Claude Street resident Junell Guarneri addresses Dallas Township supervisors on Tuesday.
Margaret Roarty | Times Leader
Dallas Township Community and Economic Development Director/Township Administrator Joe Moskovitz speaks during Tuesday’s meeting.
Margaret Roarty | Times Leader
Dallas Township Board solicitor Tom Mosca listens to public comment during Tuesday’s meeting.
Margaret Roarty | Times Leader
DALLAS TWP. — Dallas Township residents were hoping a curative amendment regulating data centers would be on the agenda for Tuesday’s meeting, but the supervisors ultimately decided to hold off on that decision, pending legislation at the state level.
Residents met with township officials on July 2 to discuss proposed revisions to the data center ordinance, originally passed on March 18.
In response to Claude Street resident Junell Guarneri, who asked why the amendment was not on the agenda, Joe Moskovitz, community and economic development director/township administrator, said the board was made aware of legislation pending in Harrisburg “possibly as early as this week” for a three-year moratorium on data center development.
However, if there is no movement in Harrisburg, Moskovitz said the board is prepared to call a special meeting next week to consider a curative amendment.
“It’s just a little premature today to do that,” he said.
A curative amendment would allow a limited 180-day moratorium to adopt it, giving the township time to draft a more comprehensive data center ordinance.
Board solicitor Tom Mosca said after the meeting that, even though the township had already passed an ordinance addressing data centers, they believe they can improve it and that it might still be inherently defective, leaving the process of adopting a curative amendment still available to the township.
However, Moskovitz did say that the board of supervisors is concerned about adopting a curative amendment because it would freeze the zoning ordinance for three years, during which no revisions can be made.
If a developer wanted to build something that was not addressed in the ordinance, the board would then have little control over regulating it.
“We’re just concerned that that ties the board’s hands,” he explained.
Pending legislation that could impact Dallas Twp. has to do with three bipartisan bills that recently passed the Pa. House of Representatives addressing data centers and land development, including House Bill 2496, which would give municipalities the option to impose a 180-day pause on data center applications while they update their land-use ordinances.
Rep. Jamie Walsh said at Butler Twp.’s Planning Commission meeting on Monday that the Senate was getting “a lot of pressure” to move the bill, but “whether they do before the end of the summer or before the budget is done or not is really up to them.”
Other bills mentioned at Tuesday’s meeting include House Bill 2533, sponsored by State Rep. Jamie Walsh, which would amend the Pennsylvania Municipalities Planning Code, in zoning, providing for an optional moratorium on filing or consideration of new applications for high-impact data centers, and Senate Bill 1359, which would impose a statewide moratorium on hyperscale data center development and permitting.
According to the Pennsylvania General Assembly, both of those bills are still in committee.
Police regionalization update
Supervisor Bill Grant gave an update on police regionalization efforts at Tuesday’s meeting.
Grant said they are putting together financial data based on next year’s projected police budget to decide whether or not participating in a regionalized police force would be financially viable for the township.
Grant hopes to get those numbers together within the next two weeks.
“Hopefully, by the next meeting in August, we’ll be able to tell you whether we’re gonna move forward or it’s gonna be abandoned,” Grant said.
The departments still involved in police regionalization talks, in addition to Dallas Twp., include Dallas Borough, Kingston Twp., and Lehman Twp.
Jackson Twp. was initially involved but recently chose not to move forward.
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