Elizabeth Township, Allegheny County
A Bucks County developer has an option to buy a 549-acre former landfill by the Youghiogheny River and wants to put a data center campus and gas power plant there. Nothing has been filed yet, and the local state representative now opposes it.
On June 11 and July 27, 2026, Hendricks emailed township officials site maps, including a full-build concept and one that pulled buildings back from the Rolling Hills Village manufactured home community. He signed an option agreement to buy the property on June 19, 2026, according to county records. A township committee met with him for about an hour on July 9 and again briefly on July 27, when it asked him to present the idea to the public instead, according to Commissioner Adam Musisko. Commission President Josh Walls told the public about the approach at the Monday, Sept. 14, 2026 commission meeting. On Sept. 29 the township posted notice of an informational town hall. On Oct. 5, Pittsburgh's Public Source published the email records showing plans for 11 to 28 buildings and a 1-gigawatt gas plant, and that night commissioners approved holding the town hall at the middle school while Rep. Kuzma said he would side with the majority of residents. At the Oct. 13 town hall at Elizabeth Forward Middle School, Hendricks described about 20 buildings and took moderated questions, and afterward Rep. Kuzma said he opposes the project.
Plans call for a 1-gigawatt combined cycle natural gas plant on site. Alison Steele of the Environmental Health Project said an expansion of data centers means an expansion of the gas industry, and she pointed to health risks linked to living near fracking.
Pittsburgh's Public SourceThe buildings would be about 2,000 feet from the Rolling Hills Village manufactured home community. Hendricks says noise won't exceed anything that exists today; the Environmental Health Project raised concerns about a constant low-frequency hum.
Pittsburgh's Public SourceHendricks couldn't give water use numbers. He says it would use less water than typical factories and could come from any number of sources, including trucks.
Pittsburgh's Public SourceThe site is a former landfill, described as a former U.S. Steel landfill. Hendricks says about 220 of its 549 acres are not contaminated.
Pittsburgh's Public SourceNeighbors closest to the site told the Oct. 13 town hall they expect falling home values and years of construction noise. Hendricks said buildings would be about 2,000 feet from manufactured housing, but residents said homes across the river are about 1,000 feet from the site.
Mon Valley IndependentA June email from Hendricks projected 225 permanent jobs for a 12-building layout with the gas plant, plus hundreds of construction jobs.
Pittsburgh's Public SourceLeaders: Scott Taylor, president
Tactics: Petition (a member says 350 residents have signed); hosting an Oct. 29, 2026 town hall with an expert panel; public comment.
Local environmental group originally formed to oppose a power plant once planned for the same site. It also led opposition to an EQT six-well gas project in the township. The 350 signatures figure was reported by a member who is also a Food & Water Watch organizer; no online petition link was found.
Leaders: Megan McDonough, Pennsylvania state director
Tactics: Questioning the developer at the town hall; local organizing through a member of Protect Elizabeth Township
Its state director pressed Hendricks on how much public opposition it would take for him to walk away.
In Pennsylvania, the local zoning ordinance sets the route. A conditional use is decided by the elected governing body (supervisors, commissioners or council). A special exception or variance, and an appeal of a zoning officer’s decision, go to the Zoning Hearing Board. Each is a public hearing on a record: affected neighbors can ask for party status, cross-examine witnesses, and appeal. Municipalities can also adopt data center ordinances with enforceable standards.
Know your rights →Organized community opposition is the single most effective check on these projects in Pennsylvania. Show up to hearings, submit comment when it is taken, support legal and expert-witness costs, and press your municipality for a real ordinance. Pennsylvania municipalities cannot simply freeze applications, but a curative amendment under the Planning Code gives them a defined window to fix a defective ordinance.
How communities push back →