Ransom Twp. Rewrites Rules for Data Centers

Ransom Township is updating its zoning laws to regulate data center development, a move residents hope will protect their community. Nearly a year after receiving its first proposal, supervisors are set to discuss an ordinance designed to safeguard the environment and resources. Residents like Ken Cruser and Sheri Lynn Brown support the update, emphasizing the need for measures like decommissioning plans to prevent environmental hazards left behind by departing industries.

The ordinance includes requirements for buffering, air quality, emissions, battery storage, noise, and lighting. Data centers would be permitted only as a conditional use, requiring township approval and adherence to specific conditions. Districts along the Taylor border and the Susquehanna River would have height limits of 40 feet and lot sizes of 8 acres.

This zoning update comes amid legal challenges from Scranton Materials, which proposed a six-data-center campus on its quarry property. The developer filed a curative amendment and a subsequent lawsuit after the township dismissed its zoning change proposal. A Lackawanna County judge recently ruled that a Scranton woman can legally oppose these plans, despite not residing in Ransom Township.

Meanwhile, a separate firm recently purchased 528.6 acres in Ransom Township for a hyperscale data center campus. Lackawanna County is emerging as a hub for data center activity, with more than a dozen proposed campuses, prompting concerns from groups like the Keyser Valley Neighborhood Association regarding potential air and noise pollution.