NorthPoint Development assembled 1,283 acres around the planned PPL Tomhicken substation in Hazle Township, Luzerne County, and proposed fifteen data centre buildings, four ancillary buildings and a substation and switchyard on it, leaving 1,100 acres as open space. Hazle Township's supervisors denied the land development application 3-0 on 14 November 2025, a Luzerne County judge upheld that denial in May 2026, and the township adopted a six-month moratorium on data centre development on 8 June 2026. The build schedule the developer published - five buildings by the fourth quarter of 2026, three more in early 2028 and the last seven in mid-2029 - rests on approvals that have not been granted. NorthPoint has offered a $165 million community benefit package, and cooling is designed to draw no local drinking water. The developer has published no capacity figure.
Facility Specifications
Power & cooling
Cooling
Designed to use no local drinking water for cooling
Refused. The supervisors denied the land development application 3-0 on 14 November 2025 and a Luzerne County judge denied NorthPoint's appeal in May 2026, after which the township adopted a six-month moratorium.
Which utility would serve the Hazleton-area site?
PPL. The land wraps around the planned Tomhicken substation on a proposed PPL line, and the campus was designed as grid-served with generators for standby only.
What has NorthPoint offered Hazle Township residents?
A $165 million package: $45 million in direct grants at $10,000 per eligible household, $15 million of community support and $105 million paid as $7 million a year for fifteen years toward a township police department and reduced trash fees. It becomes payable on the first day a building operates.