Archbald council unanimously denies Wildcat Ridge Data Center Campus

ARCHBALD — A packed gymnasium erupted with cheers Wednesday as Archbald Borough Council unanimously denied the Wildcat Ridge Data Center Campus.

Council’s anxiously awaited decision on Lackawanna County’s largest proposed data center campus was the culmination of nine public hearings and about 26 hours of often-heated testimony and cross-examination. Brooklyn-based Cornell Realty Management sought conditional-use approval to build 14 data centers on the mountainside above Business Route 6 and Route 247, or Wildcat Road.

Residents and local elected officials have widely opposed the development, and speakers preceding the vote reiterated that stance as seven urged council to deny the application amid a packed council meeting in the Borough Building’s third-floor gym.

A standing-room-only crowd of at least 175 quietly listened to the roll-call vote, roaring with applause and a standing ovation as shouts of “Thank you!” echoed through the gymnasium when council cast its seventh vote to deny the application.

Council President Louis Rapoch, Vice President Joseph Altier III and council members Larry Marchetti, Madonna Munley, Lisa Osborne, Erin Owen and Larry West all voted to deny the application.

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