The Springdale Borough council, in a decisive 5-2 vote last night, approved a conditional use permit for a controversial AI data center at the former Cheswick Generating Station site. The meeting, which was fraught with tension from a community bearing the weight of months of discord, witnessed standing-room-only attendance and a clear display of public disapproval. According to WPXI, longtime resident Wayne Mager voiced a sentiment shared by many when he lamented that the town would become "the eyesore of Pennsylvania."
Residents, speaking at the council meeting where each was afforded a mere three minutes to air their grievances, raised concerns largely around the potential for noise pollution, water usage, and visual aesthetics of the AI data center. Drawing visible agreement from the crowd, speakers asked those who opposed the project to raise their hands, as reported by CBS Pittsburgh. "This is not something we want in our neighborhood," Patrick Zollner told CBS Pittsburgh. "Once that thing goes in, we're done. We will not have peace."
Outside the meeting chambers, frustrations simmered as residents reckoned with the council's authority to shape the community's landscape. Inside, the atmosphere grew contentious, with One resident, in an echoing chamber packed with the aggrieved, dared to question the legitimacy of the council's authority, asking, "I’m wondering why seven people are allowed to make a decision for an entire community," according to WPXI's account. Council members Antoinette Robbins and Jeffrey Hartz were the voices of dissent on the council, with Robbins expressing alarm at the anticipated noise levels and asserting that refusal of the permit might have incited legal retaliation. Robbins told WPXI, “Basically what they’re doing is threatening to sue a little community if they don’t get their own way.”
Some council members, including Dolly Stephens, rationalized their approval as a strategy for forestalling potential lawsuits that could cripple the borough financially. "The community would not survive us being sued," Stephens projected in an interview with CBS Pittsburgh. Admitting to an emotional tide, she added, "No one loves Springdale more than me. I am voting yes to save the community." It's important to note that Springdale’s zoning regulations provided no explicit provisions for data centers, paving the way for this week's council action to grant a conditional permit for what was once a power plant to be reimagined as an AI hub.
The passage of this permit now shifts the momentum to Allegheny DC Property Co., the development firm behind the project, which will proceed to finalize plans with Allegheny County, as WPXI reports. Despite the council's decision, one dejected resident vowed to continue the resistance, stating to WPXI after the vote, "Even if they get it through and they go to build, I guarantee we’ll be out there with picket signs." The full completion of the project's next phases is expected to unfold over the coming months.
