Developers issue challenge to data center ordinance

Granville Township supervisors amend zoning ordinance

LEWISTOWN -- The Granville Township Board of Supervisors announced that data center developers filed a challenge to the supervisors' recently adopted data center ordinance during a special meeting Wednesday night at the Granville Fire Co. Event Center.

"Developers filed a common pleas report to get the first ordinance exterminated," said Solicitor Fred Lighty.

About 150 people showed up to hear details about amending the zoning ordinance to establish regulations and specifications for using and/or installing data centers in Granville Township.

Lighty is amending definitions in section 1, article 2 as well as providing basic district regulations in article 4 and providing for the severability of the provisions.

In alphabetical order definitions are listed, while everything else is the same as the previous ordinance; the paragraph on data center accessory use is the only thing that has been changed in article 2.

Lighty added storm and water facilities, while definitions for water holding facilities already existed; Lighty felt it was necessary to add storm water facilities to the ordinance definition to ensure they don't build on agricultural land.

In section 1 article 4, all "major traffic impact" projects shall be considered to be "conditional uses" as defined herein, provided they are listed as permitted or have been granted a special exception use, and all procedures applicable to conditional uses shall apply to zoning applications for such projects.

The amendment would delete the following sentence:

"The supervisors shall not approve any such conditional use if it determines that any traffic problem to be created by the proposed development cannot be adequately alleviated by the developer" and substituting the following in its place:

"In deciding a conditional use application that constitutes a major traffic impact project, the Board of Supervisors may deny the application if it finds, based on substantial evidence in the record, that the traffic impacts of the proposed development cannot be sufficiently mitigated by the imposition of reasonable conditions so as to avoid an undue adverse impact on the public health, safety or welfare, including the township's transportation system."

The Granville Township Zoning Ordinance adds to its existing ordinance that data centers are permitted as a conditional use in the Industrial District with strict compliance with the applicable performance standards.

If a major traffic impact conditional use is also required, it shall be filed concurrently with this conditional use, and the two shall be heard together as if one application.

Many residents expressed concerns that the proposed structure should be set farther back from property lines.

Township Engineer Brian Bloom explains that increasing the setback distance of the center wouldn't change the sound level at the proposed property line.

Based on the township's calculations, the center would generate about 17 decibels of sound at the property line, which is equivalent to leaves rustling, shared Bloom.

"If we add another 300 feet to the setback line, that building can just generate an additional 80 decibels of sound, which would keep the sound the same at the property line," said Bloom. Residents expressed disapproval when Lighty noted that he removed a provision requiring developers to remove the building if they left and sold their land.

Resident Cori Hockenberry stressed that that was not what was decided on at previous meetings.

Multiple community members said they want the whole structure to go when the developers leave if the data center is built.

Lighty explained that he can't specify that for the data center developers because the zoning ordinance applies to all businesses, both past and future.

Changing that would mean any of those businesses, like Overhead Door, would have to tear down their structures if, for some reason, they sell.

Hockenberry requested that the township's engineer conduct an environmental impact assessment. Lighty said that that is a job for the Department of Environmental Protection.

Hockenberry responded that she does not trust the department to carry out the assessment.

Not all amendments to the ordinance were available by press time.

For more information, visit the Granville Township Board of Supervisors' website at granvilletwp.org.