A proposal in Lower Merion would restrict data centers to a formerly industrial Bala Cynwyd corridor
While municipalities in Pennsylvania can’t legally ban data centers, many are moving to put ordinances on the books that would limit where and how they can operate.
Officials in Lower Merion will consider an ordinance that would restrict the development of data centers to a former industrial corridor in Bala Cynwyd.
The proposal, set to face Lower Merion’s planning commission and building and planning committee next month, would amend Lower Merion’s zoning code to put guardrails on the construction and operation of data centers, which are being built across Pennsylvania.
Lower Merion’s zoning code doesn’t currently define or regulate data centers as a land use, according to a briefing prepared by the township’s building and planning department. Historically, data processing facilities in Lower Merion were zoned under broader office, institutional, utility, and industrial uses.
The proliferation of artificial intelligence, however, has created demand for data centers that far eclipse their predecessors in electrical demand, size, and local impacts, the briefing states, requiring municipalities to put clearer standards on the books.
While local governments in Pennsylvania can’t legally ban data centers, many are moving to write ordinances that limit where and how they can operate. West Conshohocken, Whitemarsh, and Upper Merion passed data center ordinances earlier this year, and Radnor is considering one that would strictly regulate the facilities.
Gov. Josh Shapiro this summer signed an executive order significantly restricting data center development in the commonwealth.
As plans for data centers have proliferated, resident groups have organized against the developments, pushing elected officials to reign in the facilities, sometimes cropping up in their backyards.
There are currently no data center proposals in Lower Merion, said Chris Leswing, the township’s director of building and planning.
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Under Lower Merion’s proposed ordinance, data centers could be approved by special exception in the township’s light industrial zoning district, a small collection of parcels along the Schuylkill River in Bala Cynwyd currently home to Ironworks at Pencoyd Landing and AFC Fitness gym. The zone also includes a handful of buildings off Righters Ferry Road next to the Pencoyd Landing developments.
The facilities would be capped at 60 feet in height and would need to be 1,000 feet away from any residential zoning district. The facilities would be required to use a closed-loop cooling system.
The proposed ordinance also sets requirements for thermal impact mitigation, noise studies, water and wastewater capacity studies, drought response plans, and public engagement, and mandates developers provide a decommissioning plan for safely shutting down and removing all equipment should a data center cease operations.
Lower Merion’s draft ordinance was prepared with the guidance of a data center ordinance guide published jointly by the Montgomery County Planning Commission and Chester County Planning Commission earlier this year.
The ordinance is in early stages and will be reviewed by Lower Merion’s planning commission on Nov. 2 and building and planning committee on Nov. 11, the first steps in a legislative process that will involve committee feedback, public comment, and an eventual vote from the board of commissioners.
Inquirer Lower Merion
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