Mifflinburg moves to set zoning rules for future data centers
Mifflinburg wants zoning rules in place before any data center proposal arrives, with officials eyeing the commercial manufacturing zone and worries over water, power and noise.
The Mifflinburg Borough Planning Commission met Tuesday night and said it intends to draft an ordinance covering data centers inside the borough’s 1.8 square miles. No company has expressed interest in the borough yet.
Commission chair Donald Bowman said the borough should act now because state law does not let municipalities simply ignore a lawful land use. He said the likely home for any future data center would be the commercial manufacturing zone, though no formal decision has been made. Any ordinance would also need to set limits around noise, access to water and electricity, and other conditions that could affect nearby residents and borough services.
About 15 residents and visitors showed up after the agenda spread on social media. The borough was incorporated in 1827 and had 3,485 residents in the 2020 census. Borough council president Beverly Hackenberg said council has not yet been directly involved, but it would have to approve any ordinance the planning commission sends forward. Mifflinburg’s process would then move through the borough’s normal land-use channel before anything could take effect.
The Pennsylvania Department of Community & Economic Development’s 2026 Data Center Planning Toolkit gives local governments authority to decide where and under what conditions data centers are appropriate. Municipalities should weigh infrastructure capacity, fiscal impacts, utility coordination and planning and legal questions before proposals arrive. Planning can guide the location, size and design of facilities to reduce conflicts with neighborhoods and sensitive lands.
The Pennsylvania State Association of Township Supervisors posted data-center resources on March 5 and warned member townships to update zoning ordinances to address the new use. Ferguson Township moved toward restrictions in May, College Township revised its zoning in February, and a proposed Union County campus is in Gregg Township.
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