Pennsylvania Town Fights Back Against Massive Data Center Development Plans

Tensions are growing in a Pennsylvania town as developers prepare to build six large data centers.

Archbald, near the Pocono Mountains, is undergoing major changes as about 14 percent of its land could be developed into 51 data warehouses.

Each warehouse is roughly the size of a Walmart Supercenter, according to the Washington Post.

The rural town sits near the 500-kilovolt Susquehanna-Roseland transmission line, a major power line that supplies electricity across the region.

This reliable energy source makes it attractive for data centers, which need a lot of power.

Archbald also has abundant freshwater and land suitable for the sites, but many residents are angered by the construction plans.

'Those animals now have no place to go,' resident Tim Bachak told WaPo. He said that last month, construction workers began clearing forests for the data center.

'It's disgusting. ... Why are they putting these things near us, near our schools and near our parks?'

Locals have started to rally together over social media and community meetings to push back against the plans.

The 'Stop Archbald Data Centers' Facebook group has nearly 10,000 members, more than the town's population of about 7,000, where people share meeting updates and opposition to the data centers.

Hundreds of outraged locals have placed 'NO DATA CENTERS' signs in their yards and turned once-quiet board meetings into uproar.

'I want to know the effects of electricity usage, water usage, noise pollution, light pollution,' resident Michael Pilch, 54, told WaPo.

Despite their efforts, the outlet reported that the data center developers are pushing forward with construction plans. Residents say they have not disclosed which tech companies will occupy the buildings.

'This debate has destroyed this community,' Archbald Mayor Shirley Barrett told the outlet.

'We want answers, but we have no clue what is going on because this is all happening so quickly.'

Cornell Realty Management, the developer for Wildcat Ridge AI Data Center, applied to build 14 massive centers across 400 acres.

Calling the project 'ultramodern,' they said it would help generate $7 million in annual tax revenue for the borough and another $23 million for the school system.

They claimed the campus would be at least 1,500 feet from homes, create 1,280 jobs, and be as quiet as a 'normal conversation.'

Developers also said it would use about 50,000 gallons of water a day, not the 3.3 million gallons critics allege.

But 500 residents packed a council meeting in mid-April to denounce the Wildcat Ridge zoning permits.

Outraged locals taunted the developer's lawyer, and tossed the pamphlets into the trash at the council podium.

'They think we are stupid and think we are pushovers,' Judy Quinlan, 81, told WaPo.

She added that the community is prepared 'to stand in front of bulldozers' to prevent construction.

Archbald Borough Council members who once supported the data centers have even stepped down. Three of the four seats are now held by opponents, with one seat still vacant, per the outlet.

It could take months to years before any construction begins, even after the local planning board approves the project, since additional state and local permits are still required.

'No one wants this,' Bachak told the outlet, 'except the people making money off it.'