When I watched Lehigh County Executive Joshua Siegel’s budget message, I was absolutely thrilled to see him unveil an open space initiative he called the Data Center Defense Fund.
Counties have had few weapons in the fight against warehouse proliferation and now the scourge of data center development. Pennsylvania is a right-to-develop state, and I don’t foresee anything but the most marginal changes coming from Harrisburg. Zoning and planning are done at the municipal level. So, what tools are left for counties?
There are two that can be put to great effect. They are farmland preservation, which Lehigh County does, and the preservation of open and green space — which Lehigh does not do.
Why isn’t the farmland preservation program enough to hold off warehouse and data center development? The primary reason is that there is an extraordinary amount of open and green space that does not qualify.
Some critics have said the Data Center Defense Fund is nothing more than sloganeering, and others have dismissed the notion that preservation can fight warehouse and data center proliferation. Those critics are mistaken, and there’s proof.
The Lehigh Valley Planning Commission’s two most recent subdivision and land development reports noted that there have been zero square feet of plans for warehouses submitted for review.
There are several factors why this is true, however it is undeniable that one is Northampton County has taken several thousand acres off the board. Since the inception of Northampton County’s open space initiative in 2006, it has preserved over 3,500 acres.
While I think Siegel’s open space initiative can legitimately be seen as a data center defense, I don’t think it’s the only reason the people of Lehigh County should be excited. The public health and economic benefits may be even more important.
We know Allentown has among the highest rates of pediatric asthma in the country. We know we can and should be doing a better job making sure the quality of air our children breathe improves.
In August 2025, I announced the finding of a study we had performed, an audit if you will, of our preservation programs, which created four county parks. We called it our “Return On Environment” report.
First, the top-line health benefits: Air pollution removal by trees (estimated $85 million benefit per year), carbon storage in tree canopy (5.8 million tons; $2.5 billion lifetime), water supply replenishment ($37 million annually), natural flood protection ($48 million annually), clean water from riparian buffers ($13 million annually), natural pest control from forests/meadows ($1.8 million annually), pollinator benefits ($20.1 million-$21.3 million annually).
The benefits to our overall public health are clear.
Frankly, this type of preservation also provides a massive return on investment. Just $500,000 per year in the county budget would leverage tens of millions of dollars in grants from the state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources
What did our study find? Quite simply, the investment not only improves our environment — it also makes us wealthier.
It’s not just about saving local governments money or benefiting business, although, that is also true. Having a county-level open space initiative makes middle-class families better off too.
In Northampton County, our preservation efforts added $21.7 billion to home values. That’s billion with a “b,” and Lehigh County would likely add even more value, as it is slightly larger than Northampton. The average value of a home near open space increased $12,800. That number will also undoubtedly be higher in Lehigh County as well.
The agricultural contribution was $43 million. More acres under cultivation and production in Lehigh County would lead to an even larger injection of cash into the economy.
The outdoor recreation benefit in terms of its contribution to the GDP in just one county is $436 million per year. This investment supports 2,000 jobs in outdoor recreation. The wages paid to the people working in outdoor recreation total $82 million annually.
The open space initiative would help small businesses too. In Northampton County, the program has led to $263.4 million per year spent at small businesses by tourists accessing parks and trails including the Delaware and Lehigh rivers.
Don’t take my word for it. Read the report for yourself, But, let me be clear, if you want Lehigh County to lead the fight against data center proliferation, you need Siegel’s open space onitiative.
If you’re still concerned about the resurgence of warehouse proliferation, as am I, the initiative is a shield and and a sword. If you want an even healthier and wealthier Lehigh County, I promise you the Data Center Defense Fund is a relatively low cost investment with some truly astonishing returns.
This is a contributed opinion column. Lamont G. McClure is the former Northampton County executive serving from 2018-26. The views expressed in this piece are those of its individual author(s), and should not be interpreted as reflecting the views of this publication. For more details on commentaries, read our guide to guest opinions at mcall.com/opinion.