NorthPoint’s $10,000-per-household offer fails to win over Pennsylvania township residents

NorthPoint Development has offered a direct cash payment of $10,000 to each of roughly 4,500 households in Hazle Township, Pennsylvania, as it tries to advance its proposed Project Hazelnut data center campus. The company’s revised community benefits package, announced on June 24, totals $165 million, including $45 million for residents, $15 million for education and youth programs, and $105 million for the township over 15 years. Even so, interviews cited by The Wall Street Journal show many locals remain opposed, with some calling the payments a bribe rather than a benefit. The proposed campus would cover about 1,300 acres near Interstate 81 and include as many as 15 buildings plus a substation. The offer also comes after a series of setbacks. Hazle Township supervisors voted 3-0 in November 2025 to reject the land development application after more than 200 residents voiced opposition. A county court upheld that rejection in May 2026, and the case remains on appeal. On June 8, supervisors also approved a 180-day moratorium on data centers. Residents interviewed by The Wall Street Journal and Inside Climate News cited concerns over noise, property values, water use, power costs, and the area’s long history of environmental damage.