Data centers are limited to the parcels included in the designated data-center overlay district; the ordinance does not authorize them throughout the township.

A data-center project must have at least 25 acres for each building. The hearing materials state that a 105-acre parcel could have four buildings under the acreage formula.

Each data-center building is limited to a maximum of 300,000 square feet, or approximately seven acres of building coverage.

Structures in the agricultural portion of the overlay district are limited to a maximum height of 55 feet.

Data centers and associated equipment must comply with a 500-foot setback from residential districts or residential uses, as described during the public hearing.

Sites next to residences, residential districts, sensitive receptors, or collector or arterial roads must provide an enhanced vegetative buffer, including specified trees and shrubs, a year-round screen at least 12 feet high within three years, and staggered tree rows.

A landscaping plan and landscape-management plan must be submitted with the land-development application, and financial security must be provided for ongoing buffer maintenance.

Power-serving lines of 34.5 kV or less must be buried to the extent feasible, and burying other power lines is strongly encouraged.

Before a certificate of occupancy, the applicant must provide verification of adequate electrical capacity, properly sized and safe utility equipment, adequate cooling and operating systems, no harmful voltage fluctuations or interference, and a passed third-party electrical inspection.

Public central water and sewer must be provided. If public capacity is insufficient, the applicant must demonstrate alternative arrangements that meet all needs without expanding township services or facilities.

A qualified-professional water-feasibility study is required with the land-development application, including projected demand, nearby wells and streams, safe yield, effects on groundwater and nearby water resources, recycling or discharge methods, and mitigation measures.

Projects withdrawing at least 100,000 gallons per day averaged over 30 days, or using at least 20,000 gallons per day consumptively averaged over 30 days, must provide proof of Susquehanna River Basin Commission review and approval.

Applicants must use the best available cooling technology at the time of site-plan approval, including technology that minimizes potable-water use, achieves the lowest reasonably achievable power-usage effectiveness, minimizes environmental impacts, and complies with noise limits.

Buildings may not have blank exterior walls and must include façade breaks, durable masonry or comparable materials, roofline variation, a differentiated main entrance, and fenestration or similar features covering at least 30 percent of each façade.

Cooling, ventilation, power-generation, emergency-generator, and other regulated equipment must meet setback and buffer requirements; equipment closer to a public road or residential use than the principal building must be enclosed.

Rooftop equipment must be screened on all four sides, set below a specified 45-degree sightline, and set back from the parapet by at least the equipment's height when visible above the parapet.

Data-center lighting must be fully shielded or aimed downward, must not shine into residences, onto public roads, past the illuminated object, or into the sky, and must be adjusted when reasonably requested by the township.

Lighting projected onto residential property may not exceed 0.1 footcandle, while lighting projected onto nonresidential property may not exceed 0.5 initial footcandle.

LED lighting may not exceed a correlated color temperature of 3000K, and luminaires may not be mounted more than 20 feet above the illuminated surface. Roof-mounted pole lighting is prohibited.

Applicants must submit preliminary, interim, as-built, and post-construction sound studies covering exterior rooftop and ground-mounted utility equipment. The post-construction study is due within six months after occupancy and commercial operation, and additional studies may be required later.

Sound-study findings that show violations require prompt remediation, and an updated sound study is required when modeled equipment is changed, modified, or upgraded.

Rooftop and ground-mounted noise-producing equipment must be fully screened, with screening positioned to shield emitted sound.

Truck parking and idling must be at least 300 feet from a residential district or sensitive receptor, although a 200-foot setback is allowed if sound studies demonstrate compliance without counting sound-mitigation measures.

Data centers and associated electrical equipment must keep electromagnetic fields no more than 2 milligauss above ambient background at the nearest property line or any point accessible to the public.

Applicants must submit an electromagnetic-field management plan identifying expected field strengths, mitigation measures, and monitoring protocols; the township may require baseline and post-construction measurements.

Operations may not cause electromagnetic interference with nearby radio, television, telecommunications, or other electronic equipment, and verified interference requires prompt corrective action.

Construction and operations may not exceed a peak particle velocity of 0.2 inches per second at the nearest property line or any off-site structure.

Projects within 1,000 feet of a residence, residential zone, or sensitive receptor require pre-construction and post-construction vibration studies, with the initial post-construction study due within six months after occupancy and commercial operation.

Ground-mounted mechanical, electrical, and power-generation equipment must use anti-vibration foundations, isolation pads, or equivalent devices.

Applicants must submit an environmental-impact assessment addressing air emissions, backup-power and vehicle sources, noise, glare, lighting, stormwater, archaeological resources, comprehensive-plan impacts, alternatives, unavoidable impacts, mitigation, and environmentally sensitive areas.

A Pennsylvania Natural Diversity Inventory report dated within two years of the land-development application, along with required agency clearance letters and compliance measures, is required for threatened, endangered, and special-concern species.

Data-center equipment must be housed in metered, electrically grounded, pre-engineered metal-encased structures with at least a 30-minute internal-fire rating and automatic fire baffles that operate independently of possible electrical failure.

Applicants must demonstrate compliance with applicable NFPA standards, specifically including NFPA 75 and NFPA 76, obtain Fire Chief review, and provide any specialized firefighting equipment required by emergency services.

Facilities must provide adequate in-building emergency-radio coverage based on the York County Emergency Radio System and install enhancement systems when necessary.

All roofs must be solar-ready, and roof areas not covered by solar panels or utilities must use roofing material with a solar reflective index of at least 78 for the life of the building.

A construction transportation plan is required with the land-development application, covering construction routes, vehicle trips, hours, traffic controls, road-condition documentation, road protection, staging, emergency access, agency coordination, and a designated transportation coordinator.

The township may require bonding for township roads affected by construction, and the construction transportation plan may be modified only with Township Engineer approval.

A decommissioning plan must be submitted with the land-development application, updated before final approval, and updated every five years or after a major ownership or operational change.

Decommissioning is triggered after 24 continuous months without data-processing or storage operations unless the owner demonstrates good-faith efforts to resume operations or submits redevelopment plans within that period.

Owners or operators must post financial security equal to 110 percent of the approved decommissioning cost, without credit for salvage value, and maintain and adjust the security every five years or sooner if required.

Decommissioning generally requires removal of structures, equipment, foundations, fencing, impervious surfaces, utility lines, and related infrastructure, with utilities disconnected and capped and the site graded, stabilized, revegetated, and inspected.

Violations are treated as public nuisances, allowing township abatement and recovery of costs and attorneys' fees as a property assessment and municipal lien with a 10 percent penalty.

Each violation may result in a criminal offense, a fine of up to $1,000 plus costs, and up to 90 days' imprisonment for nonpayment; each day of continued violation and each violated section may be charged separately.

The township may seek additional legal or equitable remedies, including court-ordered restraint or abatement, and violations also constitute violations of the township's zoning and subdivision ordinances.

The zoning overlay allows data centers as a permitted, by-right use in the designated overlay district rather than requiring a special-exception or conditional-use approval. If an applicant satisfies the applicable objective requirements, the Township must approve the use.

The by-right process consolidates review into the land-development-plan process, allowing the applicant to submit the project’s full design and supporting information at one stage instead of going through separate zoning and land-development approvals. Public comment and appeals remain available.

The overlay permits a data-center building on a minimum 25-acre parcel and allows additional buildings on larger parcels, subject to the applicable dimensional and setback requirements. The stated maximum building size is 300,000 square feet.

Data Center Accessory Uses may be developed with the data center on the same tract, an assemblage of adjacent parcels, or qualifying off-site easements or parcels. These accessory uses include substations, utility lines, generators, battery storage, cooling equipment, pump stations, water towers, and backup power systems.

The ordinance permits alternative measures when existing public water or sewer capacity is insufficient, provided the applicant demonstrates that all needs can be met without expanding Township services or facilities.

Before occupancy, the applicant may establish utility adequacy through written verification from the service provider or an independent professional engineer. The verification must address supply capacity, equipment sizing, cooling-system adequacy, electrical interference, and final electrical inspection.

The Township may grant a waiver or modification from a chapter requirement when strict compliance would create an exceptional hardship, provided the relief is limited to what is necessary and does not create an unacceptable public-safety threat, nuisance, public expense, or regulatory conflict.

Existing vegetation may be used for required screening instead of new berms and plantings if approved by the Board of Supervisors, providing flexibility in site design and reducing the need for entirely new landscaping.

Required buffer strips may be placed within building setbacks, and stormwater facilities, fences, retaining walls, access drives, sidewalks, curbs, and associated improvements may be located in or near setback areas subject to the ordinance’s screening and effectiveness conditions.

The ordinance requires the Township to use objective review standards for data-center land-development plans and assigns review to the Township engineer, Fire Chief, Planning Commission, Board of Supervisors, and other consultants as needed, creating a defined approval framework rather than an outright prohibition.