On July 23 and July 30, the Prince George’s County Planning Board will consider five proposed zoning bills that could reshape how the County handles transit-oriented development, environmental review, neighborhood commercial uses, and data centers. GCHIC has reviewed the proposed bills and submitted comments to the Planning Board. For the most part, our conclusions closely align with Planning Department staff, who have recommended opposition to four of the five measures. We e

This month, Prince George’s County imposed a two-year moratorium on new data center development. This week, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul announced a one-year statewide pause on environmental permits for new hyperscale data centers requiring at least 50 megawatts of power. Different jurisdictions. Different measures. The same underlying conclusion: governments should not keep approving increasingly large and resource-intensive data centers before they have enforceable rules gove

A Prince George’s County court sanctioned the County and its Redevelopment Authority for failing to serve discovery responses in GCHIC’s Fairmont Heights High School transparency lawsuit.

America at 250 invites us to reflect on democracy, self-determination, and the unfinished promise of American ideals—and what that work requires in Greater Capitol Heights.

Greater Capitol Heights has needed a grocery store that can stop the limited food access that many of our communities face daily. Recently, Prince George’s County and Atlanta-based company Goodr aimed to address that with a solution. The Fairmount Five Market is a free grocery store operating inside the Fairmount Heights Branch Library in Prince George’s County. Opening on World Hunger Day, the grocery store is predicted to serve over 200 families each month, with 175 receivi

Prince George’s County primary elections shape local power, land use, redevelopment, public investment, and whether communities like Greater Capitol Heights are heard.

Juneteenth is a celebration of freedom and a reminder that freedom must be made visible in land, housing, infrastructure, opportunity, and public investment.

Alzheimer’s & Brain Awareness Month is a reminder that housing, walkability, nearby services, and community design matter for older adults, caregivers, and multigenerational families.

Pride Month is a reminder that community development is about belonging as much as buildings. GCHIC’s vision for Greater Capitol Heights includes a community that is welcoming, accessible, and rooted in opportunity for all.

The forthcoming Central Avenue–Blue/Silver Line Sector Plan and Sectional Map Amendment will test whether long-discussed goals for transit-oriented development, housing opportunity, safer streets, and neighborhood reinvestment in Greater Capitol Heights can move from policy language into real implementation. Over the past several months, Greater Capitol Heights Improvement Corporation has been working at several levels to help shape that outcome: Engaging with the Prince Geor

The short version: connect the streets, shrink the blocks, and make it easier to get around on foot, bike, or transit. The Capitol Heights–Addison Road Metro (“CHARM”) regional activity center has two Metro stations, sits inside the Beltway, and lies just minutes from the District of Columbia. So what will it take for this area to transform into the walkable urban center that regional plans have long envisioned? More retail? More housing? More places to work and play? Yes,

The Capitol Heights-Addison Road Metro (CHARM) area is getting an upgrade, and it’s coming at an affordable price. WMATA selected Atlantic Pacific Companies to build 320 affordable housing units and 10,000 square feet of retail across four buildings where the Capitol Heights station's parking lot now sits.

The final post in GCHIC’s series examines whether Prince George’s County will turn data center recommendations into clear, enforceable rules.

How Prince George’s County reviews data center proposals—and why process alone can’t replace clear rules, enforceable standards, and real community benefit.

Why Performance Standards Matter In this series, GCHIC has evaluated the Qualified Data Center Task Force’s recommendations against Smart Digital Growth —a policy framework developed to help Prince George’s County harness the fiscal benefits of data centers while avoiding the land‑use, infrastructure, and community harms seen elsewhere. In Part 1 , we explained why the Task Force was created, how it operated, and what its report sets in motion. In Part 2 , we examined the Ta

Where data centers go matters as much as whether they are regulated at all. This post evaluates the Task Force’s siting recommendations against Smart Digital Growth’s priority-based approach. Proposed NVIDIA Data Facility in Cambridge, U.K.. Image by Richard Croft . The Qualified Data Center Task Force’s recommendations take meaningful steps toward improving how data centers are sited in Prince George’s County. The harder question is whether those steps are enough. In Part

Discover how community nonprofits can partner with the County Executive to deliver for seniors. Read our open letter to the County Executive now!

The Qualified Data Center Task Force has released its long-awaited report, and it marks a significant shift in how Prince George’s County is approaching data centers. Residents raised serious concerns over the past year—environmental risks, land-use conflicts, and a broken public process—and the Task Force’s recommendations directly respond to many of those issues. Some gaps remain, and we’ll unpack those in this five-part series. But first, here’s what the Task Force actuall

In recent weeks, momentum has shifted in Prince George’s County over the proposed data center at the former Landover Mall site. While the project isn’t dead yet, what once seemed like a done deal is now facing increasing scrutiny and community pushback. On September 15, County Executive Aisha Braveboy issued an executive order halting all permit approvals for new data centers—effectively freezing progress while a newly formed Qualified Data Center Task Force conducts a compr

Prince George’s County spent years updating its zoning to encourage walkable, transit-oriented, and equitable growth , especially in long-disinvested inner-Beltway neighborhoods. Now, a new proposal—the Flagship Project Overlay Zone (FPOZ) —threatens to undermine those reforms. The County Council will soon consider legislation (CB-105-2025 and CB-92-2025) that would create an overlay zone allowing certain mega-developments to bypass essential zoning safeguards and public inpu