Glassworks Data Campus (former Owens-Illinois glass plant, Clarion Borough)
Clarion Borough, Clarion County
Colliers is marketing the old Owens-Illinois glass plant in Clarion Borough as a 100-acre, expandable data center campus, but no developer, tenant or filing has come forward.
The project by the numbers
Former Clarion glass plant marketed as a data center campus with up to 700 MW
- Developer
- Site developed and marketed by the Miles family of companies (Miles Brothers, Terraworks, American Precast), with Colliers as exclusive broker; no data center developer or end user named
- Tenant
- No tenant or buyer named; brochure offers delivery 18 months after a signed letter of intent
- Current stage
- The site is being marketed with conceptual designs, and the listing was updated September 22, 2026, according to a research submission we received. Clarion Borough made data centers a permitted use in the CI district in January 2026. We found no building permit, land development application or county planning review for a data center here.
- Decision body
- Clarion Borough (zoning and building permits) and the Clarion County Planning Commission (land development review)
- Top issues
- Power demand and on-site gas generation, water draw from the Clarion River, noise and screening, and whether the campus extends beyond the borough's CI district
- Key supporters
- Colliers and the Miles family companies as site marketers
How we got here
1941 to 2010: Owens-Illinois runs the Clarion glass plant. 2012: plant demolished. May 2017: state approves $5.29 million in grant and loan funds for redevelopment. June 2018: groundbreaking on the $39 million Glassworks Business Park. January 20, 2026: Clarion Borough adopts Ordinance 2025-851 allowing data centers in the CI district. January 30, 2026: exploreClarion reports on the conceptual Glassworks Data Campus. September 22, 2026: listing updated (from a research submission).
How it has unfolded
- 2017-05-25The state approved a $1.03 million grant and a $4.26 million loan to the Clarion County Industrial Development Authority to redevelop the glass plant site. Office of Senator Scott Hutchinson
- 2018-06-19Work began on the $39 million, 28.5-acre Glassworks Business Park. Penn Business Report
- 2026-01-20The borough held a public hearing on Ordinance 2025-851 to allow data centers in the CI district, where the former glass plant sits. Clarion Borough
- 2026-01-20Council voted 6 to 0 to adopt Ordinance 2025-851, making data centers a permitted use in the CI district. Clarion Borough
- 2026-01-30Local news reported on the conceptual plans for the 100-acre Glassworks Data Campus. exploreClarion
Coverage of this project
- 2026-01-30 exploreClarionIs a Massive Data Center Coming to Clarion? Inside the 'Conceptual' Plans for the 100-Acre Glassworks Data Campus.Local look at the marketed campus concept; we confirmed the headline and date from the outlet's data center topic page but couldn't open the article.
Sources
Know your rights
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 →Take action
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 →