The first meeting, which will be held virtually tonight, has even drawn a watch party organized by Save Allegheny Valley Environment (SAVE).<\/p>\n
SAVE Treasurer Marty Garrigan said that group has been educating residents on the process dictated by the county\u2019s SALDO, or Subdivision and Land Development Ordinance. For Garrigan, the preferred outcome would be a denial.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re hopeful. In the worst case scenario, they would approve this with conditions. But that’s a scary thought, too,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.publicsource.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/20260915-Springdale-Data-Center-14.jpg\")
People from SAVE Allegheny Valley, a group that is organizing in opposition to a proposed data center in Springdale Borough, protests outside the A.I. Summit in Bakery Square on Sept. 17, in East Liberty. (Photo by Stephanie Strasburg\/Pittsburgh\u2019s Public Source)<\/p>\n
Anna Jewart, who serves as land use counsel for Allegheny DC Propco LLC, which recently rebranded as Dynamo DC, said that the SALDO process for major developments can be broken down into three steps: zoning approval at the local level, approval of the preliminary land development plan and final approval of the plan.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The developer is on the second step. The ACED Planning Division has 90 days from its Oct. 28 meeting at Springdale Borough Municipal Building to issue its decision, she said. The county will accept written comments through Nov. 30.\u00a0<\/p>\n
A preliminary approval would not allow Allegheny DC Propco to start building any structures or complete any grading work, she said. But because the Governor\u2019s Responsible Infrastructure Development Standards<\/a> now require local approvals to be complete before data center developers apply for Department of Environmental Protection permits, Jewart said an approved preliminary plan would allow Allegheny DC Propco to apply for those.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThis is a big hurdle. And it takes a lot of work, a lot of engineering. But there is much more that has to be done still,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n One application, dozens of issues<\/p>\n Last December, Allegheny DC Propco received approval from Springdale Borough Council to build the data center complex as a conditional use. The borough also granted the developer six variances.\u00a0<\/p>\n At the municipal level, the preliminary plan submitted as part of the SALDO process typically provides a broad overview of what\u2019s being proposed, said Brigitte Meyer, a staff attorney for the environmental advocacy organization PennFuture<\/a>. But that also depends on the town\u2019s zoning ordinance and the level of detail it requires.\u00a0<\/p>\n The county\u2019s SALDO requires preliminary applications to include a range of documents, including a description of the project and its purpose and maps of the development\u2019s proposed location<\/a> and surrounding developments. Depending on a site\u2019s conditions, a developer might also have to submit reports that assess soil contamination, landslide proneness and subsidence risk.\u00a0<\/p>\n Allegheny DC Propco\u2019s preliminary plan proposes transforming 47 acres of the former Cheswick Generating Station site into a data center campus that would include power generators, utility yards and stormwater facilities to support its operations.\u00a0<\/p>\n In response to the 182-page application<\/a>, ACED\u2019s Planning Division asked for correction<\/a> of several inconsistencies. Some of those issues include:<\/p>\n Certification from the Allegheny County Health Department that it was notified about the proposal, as required, wasn\u2019t included in the application. Notification to the Health Department would also trigger air pollution requirements for the facility, according to the county\u2019s review.\u00a0 Two consultants \u2014 Mackin Engineers and Consultants and GFT Infrastructure, Inc. \u2014 also conducted reviews of the plan on behalf of the county and borough. Similar to the county\u2019s internal review, the third parties took issue with missing or incomplete information throughout the plan.<\/p>\n Jewart, counsel for the developer, said that the length of the county\u2019s review was not surprising for a plan of this size. She also said that it\u2019s standard for these reviews to include several reminders to obtain certain permits, some of which she said the developer cannot apply for at this time due to the state\u2019s GRID Standards.\u00a0<\/p>\n Allegheny DC Propco has submitted a letter in response to the county\u2019s review, she said, and plans to submit an updated plan ahead of the Oct. 28 meeting.\u00a0<\/p>\n In June, county Sustainability Director Brittany Prischak said the county is working on a model<\/a> data center development ordinance that municipalities can adopt, but that the county was still figuring out its role in the evolving space.<\/p>\n Harrisburg also has a role. According to the state’s data center permit tracker<\/a>, the developer already has state water obstruction and encroachment permits, but still has to submit permit applications related to erosion control and brownfield cleanups.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.publicsource.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/20260915-Springdale-Data-Center-07.jpg\")
People share ideas and thoughts on Springdale\u2019s proposed data center during a community session on data center development held by State Sen. Lindsey Williams at Rachel Carson Park on Aug. 11, in Cheswick. Residents shared concerns ranging from electricity prices and pollution to loss of home values. (Photo by Stephanie Strasburg\/Pittsburgh\u2019s Public Source)<\/p>\n
\nSeveral concerns surrounding the application\u2019s treatment of the St. Mark\u2019s Lutheran Church cemetery, which sits to the west of the proposed data center campus. The review notes that there\u2019s a call to move earth in proximity to existing headstones there, and a proposal to relocate access to the cemetery would require building a bridge.\u00a0
\nDespite the plan showing that parts of the site are contaminated with methylnaphthalene and arsenic, the application did not signal that any remediation had been done.\u00a0<\/p>\n