Opponents of The Data Centers project in Newark are claiming their first victory after a letter from the city did not rule whether the site would qualify under city zoning.
The letter to Duffield Associates indicated a power plant would not be a permitted use under the zoning for the district, but added that the plant could also be considered an accessory use.
“Without specifications and concrete proposals from the owners, the city cannot determine whether the power plant qualifies as a permitted accessory use,” the letter from Newark Planning and Development Director Maureen Fenney Roser.
The zoning verification was being sought in relation to an application for an air permit from the state.
Data Centers officials have long said the plant would be built to ensure that the project could operate independent of the electric grid and is not simply a power generation facility. Information from the Data Centers has indicated about 20 percent of the power generated could go on the grid. The plant would also use heat generated by banks of computer servers for generation and other uses.
However, the website No Newark Power Plant contends the projects are separate and therefore not permitted under the zoning code. The group has waged a sophisticated campaign using social media and the web to claim that the plant would rain toxic emissions on the city, present a safety hazard and even form a steam cloud that could envelop the area.
Those claims have been disputed by supporters of the project who see it as a way for the region to tap into the growing need to store data online for decades,
“This is just the first win of the first battle, we, the residents must remain steadfast and continue fighting our fact-based campaign to stop this project,” the website stated.
The Newark City Council has been seeing a barrage of criticism of the project at the comment period during City Council meetings.
The city did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
