SOUTH WHITEHALL TWP., Pa. – On Wednesday night, Project Atlas is back on the table for the South Whitehall Township Planning Commission.
The 410-acre project site would be built on land owned by the Jeras Corporation, which sits directly across the street from Parkland High School.
Wednesday night, the data center developers will be giving a presentation for the commission and then answering questions.
After that, public comment will open up to all residents who wish to share their thoughts and opinions on the land development.
At the conclusion of the meeting, planning commission members could decide on the application.
The project has faced a lot of public opposition since its proposal, as residents have concerns about the location, noise, and water usage.
Republican State Sen. Jarrett Coleman says he’s heard concerns from his constituents and is working on laws to regulate data centers.
“We were the first ones to really draft legislation that would empower our local municipalities to place a moratorium on data center development for up to 18 months so that the local municipalities can draft ordinances and regulations that meet the demands from the local municipalities,” said Coleman.
Democratic State Rep. Mike Schlossberg says in the House, Legislation is also in progress trying to limit the scope, size, and impact of data centers.
“In the House right now, we’ve passed nine pieces of legislation that would put guardrails around data center development,” Schlossberg said.
A planning commission decision is on the agenda tonight, but the township board of commissioners has the final say.
The current deadline for the board of commissioners to act on the project atlas plan is October 31st.