2nd validity challenge filed as possible UMBT data center campus surpasses 900 acres
A second zoning validity challenge has been filed in Upper Mount Bethel Township over a proposed data center campus that could span 905 acres and include up to 29 buildings. The filing concerns a 152-acre site at the former Portland Generating Station, while the township’s Board of Supervisors previously rejected a memorandum of understanding tied to the larger project.
RPL East LLC filed a second zoning validity challenge in Upper Mount Bethel Township related to a potential data center campus spanning approximately 905 acres on both sides of River Road. The new filing covers the 152-acre former Portland Generating Station site at 5027 River Road and proposes as many as six data center buildings, an electric generation facility, battery storage, substations and stormwater infrastructure.
The site is associated with developer Lou Pektor and the broader Slate Belt Technology Campus, led by Slate Belt Holdings, a partnership involving Talen Energy and River Pointe Logistics. A company spokesperson said both sites are part of the same proposed 2-gigawatt campus and that the filing seeks clear zoning guidelines for the entire industrial property.
Upper Mount Bethel Township’s Board of Supervisors last month rejected a proposed memorandum of understanding that would have advanced the original 753-acre proposal and led Slate Belt Holdings to withdraw an earlier zoning challenge. A public hearing on that first challenge is scheduled, while a hearing on the new 152-acre challenge has not yet been set.