Withdrawn / Denied

Project Hazelnut

Hazle Township, Luzerne County

NorthPoint Development wanted 15 data center buildings and a substation on nearly 1,300 acres in Luzerne County. Residents in yellow "Project Hazelnot" shirts packed meeting after meeting until the supervisors voted unanimously to pause all data center applications.

Withdrawn / DeniedGreenfieldNEPA

At a glance

The project by the numbers

StatusStopped / Paused

Capacity1000 MW

Site1283 acres

Water (max)2.8 MGD

First announced2024-11

Target online2026 Q4 / 2028 Q1 / 2029 Q2 phases

A coal-country plateau, a 180-day pause, and a community that would not leave the room

The number that mattersGovernor Shapiro announced Project Hazelnut as a Fast Track flagship during a visit to Hazle Township in November 2025. By June 2026 the township had denied it, a judge had rebuked the developer’s appeal, and the supervisors had voted unanimously to pause all data center applications for 180 days.

Developer: NorthPoint Development
Tenant: Undisclosed
Current stage: Paused. Supervisors adopted a municipal curative amendment on June 8, 2026 halting consideration of any new data center application for 180 days while the township writes data center zoning standards.
Decision body: Hazle Township Board of Supervisors and Zoning Hearing Board
Top issues: Nearly 1,300 acres of coal-scarred land; 15 buildings and a substation; Superfund legacy in Luzerne County; water and power demand; a state program that fast-tracked the project before residents knew about it
Key opponents: Hazle Township residents organized as "Project Hazelnot"; Food & Water Watch; State Sen. Katie Muth; neighbors in Kline Township
Key supporters: The developer’s 900-job and $165 million community benefits pitch; the state Fast Track program that introduced the project

Introduced November 2025 under the state Fast Track program. Land development approval denied by supervisors in fall 2025. A Luzerne County judge ruled in May 2026 that the proposal should go through the zoning board via special exception. On June 8 2026 supervisors unanimously adopted a 180-day curative amendment pausing all data center applications.

What is at stake

Documented community impacts

Water

High

2.8 MGD water demand from GHJSA; key denial factor.

Water

High

Up to 2.8 MGD of treated wastewater for cooling (recirculated 3x); NorthPoint funds a pipeline + treatment-plant upgrades so MAHT/GHJSA ratepayers don't pay.

WVIA

Visual and light

High

Proposed 500-kV transmission line drew opposition from Sugarloaf, Black Creek, Nescopeck, and Hollenback townships, communities outside the grant-eligible zone.

Fox56

Environmental justice and site legacy

High

Nearly 1,300 acres on a coal-scarred plateau in a county that already carries three federal Superfund sites. Residents framed the project as reopening old wounds from the coal era.

Inside Climate News / PA Capital-Star

Energy costs and the grid

High

Fifteen data center buildings and a dedicated substation would add substantial load in a region already absorbing rapid data center growth.

Inside Climate News / PA Capital-Star

Traffic

Medium

Existing CAN DO industrial park traffic concerns amplified.

Water

Medium

Residents raised water consumption alongside power draw and land conversion in a landscape with a legacy of polluted streams and waste coal.

Inside Climate News / PA Capital-Star

Noise and vibration

Medium

A campus of this scale with an electrical substation drew noise and quality-of-life objections at packed supervisor meetings.

Inside Climate News / PA Capital-Star

Jobs and tax claims

Low

The developer pitched 900 jobs and later a $165 million community benefits package offered after losing legal rounds, which critics characterized as a bribe.

Inside Climate News / PA Capital-Star

Community response

Who is organizing against it

Hazle Township residents ("Project Hazelnot")

Township · Founded 2025

Leaders: Residents including Joanne Balay and Annie Vinatieri; supported by Food & Water Watch organizer Ginny Marcille-Kerslake

Tactics: Packing supervisor meetings, yellow "Project Hazelnot" shirts with a red slash through the o, sustained public comment, pressure for a municipal moratorium and rewritten zoning, regional rallies with Luzerne and Schuylkill County neighbors

Residents forced a unanimous 180-day pause on June 8, 2026 after the township had already denied land development approval and a judge had rebuked the developer’s appeal. One of the clearest examples in Pennsylvania of sustained local turnout converting into an enforceable municipal pause.

Timeline

How it has unfolded

2025-11-01Project Hazelnut introduced as a flagship of the state Fast Track permitting program during a gubernatorial visit to Hazle Township, pitched as 900 jobs Inside Climate News / PA Capital-Star
2025-11-14Hazle Twp denies Project Hazelnut 5-0
2026-05-20NorthPoint unveils community benefits package (later detailed at $165M incl. $45M resident grants) Times Leader
2026-05-20Judge rules the proposal should be considered by the township zoning board through the special exception process, rebuking the developer’s appeal of the township’s denial FOX56
2026-06-08Supervisors vote unanimously for a municipal curative amendment pausing all new data center applications for 180 days while zoning is rewritten, before a packed room of residents in yellow "Project Hazelnot" shirts Food & Water Watch

Legal record

Filings and legal actions

2025-12-01
Court appeal Luzerne Co Court of Common Pleas · (unassigned)
Appeal of 5-0 Hazle Twp denial of Project Hazelnut.
NorthPoint vs Hazle Twp · Pending
2026-05-01
Land-use appeal (escalated) Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania · (Commonwealth Court)
Appeal of the 3-0 denial of Project Hazelnut; Luzerne County CCP upheld objections, NorthPoint escalated to Commonwealth Court. DEP permitting proceeds in parallel.
NorthPoint (NP Hazleton Holdings 1 LLC) vs Hazle Twp · Pending (after Luzerne CCP upheld denial)
2026-06-08
Municipal cure / MPC challenge Hazle Township Board of Supervisors · n/a
Municipal curative amendment temporarily invalidating portions of the township zoning ordinance for 180 days, pausing all new data center applications while the township writes data center standards and shielding the ordinance from defect challenges during that window.
Hazle Township · Adopted
2026-05-20
Court ruling Luzerne County Court of Common Pleas · n/a
The court rebuked the developer’s appeal of the township’s land development denial and held the proposal should proceed through the zoning board via the special exception process.
NorthPoint Development v. Hazle Township · Decided

News

Coverage of this project

2026-07-02 Inside Climate NewsEchoes of the past in Pennsylvania coal towns’ fight against data centersThe moratorium win, the Project Hazelnot shirts, and the coal-country context
2026-06-24 Fox56Project Hazelnut developers offer $10,000 grants amid ongoing opposition$165M package / Commonwealth Court / transmission opposition
2026-06-09 Food & Water WatchHazle Township, PA pauses data center development for six monthsCurative amendment adopted less than two weeks after the court rebuke
2026-06-09 FOX56Hazle Township approves 180-day curative amendment to pause zoning over data centersTownship counsel on the challenge shield during the 180 days
2026-05-20 Times LeaderHazle Township data center developer announces community development package$30M fund / appeal in CCP
2026-04-01 City & State PAPower plays: The battle over data centers in PAHazle Twp denial / appeal context
2026-02-18 WVIAResidents raise questions as developer describes Hazle Twp. data center plans at DEP hearingDEP hearing / 2.8 MGD water

Sources

Know your rights

In Pennsylvania, a data center on industrial land usually needs a special exception or conditional use, decided by a local Zoning Hearing Board after a public, quasi-judicial hearing. Neighbors can request party status, cross-examine witnesses, and build an evidentiary record. Municipalities can also write 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 ask your municipality for a moratorium and a real ordinance.

How communities push back →