In a decision that drew intense pushback from across southern Berks County, the New Morgan Borough Council voted unanimously on Monday to approve sweeping zoning amendments that open the door for future data center construction. The local governing body moved forward with the measures despite hours of critical testimony from more than 200 area residents who packed into and around the municipal building to voice their opposition.
The approved changes reclassify a designated parcel of land situated along Route 10 from an R-Residential designation to an I-Industrial zone. In addition to the rezoning, council members enacted a specialized data center overlay district at the intersection of Route 10 and Furnace Road, a site directly across from the historic entrance to Joanna Furnace.
The scale of public interest quickly overwhelmed New Morgan Borough Hall, located at 200 Bethlehem Drive. The municipal conference room provided only about a dozen public seats, forcing scores of concerned attendees to crowd into the hallways, fill the lobby, and spill past the front doors into the surrounding parking lot. Multiple attendees voiced frustration over the cramped accommodations, noting that poor acoustics left many outside unable to hear the official discussions, and questioned why the borough had not relocated the proceedings to an adequately sized venue.
The turnout stood in stark contrast to the size of the borough itself. According to 2020 census figures, New Morgan has a total population of just 54 residents. Consequently, the vast majority of the individuals who arrived to testify were residents of neighboring municipalities, primarily Robeson and Caernarvon townships, who argued that an industrial development would inevitably produce regional consequences.
Municipal solicitor Nicole Plank managed the evening’s two back-to-back legislative hearings. The first proceeding addressed the formal amendment to the borough's official zoning map, while the second focused on a standalone regulatory ordinance designed to establish specific development standards for data centers. Both measures were adopted by unanimous council votes immediately following their respective hearings.
Throughout the evening, Plank repeatedly reminded the crowd that no developer has formally submitted an application to build a data center within the borough. She maintained that council was taking a proactive stance by codifying regulations before any prospective company arrives. According to Plank, the adopted ordinance establishes comprehensive baseline criteria covering property setbacks, landscape buffering, noise emissions, electrical demands, and water usage.
Borough Council President Tressie Marroon-Bailey echoed those sentiments, asserting that the creation of the overlay district provides the borough with essential regulatory control over the location and operational parameters of any future data center. Borough officials also pointed out that establishing an industrial corridor offers an opportunity to significantly strengthen New Morgan's local commercial tax base.
Nevertheless, public testimony reflected widespread anxiety regarding the potential strain on local resources and natural ecosystems. Speakers raised a long list of grievances, pointing to potential threats to private residential wells, local streams, and groundwater reserves. Others highlighted the hazards of deforestation, increased stormwater runoff, habitat loss for wildlife, traffic congestion, elevated air and light pollution, rising regional electrical utility costs, continuous industrial noise, and the overall degradation of southern Berks County’s rural landscape.
Agricultural stakeholders in the surrounding area expressed deep alarm over the immense water demands typical of industrial data cooling facilities. Ed Weaver, president of Weaver’s Orchard in adjacent Robeson Township, stated that the stability of the local water supply is his greatest worry. Weaver explained that his commercial agricultural operations depend entirely on five dedicated irrigation wells to sustain crops.
Weaver recounted to the council that when those irrigation wells were initially drilled, several functioned as natural artesian sources. However, over decades of regional use, the underground water levels have receded significantly, dropping by 30 to 40 feet. Weaver emphasized that his family-owned orchard is currently transitioning from its third generation to its fourth, and he pleaded with borough leaders not to enact zoning policies that could jeopardize established, multi-generational businesses.
Environmental advocates also stepped forward to challenge the suitability of the chosen location. Anne-Marie McMahon, president of the Hay Creek Watershed Association, warned that the new overlay sits directly adjacent to the headwaters of Hay Creek. The surrounding 22-square-mile watershed features high-quality cold-water streams, with several sections carrying the state's highest designation as exceptional value waters.
McMahon argued that the environmental safeguards embedded within the new ordinance remain insufficient to protect the delicate aquatic ecosystem from potential water quality and quantity degradation. On behalf of the association, she urged the council to steer large-scale technology infrastructure toward previously developed industrial or commercial brownfield sites rather than clearing intact woodlands. McMahon also recommended that any future data facility be legally required to implement continuous groundwater monitoring and rely on public or recycled water systems for cooling.
Planning critiques were also brought forward by community members who examined the measure alongside regional development standards. Daniel Nugent, a resident of Robeson Township, compared the borough's plan against recommendations issued by the Berks County Planning Commission as well as other surrounding municipal planning boards. While noting he did not hold an absolute opposition to data centers, Nugent maintained that the borough's current language leaves significant gaps.
Specifically, Nugent argued that the approved rules fail to sufficiently regulate low-frequency noise emissions, excessive heat generation, renewable energy procurement, wastewater recycling, and broader buffer setbacks from adjacent properties. He urged borough leaders to pause and allow surrounding communities to offer collaborative input before enacting rules that carry extraterritorial effects.
Public safety preparedness emerged as another major point of contention during the evening's final hearing. State Representative Mark Gillen addressed the council to urge prudence, raising concerns regarding transparency, regional electrical grid capacity, and emergency response capabilities.
Gillen told the council that after consulting with the Pennsylvania state fire commissioner, he learned that no statewide emergency protocols or specialized firefighting tactics for data center blazes have been distributed to local volunteer fire companies. Gillen cautioned that without proper training and specialized procedures in place, the commonwealth and its local first responders remain unprepared to handle high-risk industrial safety emergencies at such facilities.
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