Largest crowd yet shows up to oppose Archbald data centers

Archbald, Pennsylvania residents displayed significant opposition at a public hearing for the proposed Wildcat Ridge Data Center Campus, with over 500 people attending the third such meeting. Before testimony, residents filled a box with hundreds of flyers and booklets from the developer's public relations campaign, setting a defiant tone. The Wildcat Ridge Data Center Campus plans 14 two-story data centers, commercial, and office space on 574.2 acres, along with 574 backup diesel generators. Opponents, many wearing 'Stop Data Centers' T-shirts, loudly cheered anti-data center speakers and booed developer representatives. The project, proposed by Brooklyn-based Cornell Realty Management LLC, has been the most controversial of several data center proposals in Lackawanna County, primarily due to its location, water consumption (up to 3.3 million gallons per day), and electricity requirements (1.6 gigawatts). Traffic engineer Jerilyn Luben of L&V Engineering LLC, hired by the developer, faced scrutiny over her traffic generation report. Attorney Justin Richards, representing residents challenging the borough's data center zoning, highlighted that Luben's report used studies based on projects nearly ten times smaller than Wildcat Ridge's proposed 5.665 million square feet, and that commercial and office space traffic was not included. Luben conceded the applicant's community impact analysis, which quoted fewer trips, was incorrect. The group 'Stop Archbald Data Centers' organized the mailer return and funded opposition materials. Several local officials and community leaders, including retired Lackawanna County senior Judge Thomas J. Munley, Lackawanna County Controller Gary DiBileo, and Lackawanna County Commissioner Bill Gaughan, spoke out against the project. Munley called for a moratorium or a public referendum, telling the developer to 'pack your bags.' Gaughan criticized the developer's marketing campaign, asserting that Archbald residents would not be swayed by financial promises. A fourth public hearing is scheduled for May 14.