A vote on whether a massive data center can be built in an Allegheny County borough could come before Christmas.
After five additional hours of expert testimony and public comment presented Monday night, the Springdale Borough Council said it will review all the information next week, with the intention to vote Dec. 16 on whether to grant a permit to a proposed data center at the site of a former power plant.
The center, proposed by Allegheny DC Property Company, could draw as much electricity at one time as more than 140,000 average homes.
Harlan Stone, an attorney for Allegheny DC, asked the borough council to vote on whether the plan for the center meets borough requirements and not to vote on whether data centers are good or bad in general.
Attorneys for Allegheny DC called several professionals from the engineering firm Jacobs who worked on the site plan to testify to the impact the center could have on noise, the landscape, and traffic patterns.
Noise was a big topic of questions from council members.
Modeling from Jacobs estimates noise levels to be around 57 db at the property line during everyday operations. That could go up to 75 db during power outages, when all the site’s generators would be running.
Acoustic engineer Mark Bastasch said those figures assume operation during a hot summer day, when cooling will need to be on full blast. He said the center would be quieter at night and in cooler weather.
Asked by council for decibel examples, Bastasch said a typical conversation between two people standing three feet apart would fall between 60 and 65 db.
Council member Jeffrey Hartz noted past borough leaders likely didn’t anticipate constant noise when they wrote ordinances limiting noise in residential areas to 85 decibels. He expressed concern about the effects on wildlife and children with special needs, such as autism, and asked if the modeling accounted for different audio frequencies, not just volume.
Bastasch said their modeling does account for frequency.
Council member Joseph Kern asked whether a prolonged power outage, like what happened during a major storm in April, would mean that the center’s more than 100 generators would be running around the clock for days at 75 db. He said that’s close to the level at which hearing damage could happen.
Project architect Paul D’Onofrio said the generators are meant to give the center time. In the case of a prolonged outage, the center could be shut down, but he said it’s better to have a planned shutdown than a sudden one.
Witnesses said multiple times that the plan before the borough council is still conceptual, and that there are many more decisions to make before the plan becomes final.
Allegheny DC consultant Brian Regli said the company will continue the community engagement process through the center’s final design development.
“The conversation continues until the lights are on,” Regli said.
Regli also said they are open to more noise dampening measures and helping with community improvements, such as trails or park access.
He said any major changes to design would be subject to the borough’s conditional use permit.
During public comment, several residents voiced concerns about electricity and water use, rising bills, pollution from generator use, and noise.
Kailyn Wood said the data center could also hurt the character of the town and scare away couples or families who are looking for a nice place to live.
Wood and her fiancé James Binnix moved to Springdale about three years ago, attracted to what they said is an affordable, cute, and safe neighborhood.
Binnix said he’s worried that environmental issues and spiking utility bills could “cause mass flight from the community,” possibly leaving a ghost town.
“I just don’t want to move. I love Springdale. They say it’s going to revitalize the community, but we think it will deter young couples like us,” Wood said.
Wood said she’s also concerned artificial intelligence is a bubble that will burst, putting the future of the data center — and the property tax revenue it could generate — at risk.
Several people at the meeting expected the council to vote to approve the center’s permit Monday. Wood is hopeful about the council taking time to think about the vote, and said it could lead to residents getting more of a say in the process.
Cindi Renaldi, another Springdale resident, spoke neutrally about the data center, but urged the council to make sure there are safeguards in place.
“Every inch of the way, hold them accountable,” Renaldi said.
