New 1.7-million-square-foot data center officially proposed in Linfield

A long-speculated data center project at the former Publicker Distillery in Linfield, Limerick Township, has been formally proposed. Township Manager Dan Kerr confirmed the application's filing and its subsequent review by staff and consultants. This new proposal, owned by Limerick Town Center LLC, brings the total to five active data center plans within a 44-mile radius, with three, including the Linfield site, located within ten miles of each other near the Schuylkill River. The Linfield project outlines 1.79 million square feet of data center space across eight two-story buildings on 191.46 acres, along with a PECO-owned utility switchyard and customer substation. PECO is slated as the electricity provider, Pennsylvania American for water, Aqua PA for sewer, and American Propane for gas services. The property is zoned for heavy industrial use, allowing data centers as a 'conditional use,' meaning the elected board of supervisors holds final approval power under the data center-specific zoning adopted in 2024. The close proximity of these numerous data center proposals is generating significant concerns among residents and activists regarding their cumulative impacts on health and local resources such as power, water, noise, and air quality. One activist has labeled the region a 'sacrifice zone.' The Linfield proposal will follow the same procedural path as a similar 1.4-million-square-foot data center proposed near the Philadelphia Outlets, which has already received 18 recommended conditions for approval from the township planning commission and is moving to 'conditional use' hearings before the board of supervisors. Controversially, a land swap approved in January by the Pennsylvania Game Commission, which exchanged 65 acres of mostly wetlands in Linfield for more buildable land, may have aided the project, though its direct involvement in the current proposal is unclear. Additionally, a mile-long, 67-megawatt high-voltage power line project by PECO is planned to provide power and reliability to the proposed data centers, with the 'customer' financing the construction remaining unnamed, highlighting ongoing secrecy criticisms surrounding data center developments in the state.