Penn Forest Twp. reviewed a final draft of a curative amendment to its zoning ordinance to allow data centers in an area that many residents say is not suitable for the industry.
"We determined that it is simply the least worst option,” township Vice Chairman Christian Bartulovich said during a zoning hearing earlier this week.
If approved, the amendment will add a zoning overlay to around 500 acres of land in a residential area of the township on Route 903 and Maury Road. It’s the same location where Mele Brothers Realty plans to build a data center campus.
Mele Brothers challenged the township’s zoning ordinance for excluding data centers before it had defined data centers. However, the property owners have not submitted any plans to the borough to build a data center.
During a Jan. 14 meeting, Attorney Matthew McHugh, who represents the Montgomery County company, said the project is in the feasibility stage right now.
“One way or the other, we’re going to pursue a data center development on this site, whether it’s through this ordinance or through the validity challenge,” he said.
He said their preference is to work with the township.
“And come to a regulatory framework in the form of this ordinance that will allow us to understand what the rules of the game are, allow for reasonable development, have an appropriate public process in place, have appropriate standards, performance standards, studies, etc., and remedies for concerns that the township and residents may have,” he said
Supervisors will vote on the amendment on Monday at 6 p.m. at Penn’s Peak. A Zoning Board Hearing is scheduled for March 23 on the substantive validity challenge.
Why rezone now?
Bartulovich said the township has been redoing its zoning ordinance over the last year and a half.
"This was always the plan to address data centers,” he said.
The amendment adds a zoning overlay to two residential zoning districts.
"An overlay preserves the underlying district. So it's still eligible to use for that, but the overlay allows for the use that we're discussing," he said.
Residents questioned why the overlay is in the same area as the Mele Brothers' land. Elaine Rowling asked if the township has enough commercial or industrial property to put the overlay in place, instead of in a residential area.
"The inventory of land that we have is not all free and clear. There is a lot of state land. There are a lot of authority-owned lands, preserves," Bartulovich said. "So all of those things, while they may be vacant, residential land, are not actually places where you can build anything.”
Township solicitor Tom Nanovic said the industrial area of the Penn Forest was the obvious location, but they did not feel it was sufficient.
"Our concern is that we didn't want to have another challenge file that you permitted too small of an area. So then they file a challenge at some other location in the township, and we go through this whole process again,” Nanovic said.
Bartulovich added that the industrial area is only around 50 acres and is bordered by state game lands and Penn Forest Streams.
"A use can't be hypothetically possible. It has to be actually possible,” he said.
Nanovic said as far as the commercial zone, there would be no space for large setbacks.
Bartulovich — again referencing the least-worst option — said no one thinks the residential area off Route 903 is the perfect place for a data center.
But in Pennsylvania, and most of the United States, all land uses must be allowed in a municipality.
"It just happens to be the most feasible and defensible way forward, without, like we discussed on the other end, wide-scale changes of something else,” Bartulovich said.
Water concerns
Nancy Sarcinello, from Sarcinello Planning & GIS LLC, discussed the most recent changes to the proposed amendments, which are available on the township's website.
The changes were created with input from township representatives and feedback from members of the public over the past several months, she said.
Some of the changes focused on water. Data centers can use large amounts of water to cool rows and rows of servers that run 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, inside the centers. The servers are the brains of artificial intelligence, cloud computing and most everything done online.
There is no public water in Penn Forest Twp., only wells.
The amendment defines an "area of influence," which Sarcinello said is essentially the extent of the aquifer that is impacted by drilling and could potentially be impacted by well withdrawals, water withdrawals serving a data center or any other use.
If the applicant uses groundwater, they need to contact property owners that are within 3,000 feet of the well or within the area of influence, whichever area is greater.
"So if the area of influence, wherever the aquifer services, is 15 miles, then you have to justify within 15 miles. I'm not saying that's the case, but you know, if it's 6,000 feet, if it's 10,000 feet, that becomes the boundary, 3,000 feet is the minimum," he said.
Residents questioned how supervisors came up with 3,000 foot measurement.
Bartulovich said their hydrogeologist decided on it.
Property owners would have to choose to participate in baseline testing to be able to file a claim down the road if there is an issue with their wells.
There is a well guarantee agreement.
"This is an agreement that the owner of the land would enter into with the township … where the owner would restore water supply to impacted properties. But again, in order to submit a claim under this well guarantee agreement, you must have first had your well tested for baseline data," Sarcinello said.
Resident Mike Gogal asked who would pay for the water testing.
"Either they can provide a geologist to do that, a water scientist to do that, or you can choose your own … and the cost of that would be borne by the applicant,” Bartulovich said.
Another resident asked what happens if their well dries because of the data center.
Bartulovich said the owner would be responsible for quickly providing residents with a source of potable water.
Linda Christmas is president of Save Carbon County.
"Any large withdrawal of water on this site is going to impact the quantity and quality of water that Penn Forest residents can obtain, but will also impact the downstream users of these watersheds. Can't mess with a watershed without affecting a lot of people, so good work on the ordinance, but it's the wrong place,” she said.
Height change
Gogal also asked why the height requirement changed from 45 feet to 60 feet, with an additional 15 feet allowed for rooftop equipment.
"Fundamentally, it's to right-size for use. We have to make an ordinance that's defensible, and this improves on that ability to defend,” Bartulovich said.
'Heart of our community'
The township’s natural environment was a topic of questioning during the hearing.
Bear Creek Lake is a spring-fed lake that shares the same aquifer as some of its neighboring properties, resident Dave Wheeler said.
The lake has freshwater mussels, which are an endangered species, he said.
"In Pennsylvania, a developer can't legally proceed without what's called a Pennsylvania Natural Diversity Inventory Review," he said.
He said that review would show that the property is an important bird area and that it abuts a natural heritage area.
Christman said there are two bat species and a wildflower on the site that are federally protected. Two exceptional valve streams cross the property.
Ashlyn Rimsky is a resident and environmental engineer.
"It directly conflicts with the purpose to conserve our natural features," said Rimsky, "which are the heart of our community and our local tourist economy.”
'The way of life would change'
Before the hearing began, some Penn Forest Twp. residents set up inside Penn’s Peak to discuss their opposition to data centers in the township.
Scott Pickford built a new house last year. Six months later, he found a data center could be his neighbor.
"To me, an appropriate place for a data center is industrial or commercial space. This is zoned R1 and R2 for a reason. Now, all sudden, a landowner has decided, 'Hey, we can make big bucks by doing a data center.' That's wrong," he said.
Pickford worries that instead of hearing the trickle of waterfall from his house, he will hear the hum of the data center, and that his well water will be impacted.
"There's a lot of different things that are unknown, but the way of life would change,” he said. "Hunting and fishing are what I do as part of my hobbies, and what kind of I did as a child growing up in the mountain here, that could go away in a second.”
Pickford called it a David vs. Goliath situation.
"How does one property owner that has 750 acres have their rights supersede my rights? It's just not fair. And everybody that lives nearby would say the same thing, we were here first, and we have homes and established neighborhoods and everything else,” he said.
Dot Olonovich, a leader of data center opposition, said they want to be good neighbors in Penn Forest Twp.
"We don't have any good data as to whether or not that this is safe for people, let alone animals, wildlife," she said.
Penn Forest Twp. is on the Pocono Plateau. Olonovich said the top of a mountain is not the right place for a data center.
"There's so many places we could put it on superfund sites, next to highways, old malls, old strip malls. There's so many places, mines that have been ruined. We need to reuse the ruined places, because this is an assault on nature. We can't keep doing this to nature and expect it to end well for ourselves," Olonovich said.
Olonovich said the state government and Governor Josh Shapiro need to pay attention to what’s happening in Penn Forest Twp.
"They're doing this to townships because we have land, and so all the places where people go to get away from the place that they normally are, are going to be wrecked," she said.
