Local Planning Commission vote violates court order on data center measure
The Salem Township Planning Commission in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, voted to recommend a data center zoning measure, despite a verbal and written court order from Judge Lesa S. Gelb that precluded such action. This vote followed a lawsuit filed by citizens alleging Sunshine Act violations by the commission, which the judge verbally confirmed. Township officials claimed they were unaware of the written order.
The Salem Township Planning Commission in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, proceeded with a vote on a data center zoning measure, even though a judge had verbally ruled three days prior that the commission had violated the state's Sunshine Act and a subsequent written order from Luzerne County Judge Lesa S. Gelb precluded such actions. Township Manager Amy Evans stated she was unaware of the written order, dated August 25, when presented with it by a reporter.
The situation creates legal uncertainty around a potential third large data center project in the township. Salem Township currently has one Amazon data center under construction and another by QTS Data Centers in advanced planning stages. The initial Sunshine Act violation concerned a July Planning Commission meeting on a zoning matter for the third proposed data center, where citizen plaintiffs alleged attendees were locked out.
Judge Gelb had verbally ordered on August 25 that the July meeting essentially needed to be redone due to lack of public access. Her written order, which was not readily available online, explicitly "stayed" any actions on the "proposed Special Data Center Overlay District or related zoning amendments." Despite this, the Planning Commission voted late Thursday to recommend that township supervisors approve an expansion of the district for the third project.
Lead plaintiff Nate Eachus expressed belief that township officials defied the court order. The opposition to data center proposals has intensified, leading Governor Josh Shapiro to remove all data centers from the state's "fast track" permit-issuing program, reversing his previous support for responsible development.