This post is part of a series of interviews for our Winter 2025 Ridge & Valley Newsletter. Check out this article for full context and to read our other data center interviews.
Data Center Industry
We also wanted to gain insight into the evolving data center industry—how development decisions are made, what factors drive site selection, and how the industry is responding to infrastructure, environmental, and community considerations—so we reached out to Joel Zemanek at Takanock, the applicant for the proposed 87-acre data center in Strasburg.
Joel Zemanek
Senior Manager of Development
Takanock
Joel: Projects succeed when they align with existing zoning and community plans. At Takanock, we focus on industrially zoned land and work closely with local planning teams to minimize disruption and maximize community benefit. When choosing new locations, we look for sites that balance technical readiness and community fit—strong power, fiber, water, and natural gas infrastructure, ideally within established industrial parks, combined with supportive zoning, an available workforce, and local partners aligned on sustainability goals.
For example, Project Tallmadge is sited in an existing industrial area with robust infrastructure and will incorporate sustainability initiatives designed to increase its positive impact on the community, such as minimizing tree clearing and using natural gas backup generators rather than diesel. Takanock is exploring ways to limit sound impacts and encouraging a ‘near zero water loss’ data center cooling design.
