Dorrance Twp. hearing on possible data center continued until May

The Dorrance Township zoning hearing board held a standing-room-only hearing on Monday, continuing a session focused on a substantive validity challenge filed by Brewster Land Company LLC. The company asserts that the township's zoning ordinance, before a September 22, 2025 amendment, unlawfully excluded data centers, as it lacked provisions and definitions for such facilities. Expert witnesses, including planning consultant Erik Hetzel and civil engineer Justin Moceri of Kimley-Horn, testified on behalf of Brewster Land Company. Hetzel argued that the previous ordinance did not reasonably accommodate data centers and failed to provide clear objective standards for their measurement as a special exception. He also claimed that the industrial zone, where data centers are now allowed by the amendment, has limited developable land. Public comment revealed local opposition, with resident Dan Austin questioning how an ordinance drafted nearly two decades ago could exclude data centers when they weren't prevalent at the time, stating "Unconscious omission, to me, is not exclusion." Edward Warner, from the Butler Township planning commission, also contended that the ordinance wasn't exclusionary, highlighting that applicants seeking special exceptions bear the burden of proof for community benefit. The board postponed its decision on Brewster Land Company's claim until May 6, at which point it will decide whether to grant site-specific relief to allow a data center on South Main Road if the claim is upheld.