Archbald, PA, fights data centers in AI development rush

The small town of Archbald, Pennsylvania, has become an epicenter for data center development, with five developers planning six campuses that will occupy 14% of the town's land. One of these, Project Scott, is being developed by Provident Real Estate Advisors, whose representative Nick Farris faced strong public outcry at a community meeting at Valley View High School. Residents expressed concerns about the proximity of these facilities to schools and residential areas, as well as the environmental impact and lack of local job creation. Local opposition is significant, with the "Stop Archbald Data Centers" Facebook group boasting over 5,000 members. Key concerns include massive electricity demands, which could exceed the region's largest power plant capacity and contribute to rate hikes by PPL Electric Utilities, and significant water consumption from Lake Scranton by companies like Project Gravity. Residents also fear noise and air pollution from hundreds of diesel backup generators, and the structural instability given the town's history of mine shafts. A major point of contention is the updated zoning ordinance, which, despite resident demands, still permits data centers near residential neighborhoods, including the Valley View Estates trailer park, where residents are facing eviction to make way for a data center developer. Archbald Borough Manager Dan Markey acknowledged the zoning challenges in Pennsylvania, where municipalities must designate zones for all industries. He had attempted to form zoning collaboratives with neighboring boroughs to manage industrial development regionally, but the pace of data center construction outstripped these efforts. The article also highlights the role of local power brokers like Louis DeNaples and other businessmen, Jim Marzolino, Anthony Domiano Jr., and Alpesh “Al” Patel, in land transactions related to the data center boom. The impending April 15 eviction deadline for Valley View Estates residents, many of whom are disabled or low-income, underscores the significant social impact of these developments.