East Whiteland voters this November will decide whether they should add more elected officials to represent them, after residents’ staunch opposition to a controversial 1.5 million-square-foot data center project propelled them to petition for a larger board of supervisors.
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In a quick but forceful flurry, residents collected at least 500 signatures to get a question on the Nov. 3 general election ballot asking voters if they want two more elected officials. If the referendum is approved, it would bring the number from three to five members on the board of supervisors.
The impetus for the question has been the township’s handling of a proposed data center project, expected to be constructed at the former 79-acre Cyprus Foote Mineral Co. property, a Superfund site on the line between East and West Whiteland Townships.
The project loomed large as township resident Jessica Larkin collected signatures for the referendum. She had to be “careful to clarify” that the question wasn’t just on the data center, she said.
“It’s connected, though, because this board and the overall township management is all connected to how these projects get pushed through and approved, and I think that the conversations, while it did start with the data center, did kind of just bring us to general approach in the future of the township,” she said.
Board members are elected at-large and serve six year terms. They appoint township staff and members of the boards and commissions within the township, plus hear conditional use applications, levy taxes, and more.
In a letter to fellow residents, Larkin wrote that “a township the size of East Whiteland would benefit from having five supervisors.”
“A larger board has the potential to provide a broader range of perspectives, more balanced representation, and additional voices to help guide decisions affecting our growing community,” the letter continued.
The township and board chairman did not immediately respond to a request seeking comment on the ballot question and its impetus.
The project, which secured early approvals from township leadership in 2018 and 2024, stoked renewed ire from residents when its developers, Green Fig LLC and Sentinel Data Centers, requested to expand the project earlier this year. (That has ultimately changed shape several times.)
The community turned out in large numbers to oppose the data center’s expansion — and mere existence. They made lawn signs and posters, spoke for hours during public comment, protested outside meetings, and showed up in such large numbers that even shut meetings down. Alongside other residents opposing projects in their communities, they traveled to Harrisburg to call on Gov. Josh Shapiro and lawmakers to institute a moratorium on data center construction.
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Earlier this week, as opposition to the projects has increased among Pennsylvanians, Shapiro signed a sweeping executive order to require that local approval for projects receive state permits, which could block many developments from moving forward.
Larkin, 44, a resident of the township for more than a decade, lives about a mile away from the planned data center. She started attending meetings on the proposal and it was “just eye-opening to see how the process worked, and to learn how these projects get approved.”
“Ultimately, after attending several meetings and watching residents passionately oppose the project, it felt like we could use a little bit more representation,” she said.
Along with a team of other residents, Larkin, in less than two weeks, collected enough signatures to meet the county’s early August deadline to put the referendum on the ballot.
For local elected officials, data center projects have proven to be thorny. They hesitate to vote the projects down immediately. In the absence of state leadership earlier this year, a smattering of municipalities have, in recent months, charged township staff to pen ordinances to get ahead of any proposed projects so they have some level of control over where they go.
In East Whiteland, construction of the data center remains fraught, with concerns of construction unfolding on a contaminated parcel prompting a temporary work stoppage and a currently pending request to make changes to the plans.
Even if it’s grown beyond just the data center, Larkin hopes residents see the need for more elected officials.
“There’s close to 15,000 residents, and there’s so many talented people that spoke up at these meetings,” Larkin said. “And I just would love to see more representation and more involvement at this level and with this consideration in terms of developing our township.”
This suburban content is produced with support from the Leslie Miller and Richard Worley Foundation and The Lenfest Institute for Journalism. Editorial content is created independently of the project donors. Gifts to support The Inquirer’s high-impact journalism can be made at inquirer.com/donate. A list of Lenfest Institute donors can be found at lenfestinstitute.org/supporters.
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