East Penn Township supervisors unanimously adopted Ordinance 2026-01 on data centers. They said they needed rules on the books quickly so the state could not override them, and promised to strengthen it later. A resident asked them to add Kidder Township's rules on closed-loop cooling and power supply.

June 1, 2026Source

📜 Data center rules · Penn Forest Township

Penn Forest Township supervisors voted 5-0 for Ordinance 1 of 2026, a 45-page curative zoning change for data centers. It creates a Data Center Overlay District of about 500 acres in residential land along Route 903 and Maury Road, owned by Mele Bros. Realty. It sets a 30-acre minimum lot, a 60-foot height limit, and strong rules on wells and water.

March 2, 2026Source

📜 Data center rules · Kidder Township

Kidder Township adopted a data center ordinance. The draft allowed data centers, including crypto mining and server farms, only as a conditional use in the Business/Light Industrial district, on at least 20 acres, with a 500-foot setback and sound studies.

March 2026Source

⚖️ Court case · Penn Forest Township

Mele Bros. Realty filed a challenge saying Penn Forest Township's zoning was invalid because it left out data centers. The company wants to build a data center campus on about 750 acres. The township wrote its new overlay rules in response. A Zoning Hearing Board hearing was set for March 23, 2026.

Feb 2026Source

Find your town

In Pennsylvania, your township, borough or city usually decides where data centers can go.