Data centers in Lawrence County, Pennsylvania: 1 project mapped

Imagery: Esri, Maxar

Whether a $15 billion data center campus on an old dynamite plant in Lawrence County can go ahead may turn on a box of plans and three returned checks. Stonebridge of Bethesda, Maryland, through its affiliate S.S. Penn LLC, wants to build 16 data center buildings and a substation on the 569-acre former Powder Mill Works at 3478 Howard Drive and McClelland Avenue, off Route 551, straddling North Beaver and Mahoning townships next to the Hickory Run Energy power plant. American Cyanamid made powders there, including nitroglycerine explosives and dynamite, until 1972, so the land needs remediation first. Stonebridge says Penn Power would supply electricity, promises 3,000 to 4,000 jobs over about six years of building, and may use treated wastewater from the nearby Mahoning sewer plant. Its computing capacity has not been disclosed. DatacenterDynamics describes Stonebridge as a residential and commercial developer that has recently moved into data centers.

Both townships were writing data center rules as the plans arrived. Stonebridge delivered its preliminary plans on June 2, 2026; the zoning officer rejected them because the fee checks were wrong, and a Lawrence County escrow check went back and forth until June 15. Mahoning adopted stricter rules on June 24, with lower noise limits and a conditional-use hearing, after first passing rules in April; North Beaver also tightened noise limits and setbacks. On July 1 S.S. Penn sued both townships in the Lawrence County Court of Common Pleas, arguing its application predates the stricter rules. Stonebridge's lawyer, Shawn Gallagher, told a hearing that under the stricter rules the company might not have a project, WKBN reported. The townships' solicitor, Lou Perrotta, argues that under the pending-ordinance doctrine a developer must comply with rules already reviewed and advertised, even if not yet adopted. Residents gathered 170 signatures against the scheme by mid-July, and an informal citizens' group asked about Stonebridge's record of building large data centers elsewhere. What happens next: the court's ruling on which rules apply, and the Mahoning Township zoning hearing board's decision on Stonebridge's appeal.

Every project above is drawn from public records, filings and local reporting. Each row links to what it is based on. Statuses change, so check the source date before you rely on one. Found something wrong? Write to [email protected] and it gets fixed.