A proposed data center expected to cost more than $5 billion ran into intense resistance Thursday night in rural Pennsylvania, where residents packed a town hall meeting and delivered a clear message: They do not want their farmland and community identity sacrificed for a largely undefined mega-project.

During a three-hour informational session at Bangor Area Middle School, residents of Lower Mount Bethel Township voiced overwhelming opposition to the proposed Lower Mount Bethel Tech Center, according to WFMZ-TV. The event was organized by the project's major stakeholders, including Peron Development and J.G. Petrucci Co., rather than township leaders.

Developers described the proposal as a 1.2-gigawatt data center planned for a 450-acre site, with a projected cost exceeding $5 billion. They said the project could generate 500 full-time jobs, hundreds of construction positions, and about $7 million to $8 million in annual tax revenue for the township.

Still, major questions remain unanswered. Developers did not explain how many buildings the campus would include, how large those structures would be, or how they would be laid out across the property. There is also no confirmed end-user for the facility.