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East Pennsboro outlines draft data-center zoning, schedules June 11 open house
Summary
Township planning staff say a draft ordinance would designate where data centers could be sited in an annexed area near the Capital Mall and Route 581; the township is seeking public input at a June 11 open house and will revise the draft based on feedback.
Darren Quigley, Housing Community Development Director for East Pennsboro Township, said the township is proposing amendments to its zoning ordinance to designate where data centers may be located and is hosting an open house on June 11 at 5:00 p.m. to gather public comment.
Quigley said the change is intended to avoid litigation over land-use decisions: "The reason is that municipalities in Pennsylvania are obligated to provide area for all land uses," he said, adding that failing to designate data-center locations could leave such choices to a court rather than the local zoning process.
The draft amendment would consolidate two zoning districts in the township's annexed area — the portion adjacent to the Capital Mall and Route 581 — into a single annexed district. Quigley said that area already permits industrial and commercial uses and contains no environmentally sensitive areas; within the new annexed district, existing permissible uses and data centers would be designated.
He said the ordinance would not adopt a single default status for all data centers: "Depending on the type of data center, it might be permitted by right or as a conditional use," Quigley said. That approach would allow the township to require specific conditions or reviews for certain projects while permitting others as-of-right where appropriate.
Quigley cautioned against making regulations so restrictive they effectively prohibit a use, saying such an approach can invite legal challenge and "result in the same loss of local control over that zoning ordinance," which the township is trying to avoid.
Specific technical standards and site controls — setbacks, buffer yards and types of screening — remain under development, and Quigley said some items in the working draft are intentionally left blank while the Planning Commission evaluates feedback. The working draft amendment is available on the township website, and new drafts will be issued after the Planning Commission reviews comments gathered at the open house and through public comment.
For questions or to submit proposed changes, Quigley provided staff contact information: 717-732-0711, extension 1667, or dquigley@eastpennsboro.net. "We hope to see you, if possible, at the open house June 11th at 5:00 p.m.," he said.
The Planning Commission will review public input after the open house and release updated drafts; no formal vote or ordinance adoption was recorded in this briefing.
