Developer applies for 200,000-square-foot data center in Jessup
DBT-Data has filed a conditional use application for a 200,000-square-foot data center in Jessup, Pennsylvania, requiring 60 megawatts of electricity and 3,200 gallons of water daily. This project is part of a broader data center development trend in Lackawanna County, which has seen several proposals and ongoing legal and zoning challenges.
DBT-Data, a Maryland-based developer, has submitted a conditional use application to the Jessup Borough Council for a 200,000-square-foot data center within the Valley View Business Park in Jessup, Pennsylvania. The proposed single-story facility would occupy the former TMG Health/Cognizant building site, which was demolished in December 2023. The application, filed on September 4, details plans for 26 backup generators, 60 megawatts of electricity consumption, and an average daily water usage of 3,200 gallons, peaking at 6,400 gallons. The generators would be Tier 4 compliant and store 78,000 gallons of diesel on-site. The developer also has agreements with the Scranton Lackawanna Industrial Building Company (SLIBCO), the Greater Scranton Chamber of Commerce's development arm, to acquire hundreds of additional acres in Jessup and Archbald for potential future data center expansions.
The Jessup project is the eighth data center proposed for the borough, with other developers like Breaker Street Associates LLC and Sunnyside Road Associates LLC (both tied to Catalyst Commercial Development LLC) facing ongoing litigation regarding their data center proposals. Lackawanna County, particularly the bordering Archbald, is experiencing a surge in data center interest, with 51 buildings across six projects proposed in Archbald alone, including plans from PNK Group.
DBT's application attempts to distinguish itself from "speculative developers," emphasizing its leader David Tolson's 20-plus years of national data center experience. The project's demands for water and electricity are described as some of the lowest among proposed data centers in Lackawanna County, with a closed-loop cooling system minimizing continuous water usage. In comparison, projects like Wildcat Ridge propose significantly higher water and power demands.
The proposed site is within Jessup's "Energy & Information Technology Overlay," a zoning amendment created last year to regulate data centers as conditional uses in industrial zones. This requires public hearings where residents and their legal representatives can cross-examine DBT's witnesses and present their own evidence before the council makes a decision. DBT's application asserts that the project will not negatively impact residential neighborhoods, as the site is within an industrial park.