Proposed Data Centers in Chesco/Delco

Proposed Data Centers in Chesco/Delco

By Bob Small

“This land was made for you and me” Woody Guthrie sang.

Big tech says no!

The Data Center monsters are coming to Chesco, Delco and Lackawanna counties.

And probably a lot of Pennsylvania’s 67.

Unlike the 1950’s sci fi, we can’t depend on science to defeat them. These are creatures of science!

Seeing the signs along Swedesford and other roads, one understood this was citizens organizing. “From air, to noise, to frequency, these are not industries that should be anywhere near residents,” said Monica Schryver, East Vincent Township resident. “

A similar perspective was offered in this article.

To quote:

The proposal for this data center threatens the health, safety, and future of our community. East Whiteland families should not be forced to sacrifice clean water, breathable air, increased traffic, and peace of mind so a private developer can profit from an energy hungry industrial complex placed on already contaminated land.

So the East Whiteland Board of Supervisors unanimously approved the start of “the curative process”, pausing the acceptance of new data center projects for up to 189 days.

“Any work involving earth disturbance of any kind must cease” East Whiteland says.

The most recent opposition sprang from a December 2025 proposal by the Developers which included a 60 percent increase of size of the data center.

To bring us up to speed “Green Fig, the developer behind a contentious East Whiteland data center project withdrew their application for an expanded 1.7 million square foot project after months of sustained opposition from thousands of residents” 

For a Delco perspective concerning Eddystone this article

Here is an article concerning another part of the state.

In New York,this is being taken seriously New York Governor Signs First Statewide Data Center …

In Pennsylvania, gubernatorial candidate Stacy Garrity called “for an indefinite pause on major data center development projects arguing that local governments need more time to prepare for the industry’s growing impact on communities.

Governor Shapiro’s position is build the centers as fast as possible.