Data centers face a proposed ban on county-owned property, senior housing conditions get a Sept. 24 hearing, and paperless paystubs save $100,000

Top Agenda Items

• Proposed ban would keep data centers off county-owned property
• Reports of deplorable apartments prompt a Sept. 24 hearing on senior housing
• County banks $100,000 by switching to digital paystubs, part of a zero-carbon goal

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Proposed ban would keep data centers off county-owned property 🔗

A majority of Allegheny County Council members have agreed they want the county not to allow data centers on county-owned land.

Members said they are worried about soaring water and electricity use. The legislation, introduced during the Aug. 25 meeting, would prohibit data centers — buildings occupied primarily by computers and related equipment where digital information is processed, transferred and stored — on county-owned property.

It also seeks to prohibit using county-owned property for data center accessory use, which includes generators, water holding and security features.

“The public is concerned about rising electricity rates caused by data centers. They are concerned about the enormous water use that data centers require,” said University of Michigan public policy professor Ben Green, as quoted in the legislation. Green added that a proposed data center near Ann Arbor, estimated to be over 2 million square feet, would use as much energy as one million households.

According to Clean Energy Group, also cited in the legislation, Meta requested 5.6 million gallons of water per day to cool its 10-million-square-foot data center in Louisiana.

If passed, the ordinance would only apply to county-owned property. Under Pennsylvania law, zoning regulations fall to municipalities. Springdale Borough Council voted in favor of a proposed center last year and, earlier this summer, Oakmont Council passed preventative regulations.

 Council referred the legislation to the sustainability committee.

Reports of deplorable apartments prompt a Sept. 24 hearing on senior housing 🔗

The federal Department of Housing and Urban Development controls more than 10,000 housing units, for individuals and families, in Allegheny County.

That includes the agency’s housing assistance program that covers 200 buildings occupied primarily by seniors and disabled people.

Given residents’ repeated accounts of unsafe-to-deplorable conditions in some of those buildings, Council Member DeWitt Walton of the Hill District called for a public hearing on the matter. 

Council previously heard extensive public comment regarding substandard conditions during its March 24 meeting when they voted in favor of tenant protections.

“The challenges that are posed can’t be resolved by county council edict,” Walton said during council’s Aug. 25 meeting. “Ultimately, it is going to take the combined resources of the city, the county, the state and federal government to resolve those issues of public safety and operating practices of those management companies.”

Walton said he’s been working with city council President R. Daniel Lavelle and state Sen. Wayne Fontana in the Hill District. Pittsburgh City Council held a post agenda meeting on one of the negligent apartment management companies in Jan. 2025. Walton has also been working with Wilkinsburg’s borough council and state Sen. Jay Costa. 

The public hearing will be held on Sept. 24 at 5 pm in the county courthouse, and written testimony will be accepted through Oct. 1.

County banks $100,000 by switching to digital paystubs, part of a zero-carbon goal

Allegheny County saved $100,000 in the past year by switching to digital paystubs. 

Director of the Department of Sustainability Brittany Prischak said during council’s July 15 sustainability committee meeting that the move away from paper paystubs earlier this year is part of the county’s zero-carbon emission goal within its climate action plan.

“Our vision that we’ve drafted is an Allegheny County where all people thrive and have a healthy environment because we take climate action together for our neighbors and for future generations,” Prischak said.

Beyond paystubs, Prischak’s department is making the county’s buildings, parks, transportation, and programs more sustainable. For instance, the county has more than 2 million square feet of properties and buildings in operation. “Funding is going to be a huge piece because there is an upfront investment,” she said. “We have a significant number of historical facilities and we’re thinking about what needs to go into them to make sure that they operate efficiently.”

She said other priorities include maintaining the tree canopy in parks, environmentally friendly commuting options for the county’s 6,000 employees, and sustainable procurement practices.

 As part of community engagement, Prischak said they’ve partnered with the Carnegie Museum of Natural History. The museum runs an education program to engage people about climate change without talking about climate change. “It’s worked really well so far,” she said.