Local
East Whiteland residents threaten legal challenge to data center approvals
A residents’ group has given East Whiteland Township and the developers of a 1.5-million-square-foot data center notice that it may sue, alleging violations of local land-use rules and raising concerns about water and environmental reviews. Preliminary work has begun at the proposed site, a 79-acre Superfund property near the township border.
East Whiteland residents are threatening a lawsuit over an approved 1.5-million-square-foot data center, arguing that township officials and developers violated local ordinances in advancing the project.
An eight-page notice sent Tuesday to the township, its three-member elected board and developers Green Fig and Sentinel Data Centers says residents will consider legal action unless their concerns are addressed “immediately and substantially.” The notice was also published by East Whiteland United, a community group opposing the project.
The residents’ claims include that Aqua America has said it cannot meet the data center’s water needs, that new permit applications would improperly alter the project’s design, and that its environmental impact assessment was incomplete and “fraudulent.” The notice also alleges the developers sidestepped municipal planning requirements. Those are claims made by the residents; the township manager declined to comment, and the board chair and a developer representative did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The project is planned for the 79-acre Cyprus Foote Mineral Co. property, a Superfund site on the boundary between East and West Whiteland Townships. Township officials granted earlier approvals in 2018 and 2024. The developers later sought to expand and revise the plans, but abandoned those efforts this year after strong community opposition and said they would proceed with the previously approved proposal.
Preliminary construction work has begun, though developers have received two stop-work orders over permitting concerns. Residents’ earlier appeal of the land-use approvals was dismissed by a Chester County judge earlier this year.
Opposition has intensified over the past year, with residents attending township meetings in large numbers and organizing around the development. The project has also become an issue in local politics: residents have pushed to expand the township’s board of supervisors ahead of November’s election.
East Whiteland United retained attorney Philip S. Rosenzweig earlier this month. The group’s notice marks a new legal effort to challenge a project that has already cleared multiple rounds of township review and is now moving toward construction.