Six AI data centers proposed for a small town of 7,000, equal to 51 Walmart Supercenters in 17 square mile area — four out of the seven town council members have resigned from their positions as town fights back
Residents of Archbald, Pennsylvania, a town of 7,000, are opposing plans to build six AI data center campuses comprising 51 warehouse-sized facilities across 14% of the town’s land. The developments have sparked intense local backlash over concerns about utility strain, noise, and light pollution, leading to the resignation of four of the seven town council members. The area's access to a major power line and abundant resources has made it attractive to data center developers despite its quiet post-coal-mining history. One developer has already begun clearing land using a legal loophole, further fueling community tensions.
- ▪Six AI data center campuses with 51 Walmart Supercenter-sized facilities have been proposed in Archbald, Pennsylvania, a town of 7,000 people.
- ▪The data centers would occupy about 14% of the town’s 17-square-mile area, leveraging proximity to a 500-kV power line and available land and water.
- ▪Four out of seven town council members and several planning board members have resigned amid intense community conflict and personal attacks.
- ▪Residents are concerned about impacts on local utilities, noise, light pollution, and rising electricity costs, echoing complaints from other communities near data centers.
- ▪One developer began tree clearing on its property using a legal loophole, prompting criticism from newly elected officials about repeating the town’s industrial past.
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Desktops Servers Six AI data centers proposed for a small town of 7,000, equal to 51 Walmart Supercenters in 17 square mile area — four out of the seven town council members have resigned from their positions as town fights back News By Jowi Morales published 28 April 2026 Archbald residents are putting up a fight against these massive developments. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works. (Image credit: The Washington Post/Getty Images) Copy link Facebook X Whatsapp Reddit Pinterest Flipboard Email Share this article 0 Join the conversation Follow us Add us as a preferred source on Google Newsletter Subscribe to our newsletter The residents of a small town in Pennsylvania are currently amid a fight for their community, as data center developers have applied for permits to build six campuses within the area. The proposed data centers will be built in the town of Archbald, which has a population of just 7,000 people, and will include 51 data warehouses. The Washington Post reports that each of these data warehouses will be about the size of a Walmart Supercenter, all of which would encompass about 14% of the town’s 17-square-mile area. The Archbald town council approved zoning changes that allowed data centers back in 2023, but some of the people in the town of 7,000 have started pushing back on these developments when they started applying for permits in 2025.Archbald used to be at the epicenter of coal mining and transportation in the area. However, it has since turned into a quiet town with the decline of the coal industry in the early 1900s, which is why many were surprised by the developers’ interest in putting up data centers in the area. if (window.sliceHydrationLazy) { window.sliceHydrationLazy("imageGallery-zhfEtJBgqzMiEjXeQ7e57i-YisaZ9g4dIcFlSWA9vS71rsxva9U4TK0", "imageGallery", JSON.stringify({"galleryData":[{"title":"","description":[],"image":{"id":"wHoeNURvU6gRsvKmQrT72G","name":"proposed data centers in Archbald, Pennsylvania","credit":{"text":"(Image credit: {subject})","subject":"<a href=\"https:\/\/trackdatacenters.com\/state\/pennsylvania\">Data Center Proposal Tracker<\/a>"},"src":"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/wHoeNURvU6gRsvKmQrT72G.png","alt":"proposed data centers in Archbald, Pennsylvania","width":1920,"height":1080,"srcSetSizes":[320,480,650,970,1024,1200],"sizes":{"default":"calc(100vw - 40px)","1000px":"970px"},"fullscreen":false,"lazyLoading":true,"addSEOMetaData":false,"removeNativeWidthRestriction":false,"dataBordeauxImageCheckAttr":false,"noCredit":false}},{"title":"","description":[],"image":{"id":"YVpExaFdqiXw5WBRfB8JAH","name":"a map of Archbald, Pennsylvania","credit":{"text":"(Image credit: {subject})","subject":"Google Maps"},"src":"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/YVpExaFdqiXw5WBRfB8JAH.png","alt":"a map of Archbald, Pennsylvania","width":1920,"height":1080,"srcSetSizes":[320,480,650,970,1024,1200],"sizes":{"default":"calc(100vw - 40px)","1000px":"970px"},"fullscreen":false,"lazyLoading":true,"addSEOMetaData":false,"removeNativeWidthRestriction":false,"dataBordeauxImageCheckAttr":false,"noCredit":false}}],"progressText":"Image {currentSlide} of {totalSlides}","viewOriginalText":"View Original"}), "https://slice.vanilla.futurecdn.net/13-4-22/js/imageGallery.js"); } else { console.error('%c FTE ','background: #9306F9; color: #ffffff','no lazy slice hydration function available'); } Image 1 of 2(Image credit: Data Center Proposal…
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