Newton Data Center, Newton, New Jersey

The Andover Township Committee banned data centers everywhere in town on May 28, 2026, stopping a planned data center on the 97-acre former Jump Airport site at 248 Stickles Pond Road, outside Newton in Sussex County, New Jersey. National Land Developers LLC, the Pennsylvania company that wants to build there, sued the township in Sussex County Superior Court on July 10, 2026 to overturn the ban. The court has not yet ruled.

The site had sat empty for nearly 13 years before the owner applied in 2024 to build a 650,000 square foot warehouse with 130 loading bays. The Township Committee amended its Route 206 Redevelopment Plan in September 2025 to allow a data center there instead, and in April 2026 raised the height limit for data centers to two stories or 65 feet, according to the developer's lawsuit. Officials said a data center could bring in up to $5 million a year.

At a packed public meeting, a speaker cursed at officials and scuffled with two police officers as he was led out. Mayor Thomas Walsh said afterward: "But we also agree that no project, no money is worth tearing a town at its seams." The committee introduced the township-wide ban on May 12, 2026 and adopted it unanimously on May 28 as Ordinance 2026-13, making data centers a prohibited use in every zone.

Walsh put the lost payment in lieu of taxes at $5 million a year for 30 years, saying: "Many people supported the idea, and many didn't and I'm not about to tear the town apart over money." The Sussex Visibility Brigade, which organized against the project, said: "Make no mistake: we dragged them to this decision."

National Land Developers argues the ban had no valid land use purpose and was adopted without proper notice. "The Township Committee intends to vigorously defend the allegations and has no interest in settling," the mayor and committee said. By August 2026, developers had also sued Montgomery and Monroe townships to overturn their data center bans, among nearly three dozen New Jersey municipalities that have passed bans or restrictions, the New Jersey Monitor reported. Whether the Andover ban stands is now up to the Superior Court in Sussex County.