OLYPHANT & Throop

𝑫𝒂𝒕𝒂 𝑪𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒔, 𝑾𝒂𝒓𝒆𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒔𝒆𝒔, 𝑫𝒆𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏, 𝑬𝒏𝒗𝒊𝒓𝒐𝒏𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒂𝒍 𝑪𝒐𝒏𝒔𝒆𝒓𝒗𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝑳𝒂𝒏𝒅, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑭𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕 𝒕𝒐 𝑷𝒓𝒐𝒕𝒆𝒄𝒕 𝑶𝒖𝒓 𝑪𝒐𝒎𝒎𝒖𝒏𝒊𝒕𝒊𝒆𝒔

Two neighboring communities in Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania, are facing decisions that could permanently transform their landscapes. Olyphant and Throop, already surrounded by industrial activity, are now at the center of controversial proposals involving massive data centers, warehouses, electrical infrastructure, and the potential loss of hundreds of acres of green space.

The developments are concentrated around the Triboro Industrial Park and Marshwood Road corridor, near the Keystone Sanitary Landfill. Although Olyphant and Throop are separate municipalities with separate zoning regulations, the environmental consequences of large-scale development will not stop at the borough line.

For residents, this fight is about more than opposing buildings. It is about protecting the remaining natural landscape, demanding transparency from local government, preserving public participation, and ensuring that private development does not come at the expense of public health, safety, and environmental protection.

On the Olyphant side of Marshwood Road, a major industrial development has become the focus of a heated battle over data centers.

The property is associated with Charles DeNaples and Triboro Commerce Park LLC, while ERCOR Triboro LLC and the Sansone Group are involved in the proposed data center development.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗶𝘁𝗲 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗽𝗿𝗲𝘃𝗶𝗼𝘂𝘀𝗹𝘆 𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗱 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗙𝗢𝗨𝗥 𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗵𝗼𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝗯𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗱𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗹𝗼𝗽𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲𝗱 𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘄𝗮𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗦𝗘𝗩𝗘𝗡 𝗹𝗮𝗿𝗴𝗲 𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗮 𝗰𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗯𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀 𝗶𝗻𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗱, 𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗹𝘂𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮 𝘀𝘂𝗯𝘀𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻.

These would not be ordinary commercial buildings. Large-scale data centers require substantial electrical infrastructure, cooling equipment, backup power systems, and continuous operations. Depending on their design, they can create significant concerns about noise, energy consumption, water use, emergency response, and the surrounding environment.

Olyphant's controversy involves more than whether data centers should be built. It involves who has the authority to regulate them and whether public review must occur.

In April 2026, Olyphant Borough Council took action concerning its zoning ordinance and the regulation of data centers. The borough pursued a municipal curative amendment process to address concerns that its existing zoning rules could be considered legally exclusionary.

Pennsylvania municipalities generally must provide a reasonable location for lawful land uses, including data centers, but they can establish appropriate zoning restrictions and development standards.

Triboro Commerce Park LLC challenged the borough's zoning actions in court. The dispute resulted in a settlement concerning the borough's approach to regulating data centers.

However, the controversy did not end there.

In June 2026, ERCOR Triboro asked a judge to compel the borough to issue a zoning permit without going through the conditional-use public hearings required by its data center ordinance. Its attorney argued that those hearings would unnecessarily delay construction. 

Think about that: a project approved for warehouses becomes a proposal for data centers and then the developer goes to court seeking to bypass the hearings where residents could question that proposal.

This is one of the central concerns in Olyphant: residents want meaningful public hearings before a development of this magnitude can move forward.

L.C.O.P. and other community advocates have called out Olyphant Council and have asked for stronger, enforceable protections based on the scale of these facilities and their proximity to neighboring municipalities.

Weak regulations in one borough can affect people living in another. A data center operating near the Olyphant/Throop boundary could potentially create noise, lighting, traffic, or other effects beyond Olyphant's municipal limits.

This is why residents are demanding regulations that reflect regional conditions rather than treating each borough as an isolated community.

On the other side of Marshwood Road, Throop is facing a different but closely related battle.

The property involved in the Throop proposals is associated with Theta Land Corporation, linked to Louis DeNaples, and warehouse developer Core5 Industrial Partners.

Throop's situation involves two separate but important zoning issues: a data center overlay and a proposal to expand warehouse and distribution uses within environmentally protected land.

In July 2026, Throop adopted a zoning amendment establishing a 𝗗𝗮𝘁𝗮 𝗖𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗢𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗹𝗮𝘆 𝗗𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗰𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘅𝗶𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗹𝘆 𝟯𝟱𝟭 𝗮𝗰𝗿𝗲𝘀 within land zoned E-1, Environmental Conservation.

An overlay is an additional set of zoning rules placed over an existing zoning district.

In this case, Throop retained the underlying Environmental Conservation classification while establishing an area where data centers could be considered as a conditional use.

In other words, land designated for environmental conservation was given an additional potential industrial use without removing it from its conservation classification.

This decision immediately raised concerns among residents.

Why was one of Throop's remaining areas of environmentally protected land selected for such an intensive use? What environmental studies justified the decision? Were the cumulative effects of existing industrial operations adequately considered?

Although the overlay creates a potential location for data centers, it is important to distinguish zoning permission from actual development approval.

𝗔𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘂𝗽𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗲, 𝗟.𝗖.𝗢.𝗣. 𝗵𝗮𝘀 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗲𝗱 𝗮 𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗮𝗹 𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗮 𝗰𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗱𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗹𝗼𝗽𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗹𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗧𝗵𝗿𝗼𝗼𝗽 𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗹𝗮𝘆

The immediate controversy concerns the zoning permissions created for possible future development, not an approved data center construction plan.

The community organization POWER — Protectors of Water, Wildlife, Environment and Resources has challenged Throop's data center zoning amendment.

The president of POWER has stated, "𝐌𝐲 𝐟𝐨𝐜𝐮𝐬 𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐧𝐨𝐰 𝐢𝐬 𝐠𝐨𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐁𝐨𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡 𝐨𝐟 𝐓𝐡𝐫𝐨𝐨𝐩 𝐢𝐬 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐩𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐩𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐜𝐞 𝐩𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐬, 𝐰𝐡𝐢𝐜𝐡 𝐡𝐚𝐬 𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐨 𝐝𝐨 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐥𝐚𝐰 𝐞𝐧𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐜𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭, 𝐢𝐭 𝐢𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐩𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐜𝐞 𝐩𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐠𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐧 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐭𝐞𝐜𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐡, 𝐬𝐚𝐟𝐞𝐭𝐲, 𝐰𝐞𝐥𝐟𝐚𝐫𝐞, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐚𝐥𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐳𝐞𝐧𝐬, 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐲, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐮𝐛𝐥𝐢𝐜. 𝐓𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐩𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐜𝐞 𝐩𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫 𝐢𝐬 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐠𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐨𝐫 𝐩𝐮𝐭𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐨𝐟𝐟 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐢𝐝𝐞, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐈 𝐜𝐚𝐧'𝐭 𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐰𝐡𝐲 𝐢𝐭'𝐬 𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠"

The challenge also raises broader concerns under Pennsylvania's Environmental Rights Amendment, which recognizes the public's right to clean air, pure water, and preservation of environmental values.

For residents, the question is straightforward: What is the purpose of designating land for environmental conservation if large-scale industrial uses can later be introduced without adequate environmental justification?

Separate from the data center overlay, Theta Land Corporation and Core5 Industrial Partners pursued a 𝘇𝗼𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗺𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘄𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗺𝗶𝘁 𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗵𝗼𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗯𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗳𝗮𝗰𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗘-𝟭 𝗘𝗻𝘃𝗶𝗿𝗼𝗻𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗹 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗗𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗰𝘁.

The original September 15, 2026 warehouse hearing was canceled after the petition was withdrawn. A subsequent Theta Land/Core5 petition appeared on the October 6 Planning Commission agenda.

These should be treated as separate filings until the complete revised petition and its procedural history are confirmed.

Warehouses can involve extensive tree removal, land grading, truck traffic, paved surfaces, lighting, stormwater runoff, and permanent changes to an area's natural character.

But residents have another serious concern: 𝐶𝑜𝑢𝑙𝑑 𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑎𝑝𝑝𝑟𝑜𝑣𝑒𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑒ℎ𝑜𝑢𝑠𝑒𝑠 𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑢𝑎𝑙𝑙𝑦 𝑏𝑒𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑒 𝑎 𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑑𝑎𝑡𝑎 𝑐𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑠?

In other locations, developers have considered adapting industrial buildings or warehouse-oriented properties for data center operations. 𝐴𝑙𝑙 𝑇ℎ𝑟𝑜𝑜𝑝 ℎ𝑎𝑠 𝑡𝑜 𝑑𝑜 𝑖𝑠 𝑙𝑜𝑜𝑘 𝑎𝑐𝑟𝑜𝑠𝑠 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑒𝑡 𝑖𝑛 𝑂𝑙𝑦𝑝ℎ𝑎𝑛𝑡 𝑡𝑜 𝑠𝑒𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑐𝑢𝑟𝑟𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑙𝑦 ℎ𝑎𝑝𝑝𝑒𝑛𝑖𝑛𝑔.

That does not mean Core5 has established plans to convert its proposed Throop warehouses into data centers. Core5 representatives have stated that the warehouse proposal is not for data centers.

Nevertheless, L.C.O.P. believes verbal assurances are not enough.

If the intention is truly to develop warehouses, the borough should establish explicit zoning language confirming that warehouse permission does not authorize data center operations or automatically permit future conversions.

Any subsequent data center use should be subject to the applicable data center zoning, public hearing, environmental review, and permitting requirements.

The borough's July 2026 Planning Commission materials contain important discussions about the warehouse proposal.

Planning consultant Jack Varaly expressed opposition to broadly allowing warehouses throughout the E-1 districts, including through conditional-use permission.

Planning Commission members also questioned the wisdom of opening substantial amounts of conservation land to warehouse development and discussed narrower alternatives.

Questions were raised about why existing industrially zoned land could not be considered and whether a more targeted zoning approach would be appropriate.

These concerns are especially significant because they arose within the borough's own planning process.

L.C.O.P. believes Borough Council should publicly explain how it addresses those recommendations before expanding warehouse permissions throughout environmentally protected land.

Olyphant and Throop may have different zoning ordinances, elected officials, and development applications, but they share the same landscape.

They share air, water resources, roadways, wildlife habitats, and neighboring communities.

A development approved in Olyphant can affect Throop. A development approved in Throop can affect Olyphant, Dunmore, Jessup, and surrounding areas.

Municipal boundaries do not stop sound, runoff, traffic, or air pollutants. This is why L.C.O.P. believes these proposals should not be considered in isolation. Environmental protection must be regional, cooperative, and based on evidence.

The Lackawanna Citizens' Overwatch Project is advocating for stronger public accountability and environmental safeguards in both boroughs.

We are not arguing that communities should never experience economic development. We are arguing that development must be responsible, transparent, scientifically informed, and consistent with the long-term welfare of residents.

The zoning decisions being made today could shape Olyphant, Throop, and the surrounding valley for generations.

Once conservation land is opened to intensive development, future projects may become easier to pursue. Once trees are removed, ecosystems are disrupted, and industrial infrastructure is constructed, some changes may be effectively permanent.

Residents still have opportunities to participate in meetings, request public records, submit written comments, support legal challenges, and demand better decisions from their elected officials.

Do not wait until construction equipment arrives to become involved. Much of the most important decision-making happens long before a building permit is issued.

Attend Borough Council meetings. Follow Planning Commission agendas. Ask questions. Support local community groups. Share accurate information. Encourage your neighbors to participate.

𝑴𝒐𝒔𝒕 𝒊𝒎𝒑𝒐𝒓𝒕𝒂𝒏𝒕𝒍𝒚, 𝒓𝒆𝒎𝒆𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒊𝒔 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒐𝒏𝒍𝒚 𝒂𝒏 𝑶𝒍𝒚𝒑𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒕 𝒊𝒔𝒔𝒖𝒆 𝒐𝒓 𝒂 𝑻𝒉𝒓𝒐𝒐𝒑 𝒊𝒔𝒔𝒖𝒆.

𝑻𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒊𝒔 𝒂 𝑳𝒂𝒄𝒌𝒂𝒘𝒂𝒏𝒏𝒂 𝑪𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒕𝒚 𝒊𝒔𝒔𝒖𝒆. 

𝑻𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒊𝒔 𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒗𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒆𝒚. 

𝑻𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒊𝒔 𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒆𝒏𝒗𝒊𝒓𝒐𝒏𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕. 

𝑻𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒊𝒔 𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒇𝒖𝒕𝒖𝒓𝒆.

𝑨𝒏𝒅 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒕𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒊𝒕 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒓𝒆𝒒𝒖𝒊𝒓𝒆 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒐𝒇 𝒖𝒔.