A logistics company is nearing the final stages of land development planning to convert a 1-million-square-foot warehouse into a data center in Allen Township.
Prologis has final approval from the township’s supervisors on the plan for the Lehigh Valley East 16 project and is now working through conditions of the approval, Allen Township Manager Ilene M. Eckhart told lehighvalleylive.com on Monday.
“We anticipate additional technical information to be submitted for building permits for the alterations of the existing building (retrofitting of the structure), within the next few months,” Eckhart said of the planning process for the site at 2500 Liberty Drive.
The timeline for when Prologis will start work on the conversion remains uncertain. The San Francisco-based company’s media relations team in a statement to lehighvalleylive.com on Wednesday afternoon confirmed the project is moving forward as planned. The statement noted the company’s longstanding presence in the Lehigh Valley.
“Over the past 20 years, we have worked hard to build strong business and community partnerships across the region,” the Prologis statement said. “Our local team lives and works in the community, and our facilities support hundreds of local companies, employing thousands of people. We work closely with local leaders to plan development and redevelopment projects with the community’s long-term needs in mind.”
Township supervisors approved the plans at their March 24 meeting, despite concerns that current zoning ordinances lack specific provisions for such facilities, according to an audio recording of the meeting available on the township’s website.
The debate highlights the challenges Pennsylvania municipalities face as modern technology infrastructure outpaces decades-old land use regulations.
The board voted unanimously to approve an amended final plan from Prologis, classifying the use of a data center under the township’s existing “wholesale storage” designation. The approval came after a township resident raised questions about whether the current code adequately addresses data centers.
“Server racks housing computing equipment is not wholesale storage as contemplated by our current outdated ordinances,” the resident told the board. “The zoning classification simply does not support the ordinance.”
A second resident also spoke out against the data center, citing concerns over noise pollution, water usage and impact on infrastructure.
Justin Fanslau, market officer for Prologis, defended the proposal, arguing the facility fits within existing regulations.
“This amended plan does nothing and does not change the fact that this is an approved use under the current zoning ordinance,” he said. “The purpose of this amended plan is to really get some flexibility with the use of what’s being stored inside the building.”
The traffic reduction became a central selling point for the plan. Under the original warehouse approval, approximately 900 vehicles per day could use the facility. The data center conversion would reduce that to fewer than 100 vehicles daily.
Prologis representatives addressed infrastructure concerns raised by residents. A construction professional with the company explained the facility would use a closed-loop water cooling system requiring an initial fill but minimal ongoing water consumption. The company will privately fund construction of an electrical substation to connect to existing high-voltage transmission lines on the property.
Since the township’s March 24 meeting, the Lehigh Valley Planning Commission also reviewed the plans in an advisory capacity.
The commission on April 23 voted to accept a staff review of the project, according to LVPC meeting minutes published online.
The vote called for amendments requiring mitigation of heat exhaust impacts that could create a potential heat-island effect and professional noise studies. The amended staff review will be shared with the township. It is available here on LVPC’s website.