ARCHBALD, Pa. — Residents in Lackawanna County may finally get their turn to address local officials directly as marathon hearings over a pair of controversial, multi-billion-dollar data center proposals continue in Archbald Borough. Borough council members are scheduled to convene an eighth hearing at Valley View High School regarding the proposed Wildcat Ridge Data Center Campus. The sprawling development plan seeks permission to build 14 three-story data center buildings and install 588 diesel backup generators across more than 574 mountainside acres situated above Business Route 6. Public comment is expected to open up following hours of technical testimony presented by developers and experts in previous sessions. The hearing begins at 5pm today.
The Wildcat Ridge proposal is part of a broader push that has turned Archbald into a focal point of the regional AI data center expansion. Later in the week, council leaders will gather at the high school auditorium for a fourth conditional use hearing on "Project Green Mountain," a separate proposal requesting approval to construct seven data center facilities east of the Robert P. Casey Highway at the Stavola Quarry site. Facing potential impacts on local power grids, air quality, water supplies, and noise levels, hundreds of local residents have mobilized to demand strict environmental oversight and local zoning protections before any major construction is permitted to proceed. That hearing is Thursday at 5pm also at the Valley View High School.
