ARCHBALD — Sound projections for a proposed 400-megawatt power plant fell on defiant ears Monday night.
“This is insulting,” Councilwoman Lisa Osborne told an attorney and sound engineer representing Essential Energy LLC after listening to testimony on the predicted noise impacts of a natural gas power plant.
Residents erupted with applause in the Valley View High School auditorium, less than a mile from the site of the power plant proposed on the west side of Eynon Jermyn Road next to Archbald’s Staback Park. The power plant’s proximity to homes, parks, schools, a daycare, and an upcoming nursing home and assisted-living facility fueled concerns among the crowd of at least 200 as council considers whether to approve the Kriger Construction-affiliated power plant.
Testifying for Essential Energy, engineer James D. Barnes of Cambridge, Massachusetts-based Acentech defended his seven-page preliminary sound study as he faced scrutiny from borough officials and the public.
“How much detail does one really need at this stage of the project?” Barnes asked about two hours into the hearing, in response to a question about why his study excluded information on sound contours.
Barnes’ response underscored a core contention surrounding Monday’s hearing, and more broadly, a contention about the conditional use process: Residents and elected officials advocate for specific information and guarantees before making their decision, while developers want to defer those details until a later stage in the process after their project is already approved.
For Essential Energy, Monday’s hearing focused on the substance of Barnes’ preliminary study, which estimated how loud the power plant would be at nearby property lines, including the Highlands Archbald housing development across the street and the Valley View Intermediate School less than half a mile away. The report used computer modeling to calculate that a 400-megawatt natural gas power plant with certain criteria could conceivably abide by Archbald’s noise regulations. It did it not base those calculations on precise details of Essential Energy’s power plant, like an exact model of turbines or a specific equipment layout, nor did the study include taking any on-site measurements to establish a baseline of the existing ambient sound. While Archbald’s zoning requires an ambient sound study for data centers, it does not apply to power plants.
Council adjourned the hearing shortly after 8 p.m. without concluding testimony; the hearing will reconvene July 21 at 5 p.m. at the Valley View High School auditorium, 1 Columbus Drive, Archbald.
The power plant site is surrounded by 30 proposed data centers within less than a mile of Eynon Jermyn Road.
Other companies tied to Kriger Construction and its executives — President Jim Marzolino and Vice President David Stiles — propose the nearly 620,0000-square-foot Project Boson data center across the street from the power plant, in addition to four data centers and three natural gas power plants proposed above Business Route 6 in Dickson City.
Archbald Borough Councilwoman Lisa Osborne, left, asks questions during a hearing at Valley View High School on Monday, June 22, 2026. Essential Energy LLC is seeking approval for a 400 megawatt power plant on Eynon Jermyn Road. (CHAD SEBRING/STAFF PHOTO)
James Barnes, left, presents the preliminary results of a preliminary sound study at Valley View High School on Monday June 22, 2026. Essential Energy LLC is seeking approval for a 400 megawatt power plant on Eynon Jermyn Road. (CHAD SEBRING/STAFF PHOTO)
Archbald Borough Councilman Lisa Osborne, left, asks questions during a hearing at Valley View High School on Monday, June 22, 2026. Essential Energy LLC is seeking approval for a 400 megawatt power plant on Eynon Jermyn Road. (CHAD SEBRING/STAFF PHOTO)
Area residents attend a hearing Monday June 22, 2026, at Valley View High School. Essential Energy LLC is seeking approval for a 400 megawatt power plant on Eynon Jermyn Road. (CHAD SEBRING/STAFF PHOTO)
Show Caption
1 of 4
Archbald Borough Councilwoman Lisa Osborne, left, asks questions during a hearing at Valley View High School on Monday, June 22, 2026. Essential Energy LLC is seeking approval for a 400 megawatt power plant on Eynon Jermyn Road. (CHAD SEBRING/STAFF PHOTO)
Check back for updates.