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Ordinance response

Lowhill Township Preemptive Zoning (Lehigh)

Lowhill Township, Lehigh County

Lowhill Township adopted a 23-page data center ordinance on April 6, 2026 that allows the use only by conditional use in one overlay district, and it's now advancing a second ordinance that sorts data centers into tiers by power use.

Ordinance responseN/ALV
At a glance

The project by the numbers

StatusOrdinance Response
First announced2026-02-12

Lowhill Township writes detailed data center rules before any developer shows up

The number that mattersEvery data center and its accessory structures must sit at least 500 feet from any property line, and routine generator testing is banned between 9 p.m. and 7 a.m.
Developer
No developer has applied. Township Manager Michael Siegel drafted the ordinance with the township's solicitors at Norris McLaughlin, and the Board of Supervisors adopted it. Siegel said in February 2026 that he'd heard developers were looking at land in the township, but no application has been reported.
Tenant
There's no project or tenant. This entry tracks the township's zoning rules.
Current stage
Ordinance 2026-02 has been in effect since April 6, 2026. A follow-up amendment, Ordinance 2026-05, which sets tiers from home-scale compute systems up to facilities above 50 megawatts, was recommended by the planning commission and authorized for advertising on Sept. 10, 2026. It still needs a public hearing and a final vote.
Decision body
Lowhill Township Board of Supervisors (Chairman Curtis Dietrich, Vice Chairman Michael Divers and Supervisor Jack Iannantuono), with review by the Lowhill Planning Commission and the Lehigh Valley Planning Commission
Top issues
Where data centers can go, a 500-foot setback from every property line, water supply studies and Delaware River Basin Commission approval for big withdrawals, closed-loop cooling, noise studies and generator testing hours, fuel storage, decommissioning bonds, and how to handle small computing units at homes and businesses.
Key opponents
No organized opposition to the ordinance has been reported. Residents who spoke at the April 6 hearing thanked the township for it.
Key supporters
Township Manager Michael Siegel, who says other northern Lehigh County municipalities are using it as a model. The Lehigh Valley Planning Commission praised its hazardous-waste disposal provisions.

How we got here

The township manager presented a draft Digital Infrastructure Facility ordinance on Feb. 12, 2026, and supervisors voted unanimously to send it for review. The Lehigh Valley Planning Commission's committee reviewed it on March 24 alongside Bushkill, Washington and Plainfield townships' proposals. After a public hearing on April 6, supervisors adopted it unanimously as Ordinance 2026-02. At joint meetings on July 9 and Aug. 13 the supervisors and planning commission worked on Ordinance 2026-05, which adds tiers for small distributed computing systems. On Sept. 10 the planning commission recommended it and supervisors authorized advertising it.

What is at stake

Impacts raised and open questions

Noise and vibration

Medium

The ordinance requires a sound study modeling worst-case conditions, including all backup generators running at once, and bans routine generator testing between 9 p.m. and 7 a.m.

Lowhill Township

Water

Medium

Applicants must file a water feasibility study with a one-mile hydrogeological study and a survey of wells and streams within 1,000 feet, show Delaware River Basin Commission approval for withdrawals of 100,000 gallons a day or more, and use closed-loop cooling to the maximum extent feasible.

Lowhill Township

Visual and light

Medium

Data centers and accessory structures must be set back at least 500 feet from any property line, and accessory structures, including rooftop equipment, are capped at 35 feet.

Lowhill Township

Public safety

Medium

Fuel storage must be at least 500 feet from property lines, applicants must file an emergency services coordination plan, and owners must post a bond to remove generators, tanks and batteries if a facility sits idle for 18 months.

Lowhill Township

Energy costs and the grid

Low

Applicants must submit an electrical utility impact study, and any facility designed for 50 megawatts or more is classed as a 'Hyper Digital Infrastructure Facility' that must disclose maximum electrical demand at full build-out.

Lowhill Township
Timeline

How it has unfolded

  • 2026-02-12Supervisors vote unanimously to send the draft Digital Infrastructure Facility ordinance to the township and Lehigh Valley planning commissions. Lowhill Township
  • 2026-03-24The LVPC's comprehensive planning committee reviews Lowhill's proposed ordinance and praises its hazardous-waste provisions. Lehigh Valley Public Media
  • 2026-04-06After a public hearing, supervisors unanimously adopt Ordinance 2026-02 regulating data centers. Lowhill Township
  • 2026-07-09A joint meeting reviews amendments that add tiers for edge computing facilities, distributed compute nodes and home-scale systems. Lowhill Township
  • 2026-08-13Supervisors table the data center amendment, Ordinance 2026-05, to September for clearer wording and power thresholds. Lowhill Township
  • 2026-09-10The planning commission recommends Ordinance 2026-05 and supervisors authorize advertising it for adoption. Lowhill Township
News

Coverage of this project

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 →