A controversial proposal to build a 2-million-square-foot AI data center outside Conshohocken has been resubmitted for zoning approval, six months after the same developer was forced to withdraw a nearly identical application over a legal technicality. Main Line developer Brian O'Neill wants to construct the facility on the 66-acre site of the shuttered Cleveland-Cliffs steel mill along the Schuylkill River in Plymouth Township, less than a mile from downtown Conshohocken. The tenant, described as life sciences-related, has not been publicly identified. The proposal has drawn fierce opposition from residents — more than 1,200 have signed a petition against it — who cite concerns over noise, light and air pollution, water usage, and electricity costs. Plymouth Township's zoning hearing board must schedule a public hearing within 60 days to determine whether a data center qualifies as a permitted use in the area's heavy industrial zone. If approved, the project would still face additional review and public meetings through the land development process.
Source: Philadelphia Inquirer; 5/5/2026