A data center next to a two-state reservoir.

The Town of Orangetown's LIO (Light Industrial/Office) zoning code is a categorical use question. Data centers are not listed as a permitted use. Without a code amendment, no amount of mitigation can cure a categorical use prohibition. The cited zoning review surfaces this as the first finding — before any engineer was hired.

Large-scale lithium-ion battery energy storage systems produce toxic runoff when they burn. The proximity of the proposed 73K SF substation to Lake Tappan Reservoir — drinking water for two states — creates a fire risk scenario that no planning board would accept. This risk is identifiable from site location data and reservoir mapping alone.

Reservoir-adjacent properties trigger wetlands permitting under the Army Corps of Engineers' Section 404 program and New York State's freshwater wetlands law. Both are public databases. RealClear's analysis surfaces the wetlands designation before the county planning board identified it as a basis for denial.

The datacentercrisis.org coalition was visible in public discourse before the hearing. Community risk review monitoring of local news, planning board agendas, and public comment periods detects organized opposition weeks in advance — providing a final off-ramp before the hearing.

Comparable projects in the Hudson Valley and New Jersey had already faced similar opposition over water and fire risk. The Comparable outcomes review surfaces these outcomes before any capital is committed, establishing the baseline denial probability for reservoir-adjacent sites with battery storage components.