Hanover Development LP recently withdrew its applications for a 150,000-square-foot data center on a 37-acre Gravel Pike property in Upper Hanover Township. Principal Robert Downs said he had “underestimated the public outcry” and didn’t want the project “hanging over everyone’s head.” The conditional use and zoning validity challenge applications were filed in June, hours before the township was set to adopt a new data center zoning ordinance that would have created roadblocks for the plan, and the proposal, which would have placed a building less than 300 feet behind several homes, drew fierce neighbor opposition. After the developer floated a 163-townhouse alternative in August, he presented a sketch plan for 60 single-family homes, which supervisors rejected as too dense, recommending a cap of 30 homes and voicing concern over a requested residential overlay on the Light Industrial zoning. According to a township newsletter, Downs was directed to submit a rezoning application and a professional services agreement if he wants to pursue residential development. While no votes were taken, the board indicated a willingness to consider it. Township Manager Anne Klepfer noted that residents’ voices likely spared the township a more costly outcome.
Source: Town & Country; 10/14/2026 & Pottstown Mercury; 10/20/2026