According to DCD, a mystery company called Archbald I LLC filed zoning permit applications on October 22 to build two massive data center campuses in Archbald, Pennsylvania. The larger campus would feature 18 data center buildings on 410 acres north of Staback Park, while the smaller campus would host four buildings on 66 acres near the Archbald-Jermyn border. Each building would measure around 150,000 square feet, totaling 3.3 million square feet across all 22 facilities. The proposal comes just as local officials failed to pass new data center regulations that would have restricted where these facilities could be built. If approved, this would add to several other data center projects already proposed in the area.
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<h2 id="pennsylvania-data-center-boom”>Pennsylvania’s Unexpected Tech Transformation
Here’s the thing – Pennsylvania isn’t exactly the first place that comes to mind when you think of major data center hubs. We’re talking about a region better known for its industrial past than its digital future. But suddenly, Lackawanna County is becoming ground zero for what looks like a massive data center land grab.
And it’s not just this latest proposal. The area already has five data center campuses proposed in Archbald alone, plus three more across the county. There’s Project Boson, Project Gravity, Wildcat Ridge – all these code names that sound like something out of a spy movie. If everything gets built, we’re looking at nearly 4.7 million square feet of data center space along Eynon Jermyn Road. That’s absolutely massive for what was until recently a quiet borough.
The Mystery Developer and Local Backlash
So who’s behind Archbald I LLC? Nobody seems to know. And that’s pretty typical in these massive data center deals – companies often use shell entities while they’re securing land and permits. But it raises questions about what kind of operation we’re talking about here. Is this for hyperscale cloud providers? Colocation space? Something else entirely?
The timing is interesting too. This application came right after the borough council held a special meeting to consider adopting data center regulations. And get this – the motion didn’t even get a second, so it never came to a vote. Many locals actually spoke against the ordinance, wanting even stricter rules. Now they’re facing this massive new proposal with basically no regulatory framework in place.
What This Means for the Region
Look, data centers bring jobs and tax revenue, but they also bring massive power demands, water usage for cooling, and serious infrastructure strain. Pennsylvania’s seeing this boom partly because of its proximity to major East Coast markets and relatively affordable power. But can the local grid handle this kind of concentrated development?
Basically, we’re watching a quiet Pennsylvania borough transform into a significant tech infrastructure hub almost overnight. The question isn’t just whether these projects get approved – it’s whether the community and its infrastructure can handle the rapid transformation. And with more proposals likely coming, this is probably just the beginning of a much bigger story.
