NorthPoint Development proposed a $165 million investment in Hazle Township, Pennsylvania, including a 15-building data center campus called Project Hazelnut. The developer offered $10,000 to eligible households in the township's 4,500 properties if they agreed to the project, with payments contingent on the completion of the first building, according to a letter sent to residents in June, as reported by fortune.com.
Erika Cook and other residents learned about the plans years before the official letter arrived. Despite the financial incentive, many locals largely rejected the offer. The proposal also included funding for the local police department. While NorthPoint and township officials declined to confirm the data center's end-user, residents uncovered through right-to-know requests that Amazon is involved, with records showing communications between Amazon and Pennsylvania’s Department of Community and Economic Development.
The project has sparked opposition among Hazle Township residents, who have mobilized to resist what they describe as eminent domain pressures. The involvement of Amazon, though not publicly acknowledged in the project branding, highlights the growing footprint of major tech companies in rural areas for data infrastructure. This case reflects broader tensions between local communities and large-scale data center developments in the U.S.
The $10,000 payment offer will only be disbursed once the first building of Project Hazelnut is completed, according to the letter viewed by fortune.com. Hazle Township’s response and the project's progress will be closely watched as the development moves forward.