Companies tied to DeNaples, Missouri firm apply for 16 Olyphant data centers

Companies associated with developer Charles DeNaples and the St. Louis-based Sansone Group have submitted applications to construct 16 data centers in Olyphant, Pennsylvania. These proposals emerge as the Olyphant Borough Council grapples with a contentious zoning process, which saw an initial data center zoning ordinance passed, then immediately rejected in a revote following significant public outcry. The council subsequently voted to declare its existing zoning ordinance substantively invalid due to its exclusion of data centers, a move aimed at pursuing a curative amendment to introduce new regulations. However, this action may have cost the borough protection under the "pending ordinance doctrine," which typically applies forthcoming zoning standards to new applications. Adding to the complexity, Charles DeNaples, managing member of Triboro Commerce Park LLC, filed a land-use appeal in the Lackawanna County Court of Common Pleas on April 21. This appeal challenges Olyphant's decision to invalidate its zoning and seeks to honor the initial 4-3 vote that would have regulated data centers. Borough Solicitor John Brazil indicated that while the curative amendment process provides some protection, its ability to act as a six-month moratorium is uncertain, and the borough might have lost its pending ordinance doctrine status. The outcome of the court hearing will significantly influence Olyphant's future data center zoning.