South Strabane to hold hearing before data center ordinance vote
South Strabane residents will have an opportunity to comment on a proposed ordinance governing data center development within the township ahead of a scheduled vote on the matter.
The public hearing, which will begin at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday night, will be immediately followed by a special meeting where the township board of supervisors can decide whether to adopt the ordinance or table it for further review and revision.
South Strabane has been riled by public frustration since the fall, when real estate firm JLL listed a 1,400-acre property off Zediker Station Road for sale by CNX Resources as a prime location for a commercial-scale data center project.
Since then, the board has worked to enact a comprehensive update to the township’s zoning ordinance specifying the contours of any potential data center development.
This includes a 1,500-foot setback from any occupied residential structure, a 30-acre minimum lot size and height restrictions, among other regulations.
This ordinance is the centerpiece of a “triumvirate” of related ordinances – data center zoning, noise and dust plus fossil fuel energy generation – that have been under review by township officials since late 2025, according to Solicitor Dennis Makel.
Makel told the township planning commission during a Thursday meeting that once the three ordinances are enacted, South Strabane will have some of the most comprehensive regulations surrounding data center development of any municipality in the commonwealth.
“The priority is that the residents are protected,” Makel said.
Feedback from locals across multiple public meetings has been near-unanimous.
Residents have made “no data centers in South Strabane” signs a common sight throughout the township, and have filled public comment periods during monthly meetings with calls for strict limits on any data center construction.
Some residents have raised concerns about potential increases in light, noise and groundwater pollution due to data centers, saying that the supervisors should prioritize their health and wellbeing over data center developers’ bottom lines.