During the November 17th zoning hearing for Brian O’Neill’s proposed data center at the former steel plant at 900 Conshohocken Road in Conshohocken (Plymouth Township), the application was withdrawn. The withdrawal followed a statement by Heather Fine, an attorney for Cleveland-Cliffs, the property owner, that O’Neill does not currently have standing to seek zoning approval.

Initially, O’Neill’s attorney, Edmund Campbell, asked for a continuance to December 15th, hoping to meet with neighbors to review the proposal and address their concerns, such as sound emanating from the proposed data center. Parties to the case, several nearby property owners and tenants, objected to this.

This was the point in the hearing when the attorney for the property owner stated that O’Neill lacked standing because her client had not accepted a signed agreement with red-lined changes that arrived just prior to the hearing. The zoning hearing board went into a recess, and when the hearing recommenced, the application was withdrawn. The below video is qued to the hearing on the data center.

The lack of standing stems from the apparent unsigned agreement between the two parties on the terms for the sale of the property. When a developer seeks to purchase a property for a use that requires zoning, conditional use, or another type of approval, there is often an agreement that outlines the terms of the sale contingent upon the approval being acquired.

MoreThanTheCurve.com began questioning if O’Neill had standing on November 8th. We noticed that the property had been relisted for sale on LoopNet.com the day prior. We contacted the two commercial real estate agents who listed the property and a representative of O’Neill for more information, but did not receive a response.

We also contacted Plymouth Township’s zoning officer on November 10th to find out if the application had been withdrawn, and it was confirmed that it had not.

Now that the application has been withdrawn, if O’Neill and Cleveland-Cliffs sign an agreement, O’Neill can refile the application, and the zoning process restarts.

PA House Bill 502

Related to this, PA House Bill 502, which, if adopted, would amend Title 27 (Environmental Resources) of the Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes and establish the Reliable Energy Siting and Electric Transition Board. A decision by this board would override local municipal zoning and expedite the approval of energy-generating facilities.

One of the co-sponsors of this bill is State Representative Greg Scott (D), who represents Plymouth Township, Norristown, and Conshohocken. We inquired with his office about whether the proposed data center would qualify if this bill were to become law. While the data center doesn’t generate electricity itself, O’Neill has discussed the ability of the backup generator system (needed to safeguard the facility) to be connected to the grid and provide energy. Scott did not provide a response.

Photo: Submitted