West Pennsboro Township, Cumberland County
A zoning response in West Pennsboro Township, Cumberland County, where a full rewrite of the zoning ordinance adopted in August 2025 allows data centers only as conditional uses in the Industrial district, with set standards for water, noise and setbacks.
The township worked on a full zoning rewrite with a task force and Michael Baker International from at least January 2024, when it held a public open house. On July 28, 2025 the supervisors unanimously authorized advertising the new ordinance and map. On August 25, 2025 they held hearings and unanimously adopted Ordinance 2025-03 (zoning text) and Ordinance 2025-04 (zoning map), effective September 9, 2025. In early September 2025, Township Manager Larry Barrick told The Sentinel that a resident's concerns about data centers in Loudoun County, Virginia, had prompted the data center rules.
Data centers must use public water and sewer and file a water feasibility study covering wells and streams within 1,000 feet and long-term safe yield; none can be approved if it would harm nearby wells, and SRBC approval is required at 100,000 gallons a day of withdrawal or 20,000 gallons a day of consumptive use.
West Pennsboro TownshipData center noise can't exceed 70 dBA at the property line, measured by an independent expert paid by the applicant, except during power outages.
West Pennsboro TownshipTownship Manager Larry Barrick told The Sentinel that water is a major concern for small townships, and the article said a data center developer here might have to drill a well or draw water from the Conodoguinet Creek.
The Sentinel (via GovTech)Data centers need a 25-acre lot with 150-foot front and rear and 100-foot side setbacks, and buildings can be up to 75 feet tall.
West Pennsboro TownshipApplicants should provide an interconnection letter from the electric provider and note any known effects on electric rates for other users.
West Pennsboro TownshipIn 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 →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 →