Originally posted on Data Center POST

The Maryland Tech Council’s first-ever Data Center Summit featured a dynamic panel discussion that explored Maryland’s emerging role in the data center industry, emphasizing the state’s strategic advantages and potential for economic growth. Following the summit’s keynote panel, the first panel, moderated by Buddy Rizer, executive director for the department of economic development for Loudoun County, Virginia, was titled “Why Maryland?” Panelists included Dan Golding, Chief Technology Officer at Appleby Strategy Group; Mark Guymon, Vice President of Business Development at Rowan Digital Infrastructure; Eric Luedtke, Chief Legislative Officer in Maryland Governor Wes Moore’s Legislative Office; and Drew Van Dopp, President and Chief Executive Officer at Maryland Broadband Cooperative.

Strategic Positioning and Economic Impact

The panel discussion focused on the reasons Maryland is becoming an attractive location for data centers and highlighted Maryland’s geographical position, which offers significant advantages due to its proximity to major fiber networks and power infrastructure located in Northern Virginia’s rich internet ecosystem.

Rizer shared some historical background, demonstrating his extensive data center industry experience in Virginia: “When I first arrived to work in Loudoun County, about 18 years ago, we had a family economy. Our economy was 81% dependent on residential real estate. So when the housing crisis hit, we started laying people off. We started cutting back services.” As a result, Rizer said, “I was determined to go after data centers and completely changed our economy. As we sit here today, we have been able to lower the tax rate in Loudoun County.”

To answer the question, Why Maryland? Golding added, “when you look at Frederick County, Maryland, you’ve got the power of adjacency. So much of the internet’s fiber capacity, cloud capacity, AI’s fiber capacity cuts right through this area. And so when you add that to smart development policies, when you add that to the power of position, and right now, Maryland has that power position that’s extremely strong, extremely beneficial for data center developments.”

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