Hazle Township data center developer announces community development package

The developer of a planned data center complex, Project Hazelnut, on a 1,280-acre site near Interstate 81 in Hazle Township, announced details of its community benefit package Tuesday.

It includes the developer’s creation of a $30 million fund that would provide direct financial support to “help offset potential short-term localized utility rate increases” for township residential customers and pay for “other community-directed initiatives.”

Township Supervisor Jim Montone said Tuesday he cannot comment on the announcement by Kansas City, Missouri-based NorthPoint Development due to pending litigation.

NorthPoint is appealing the township’s denial of the land development application for the complex — Project Hazelnut — in the county Court of Common Pleas.

“While the land development application is currently under appeal in the Court of Common Pleas, we are incredibly excited about the transformative opportunity this project represents and the lasting positive impact it could bring to the community,” Brian Stahl, NorthPoint’s executive vice president of development, said in the announcement.

According to the release:

The community benefit initiative is “designed to provide immediate and long-term support to the local community, create high-quality jobs, and ensure the project is a responsible and sustainable partner for years to come.”

NorthPoint cannot directly control the establishment of new energy generation capacity and the updating of regulatory frameworks surrounding utility tariffs, it said.

The direct benefits it announced Tuesday can “help bridge the gap and protect local residents” and “uplift the communities we call home from day one,” Stahl said in the release.

“At NorthPoint Development, we believe that responsible development is a partnership with the community, and partnerships require proactive solutions,” Stahl said. “We know that while the energy market works to bring new generation online and the utility market works to update tariff structures, our communities deserve guarantees now.”

In addition to the $30 million fund, NorthPoint is committed to:

• Partnering with Pennsylvania community colleges, vocational schools, and local trade unions to support specialized training, certification, and apprenticeship programs to ensure the local workforce is fully equipped to secure the high-paying construction, operations, and IT jobs these facilities create.

• Preserving local water supplies by not using local drinking water infrastructure for cooling. Project Hazelnut is designed to use reclaimed wastewater for thermal management, and all infrastructure required for this solution will be paid for by the project, not the community.

• Collaborating with energy providers to “align strategies that aim to make our development a net positive contributor to regional energy stability.”

• Engaging openly and transparently with residents and elected officials through the continued supply of clear information about the development and participation in the “constructive, civil exchange of ideas.”

“This will allow for productive, good-faith dialogue that is focused on collaborative problem-solving rather than rhetoric,” the release said.