Archbald 25 Developer LLC’s Project Gravity is no longer in the PA Permit Fast Track Program.
“Due to Project Gravity's lack of responsiveness and unwillingness to provide a transparent overview of the project, we are terminating your participation in the PA Permit Fast Track program,” that's according to what Gov. Josh Shapiro’s office and the Pennsylvania Office of Transformation and Opportunity sent to Project Gravity on Monday.
The Shapiro administration created the Fast Track program in 2024 to help guide large-scale projects that require the involvement of many different agencies through permitting processes. The Office of Transformation and Opportunity (OTO) coordinates the program.
Northeast Pennsylvania is the epicenter of data center development in the state. Archbald has six proposed data center campuses, the most developments of any municipality in Pennsylvania.
Members of the Stop Archbald Data Center group questioned why Project Gravity was accepted into the Fast Track program. The program has an online dashboard for the public to track the projects, which Project Gravity did not initially appear on.
The state, at the time, said OTO was in the process of updating the website.
The Office of Transformation and Opportunity (OTO) initially accepted Project Gravity into the program on Sept. 22. But in order to progress, the state needed a proposed schedule for permitting, which OTO said it uses to develop a Coordinated Project Plan.
“Fast Track doesn’t change permitting rules; rather, it streamlines the process. It does not, in any way, bypass municipal approval, lessen the permitting requirements or override what the law requires. It is simply a program that offers assigned, coordinated help to developers in navigating state government regulations,” according to the OTO.
Project Gravity's campus
Archbald 25 Developer LLC's Project Gravity is a seven-building data center campus on 186 acres of mine-spoiled land between Business Route 6 and Eynon-Jermyn Road in the borough. Each building will be 135,000 square-feet each, which is about two times as big as the White House.
The New York City-based developer, with links to Western Hospitality Partners, a company proposing multiple data centers across the country, reported to the state that they expect to invest $5 billion in the project. The company told the state the data center campus would create 300 permanent jobs and 1,200 construction jobs over a five-year period.
The developer purchased the land from Five Up Realty, owned by Jim Marzolino, the president of Kriger Construction. The new owners have already torn trees on the property down to their stumps.
Project Gravity was principally permitted under the borough’s 2023 zoning laws, said Archbald Borough Manager Dan Markey. That means Archbald 25 Developer LLC had to receive approval for their project from the zoning office and the planning commission.
Project Gravity has yet to receive final land development approval from the borough.
Abie Kassin is listed as the contact for the company on state forms. He did not immediately reply to WVIA News' emailed request for comment Friday afternoon.
