Hazle Township supervisors voted unanimously Monday night to approve a curative amendment that temporarily invalidates portions of the township’s zoning ordinance for 180 days. The proactive legal maneuver is designed to give local officials a six-month window to completely draft and implement new zoning regulations specifically tailored to data centers and their related infrastructure.
The decision stems from a recent Luzerne County court ruling regarding "Project Hazelnut," a massive, controversial 15-building data center campus proposed for more than 1,200 acres within the township. Supervisors had denied land development approval for the project last year, but a judge ruled last month that the proposal must instead be considered by the township zoning hearing board through the special exception process. Seeking a more structured approach to future developments, township officials are now looking closely at Luzerne County’s model ordinance, which recommends that these large-scale "hyperscale" data centers be constructed at least 2,000 feet away from sensitive locations such as residential homes, schools, hospitals, and churches.
