During the August 17th meeting of Plymouth Township’s zoning hearing board, the board voted to continue the hearing involving the proposed data center at 900 Conshohocken Road in Conshohocken (Plymouth Township). The vote to establish the next meeting date had been previously announced, but prior to the meeting, it was announced by the township that it would also likely involve a change of venue.

The next hearing date is September 17th at 7:00 p.m. Two previous hearings were held at Colonial Middle School’s 750-seat auditorium because of the expected number of attendees. The vote on August 17th moved the hearings to the township’s meeting room, which seats approximately 200.

In the township announcement released before the meeting, audience noise was affecting the ability to create a record of the hearing and preventing the zoning hearing members from hearing the testimony. If the outcome is appealed, the record of the hearing becomes key, as it is reviewed by the court.

Activists against the data center weren’t happy and questioned why the opportunity for public comment wasn’t offered in connection with the move. While the zoning hearing board didn’t answer, zoning law doesn’t require public comment for procedural matters. Public comment is only permitted after all the testimony is heard. The zoning board and staff were booed as they left the room, and there were calls of “shame.”

Pennsylvania’s Sunshine Act requires that “public” meetings be held, but does not specify room sizes or capacity. Essentially, municipalities have to make “good faith” efforts to accommodate the public, which Plymouth Township did by moving the hearings to the middle school. However, many attendees did not follow the direction to remain quiet, so the hearings had to be moved back to a more controlled environment, which the township claimed was needed to create an accurate record.

You can watch the vote to move the hearing and the crowd reaction below (note we cued the video to the appropriate spot).

Photo – Screengrab from Plymouth Township’s video