Data centers are allowed only by conditional use and only in the Industrial Enterprise zoning district; all underlying district rules also apply, and the stricter rule controls if requirements conflict. permitted by Conditional Use only in the Industrial Enterprise Zoning District

A proposed data center must occupy at least 20 contiguous acres. Minimum tract size: Twenty (20) contiguous acres

Impervious coverage is limited to 75% of the tract, including driveways, parking, and truck loading areas, and gross building coverage is limited to 50%. Maximum impervious coverage maximum gross building coverage

Principal buildings are limited to 55 feet in height. Rooftop mechanical equipment and screening parapets may extend up to 10 feet above the roof deck only if fully screened from public roads and residential properties; another rule also limits roof-mounted mechanical or accessory equipment to 20 feet above the roof edge. maximum principal building height of 55 feet

Data centers must maintain a 300-foot setback from residential uses or residential zoning districts, plus at least a 75-foot front setback and 100-foot side and rear setbacks from nonresidential uses or districts. minimum setback requirement of at least 300 feet

New construction must use specified facade design features, present an office-building appearance, and limit certain metal cladding to 50% of principal facades and 75% of other facades visible from residential uses or zones, unless the materials are textured to look like other materials. facades shall be designed to provide the appearance of an office building

A 30-foot buffer must be maintained in perpetuity where the facility abuts a residential use or zone or a public roadway, including side yards. The standard buffer generally requires a 7.5-foot berm, specified slopes and width, a landscape-architect-designed planting plan, and native evergreen, deciduous, and shrub plantings. A minimum 30-foot buffer area shall be provided

Existing vegetation may replace the standard screening only if approved through the conditional-use decision and maintained permanently; the owner must record an enforceable restrictive covenant, and replacement screening must be installed within one year if the alternative screening is later diminished. record in the Dauphin County Recorder of Deeds Office a restrictive covenant

Cooling systems, substations, transformers, generators, and other accessory equipment must be screened on all sides, with special requirements for rooftop screening. Equipment producing at least 60 dB must be fully enclosed by absorptive noise barriers that reduce sound to below 60 dB at 10 feet beyond the screening. equipment that produces sounds

Utility substations serving a data center must have a man-made opaque screen at least 12 feet high, with access and ventilation for maintenance and operation. visually screened with a man-made, opaque barrier at a minimum of twelve (12) feet

Exterior lighting requires a photometric plan and generally may not produce more than 0.0 footcandles at any abutting lot line, with an exception for access-drive intersections where lighting is required for public safety. Lighting is limited to 35 feet, must be shielded downward, and may not be strobing, colored, roof-mounted on poles, or use LEDs above 3000K. not produce more than 0.0 footcandles at any abutting lot line

A hazardous-materials plan is required. Hazardous-material tanks may not be located within setback lines; storage must comply with Pennsylvania DEP standards and use spill-containment and environmental protections; emergency officials must be notified; and emergency services must receive full site and building access for training and response at least annually or as otherwise determined by the Township emergency management coordinator. A Hazardous Materials Plan shall be required

Before land-development-plan approval, the applicant must obtain written verification from the power provider that grid capacity is available without undermining capacity for normal projected service-area growth and that the utility infrastructure can safely accommodate the facility. Utility boxes and equipment must be co-located and screened, and utility sites must minimize disturbance of steep slopes and natural drainage areas. provide written verification from the applicable power service provider

Loading docks and truck maneuvering areas must be at least 100 feet from public-road rights-of-way and nonresidential property lines, and 300 feet from residential districts or residential property lines. Loading docks and truck maneuvering areas shall be setback not less than

An emergency response plan prepared by a qualified professional is required, must be reviewed and accepted by the local fire company and Township emergency management coordinator, and must address fire suppression, containment, ventilation, evacuation, access, hydrants, responder training, and annual fire-safety inspections. BESS facilities must comply with NFPA 855 or similar standards and use battery-specific fire suppression. submit an Emergency Response Plan

A traffic impact study is required when Article IX of the Township subdivision and land-development ordinance requires one, and it must address both daily traffic and emergency-response access. applicants must submit a traffic impact study

A public-water feasibility study and water-provider will-serve letter are required, and private wells are prohibited. The study must address demand, fire flows, geology, groundwater, wells, contamination, watersheds, septic systems, streams, existing withdrawals, groundwater flow, uses, discharges, and emergency pollution risks. The use of private wells for the property is prohibited

Data centers must meet specific noise limits measured at the property line: no more than 10 dB(A) above predevelopment ambient noise, with maximums of 50 dB(A) during weekday daytime hours and 40 dB(A) during weekday nighttime and weekend hours. The outage exception ends three hours after the outage. maximum decibel level of 50 dB(A) during daytime hours

Independent preliminary, interim, and as-built sound studies are required, including frequency and vibration analysis. The as-built study is due six months after the certificate of occupancy and annually thereafter; the applicant pays for the studies, and must reimburse Township study costs if a Township study finds a violation. an as-built sound study shall be conducted

A vibration/electromagnetic/low-frequency study is required to show no perceptible ground vibration at property lines, no electromagnetic waves extending past a property line, and low frequencies of 20 Hz or less not exceeding 60 dB past a property line. Baseline seismograph readings, FCC Part 15 or equivalent certification, and six-month and annual compliance reports are required; exceedances must be corrected within 60 days. Vibration/Electromagnetic/Low Frequency Study

The applicant must demonstrate approved wastewater-disposal capacity for domestic, cooling, and industrial wastewater. If sanitary sewer is used, the receiving system and treatment plant must be able to handle and treat the additional flow, and a sewer-authority will-serve letter is required. adequate means of wastewater disposal

At least 33% of lawn, open, nonwooded, or pervious space must use a combination of trees, non-turf-grass lawns, and meadow plantings, with all three elements included in each area landscaped under this requirement. 33% of all lawn, open, non-wooded, and/or pervious space

Primary access must be from an arterial or collector street. Access and emergency roads must be at least 26 feet wide, and at least one marked, unobstructed 26-foot fire lane must provide aerial-apparatus access within 15 to 30 feet of the structure. A construction traffic-control plan is required, and access points must display 24-hour emergency contacts. Primary access shall be from an arterial or collector street

A Pennsylvania Natural Heritage Program study and any required state clearance letters, dated within two years of the conditional-use application, must be submitted, and the applicant must follow all measures required to avoid, minimize, or mitigate impacts to protected species and habitat. PNDI receipt dated within two (2) years

A decommissioning plan is required with the land-development submission. It must provide for restoration and removal of unnecessary above-ground facilities and financial assurance through a bond, parent-company guarantee, or irrevocable letter of credit, excluding cash, for at least 125% of estimated net decommissioning cost; the estimate and security must be updated every 10 years. financial assurance

Owners must submit an Annual Operating Compliance Report by March 31 each year covering water use, the updated water study, current sound and vibration/electromagnetic studies, annual fire inspection, hazardous-material mitigation, changes of use, major maintenance and upgrades, and general ordinance compliance. On or before March 31 each year

Parking must be provided at a minimum rate of one space per employee on the peak shift, one space per vehicle stored on site, plus 10 guest spaces. 1 per employee on the peak shift

Data centers are expressly allowed as a conditional use in the Industrial Enterprise zoning district, creating a zoning pathway for approval rather than prohibiting the use.

The ordinance expressly includes co-location facilities, cloud computing centers, enterprise data centers, crypto mining, and high-intensity computer-only centers within the data-center definition, allowing these business models to qualify as the authorized use.

The dimensional standards allow a qualifying facility to occupy at least a 20-acre tract, use up to 75% of the tract as impervious coverage, and use up to 50% for gross building coverage.

The ordinance permits principal buildings up to 55 feet high and allows rooftop mechanical equipment and screening parapets to extend up to 10 feet above the roof deck if fully screened from public roads and residential properties.

The parking requirement is limited to one space per employee on the peak shift, one space per vehicle stored on site, and 10 additional guest spaces.

The Board of Supervisors may approve existing vegetation or other preexisting conditions as an alternative to installing the standard berm and planting screen when they provide the same or greater screening, subject to permanent-maintenance and recording requirements.

The noise limits do not apply during a power outage, although the facility must evaluate and report expected noise when all equipment is operating and the exemption ends three hours after the outage.

The ordinance establishes specific noise, vibration, electromagnetic, lighting, hazardous-material, water, wastewater, access, and emergency-response standards for data centers and BESS facilities, providing defined operating requirements instead of leaving those issues unaddressed under an unspecified use.

Electrical substations and other utility substations necessary to serve a data center or BESS are expressly treated as part of the data-center/BESS use, allowing related power infrastructure to be reviewed as part of the facility.