for data centers. But data centers aren’t the only concern.
Blegay said her constituents want commercial economic drivers, not more apartments or townhomes.
Braveboy told News4 that Six Flags generated about $3 million in tax revenue annually and was a seasonal attraction. She said she wants the site’s future to generate tax revenue for the county year-round.
For example. National Harbor yields the state more than $70 million in tax funds. Braveboy said she sees an opportunity for something similar in the central part of the county.
The county has not been involved in the land sale discussions and doesn’t own the land, News4 has been told. Six Flags and CBRE have led the talks.
The governor, county executive and Blegay are expected to sit down in the next few weeks with Six Flags and CBRE to review the top three bids under consideration.
Zoning considerations will bring the community into the conversation about what will and won’t work in the space.
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