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Sunnyside Road Data Center (Sunnyside Road Associates, Jessup)

Jessup Borough, Lackawanna County

Sunnyside Road Associates' data center off Sunnyside Road in Jessup, next to the Lackawanna Energy Center power plant, won conditional preliminary land development approval in June 2026, and a zoning board decision on a taller building hasn't been reported.

ContestedMid-sizeTBD/UndisclosedUnknownNEPA
At a glance

The project by the numbers

StatusUnder Review
Building area487,000 sq ft
First announced2025-11-05

Jessup conditionally approved a data center plan beside its power plant

The number that mattersCouncil approved the plan 3-2 on June 3, 2026 with conditions written for a data center, including new will-serve letters from the water, gas and electric utilities.
Developer
Sunnyside Road Associates, LLC (written Sunnyside Road Assoc., LLC and Sunnyside Road, LLC in borough records), the name DEP lists. Its engineer is Rolph A. Graf, PE, of Landcore Engineering Consultants, and the law firm Hourigan, Kluger and Quinn has represented it on the land development plan. Its owners haven't been made public.
Tenant
No tenant or end user has been named.
Current stage
Council conditionally approved the Sunnyside Road, LLC preliminary land development plan 3-2 on June 3, 2026, subject to DEP stormwater approvals, a data center sewer plan, a traffic study and new will-serve letters. The Zoning Hearing Board's hearing on raising the height limit from 50 to 90 feet was continued in March, and we haven't found a decision. Approval is conditioned on DEP approving amendments to the site's NPDES and erosion and sediment control permits.
Decision body
Jessup Borough Council (conditional use and land development approval); Jessup Zoning Hearing Board (variances such as building height); Pennsylvania DEP for amended stormwater and other state permits.
Top issues
Building next to an existing power plant; noise limits and Jessup's 2026 noise ordinance; backup generator emissions and air quality; building height (50 versus 90 feet); stormwater, sewer and traffic changes for a data center; water and power service
Key opponents
No organized opposition group has been reported. Council members Curt Camoni and Robbie Martin voted against the conditional land development approval on June 3, 2026, and residents urged tighter noise limits and an independent sound expert as Jessup rewrote its noise ordinance in summer 2026.
Key supporters
No public supporters beyond the developer have been identified.

How we got here

By Nov. 5, 2025, Jessup's planning commission had received a land development plan from Sunnyside Rd. LLC, and council acknowledged a letter from Hourigan, Kluger and Quinn extending the review period to Feb. 14, 2026. In February 2026 the zoning officer received a zoning compliance application from Sunnyside Road Associates and the zoning board scheduled a data center hearing, which opened March 23 and was continued at the applicant's request. Council held a noise ordinance hearing on May 6 and scheduled another for June 25. On June 3, council conditionally approved the Sunnyside Road, LLC preliminary land development plan 3-2. Council adopted the new noise and vibration ordinance 7-0 on Aug. 25.

What is at stake

Impacts raised and open questions

Air quality

Medium

DEP's map point is about 200 meters from the Lackawanna Energy Center at 1000 Sunnyside Road, an electric generating facility that operates under a Title V air permit.

Jessup Borough

Noise and vibration

Medium

Jessup rewrote its noise and vibration limits in 2026 while the project was pending; a councilman said a developer warned of 'issues' if limits were lowered, and the borough is hiring JMS Acoustics to review the data center's sound studies.

Jessup Borough

Traffic

Low

Council's June 2026 conditional approval requires an updated traffic impact statement for a data center.

Jessup Borough
Timeline

How it has unfolded

  • 2025-11-05Jessup's planning commission reports receiving a land development plan from Sunnyside Rd. LLC, and council acknowledges a request to extend the review to Feb. 14, 2026. Jessup Borough
  • 2026-02-04The zoning officer reports a zoning compliance application, and the zoning board chair says a data center hearing is coming. Jessup Borough
  • 2026-03-23A hearing on raising the data center's height limit from 50 to 90 feet is continued at the applicant's request. FOX56 (WOLF)
  • 2026-05-06Council holds a public hearing on a new noise and vibration amendment to the zoning ordinance. Jessup Borough
  • 2026-06-03Council votes 3-2 to conditionally approve the Sunnyside Road, LLC preliminary land development plan, with conditions written for a data center. Jessup Borough
  • 2026-08-25Council adopts Ordinance No. 4 of 2026 on noise and vibration, 7-0. Jessup Borough
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 →