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Contested

Project Scott (Archbald)

Archbald Borough, Lackawanna County

A data center project in Archbald Borough, Lackawanna County, and the end user has not been named publicly.

ContestedBrownfield/mine-spoilNEPA
At a glance

The project by the numbers

StatusOn Appeal
First announced2025
Target onlineTBD

Denied locally, now on appeal in Archbald Borough, Lackawanna County

Tenant
Not disclosed. No end user has been named publicly.
Current stage
The local decision has been appealed and the outcome now rests with the courts.
Decision body
Archbald Borough
Top issues
Residents and officials have focused on what remains in the ground from the site's industrial past, how little has been disclosed about the end user, water use, continuous mechanical noise, and emissions from backup generation.
Key opponents
Stop Archbald Data Centers; ~200 residents in yellow shirts at hearing
Key supporters
Initial council majority (Nov 2025 overlay)

Original app Oct 2025 (22 buildings, two sites); conditional-use denial 5-0 Mar 27 2026; appeals docketed Dec 23 2025 and Apr 24 2026.

What is at stake

Documented community impacts

Environmental justice and site legacy

High

Six data center campuses proposed by five developers would cover roughly 14 percent of Archbald Borough and displace an existing trailer park, according to reporting by Spotlight PA.

Spotlight PA

Energy costs and the grid

High

Lackawanna County has drawn at least a dozen data center proposals since 2024, and County Commissioner Bill Gaughan has written to the Governor and legislative leaders asking for a three year statewide moratorium.

Spotlight PA
Timeline

How it has unfolded

  • 2025-11-24Council votes 5 to 2 to create a Data Center Overlay District. The borough manager told residents a single data center could cover more than 60 percent of the borough budget, and the overflow crowd reacted with anger, accusing council of having decided in advance Resilience / CASSE
  • 2026-03-18Council changes leadership; Louis Rapoch replaces Dave Moran as president DeSmog
  • 2026-03-27Archbald denies Project Scott (Archbald I LLC) 5-0 before ~200 residents DeSmog
  • 2026-03-27Council votes 5 to 0 against the conditional use application for Archbald I LLC and Project Scott, after three council members including the council president resigned amid mounting pressure Resilience / CASSE
  • 2026-04-24Archbald I LLC files land-use appeal in Lackawanna County CCP Steady State / Resilience.org
  • 2026-05-14About 400 residents attend the public meeting on the Wildcat Ridge campus, one of six data center campuses proposed in the borough by five developers, together covering roughly 14 percent of Archbald Scranton Times-Tribune
Legal record

Filings and legal actions

  • 2026-04-24
    Land-use appeal Lackawanna County Court of Common Pleas · (2026, Lackawanna CCP)

    Appeal of the 5-0 conditional-use denial of Project Scott (Mar 27 2026). A separate appeal was also docketed Dec 23 2025.

    Archbald I LLC vs Archbald Borough · Pending
News

Coverage of this project

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 →