You might call it Nesquehoning’s version of Artemis II.

Last Wednesday, just about two weeks after four astronauts splashed down to end a 10-day spin into space for a lunar flyby, the borough launched a moonshot of its own.

After the latest of hearings, meetings, reviews and discussions, borough council planted a flag in the community’s future when it adopted Ordinance 2026-03, which sets the rules and requirements for any data center proposed in the borough.

For now, it’s a move that effectively sets the course for locals to set rules on where data centers could be built and what interested firms must do to make that happen.

At the same time — if those rules are met — it clears the way for a boost in tax revenue for all three levels of local government.

For the last year or so, Keel Infrastructure, formerly known as Bitfarms Ltd., has been in contact with the borough regarding plans for the Carbon Node East Development — four data center buildings in the industrial zoned area of the Hauto Valley Estates portion of the borough.

To be sure, there are still some details to be worked out.

Keel hasn’t yet received the “go” from the borough to launch the project. There are details like stormwater and drainage work, impact on wetlands and final details that include landscape, lighting and noise mitigation — not to mention the tangle of state permits and clearances.

And so far, Liam Wilson, Keel chief operating officer, has been cooperating fully, pledging full compliance with whatever the borough requires to get the project off the ground.

Perhaps on Wednesday, he offered the fuel needed for that to happen when he estimated the project’s total annual combined property tax commitment at “around $14 million a year.”

No discounts or abatements, either.

That’s in addition to the money Keel is already advancing to the school district and local food pantry.

By itself, the project could provide a generational windfall that could pay for increased municipal services at the local and county levels.

For the Panther Valley School District, it could be out-of-this-world news.

The district would get the biggest chunk of that annual cashflow, somewhere between $8 and $9 million, given the 66-mill tax rate.

It’s money that can make needed repairs like fixing a warped gym floor and a bad roof. It could help fund operations, reduce pressure on the local millage rate and give the district a better shot at maintaining what it has instead of just patching it.

It could boost salaries that might attract more teachers — and keep current ones from leaving for greener pastures.

Money like that is the difference between surviving from year to year and planning ahead. It would help offset the debt of a new building — something the district hopes to do, but just can’t afford in the next few years.

The possibilities are endless.

But a proposed state law could take the wind out of any windfall.

House Bill 2153, proposed by Rep. Jeff Olsommer, a Republican representing parts of Wayne and Pike counties, would limit any new data center revenue to be used only for Homestead/Farmstead exclusions. Districts could not use the money for anything else, like buildings, staffing, debt or millage reduction.

It forces money into a system that’s capped by the state’s Taxpayer Relief Act, also known as Special Session Act 1 of 2006, which says districts can’t offer more than about $800 in exclusions.

In Panther Valley, Act 1 allows about $2.2 million in Homestead relief. It prevents PV — or any other school district — from eliminating property taxes through exclusions.

Olsommer’s proposal forces the entire windfall into the homestead fund, leaving $6.6 million or so legally unusable every year.

The district can’t redirect it or spend it or refund it. It just sits there, locked in a capped system. The money is essentially useless.

Together, the measures aren’t compatible.

Revising Act 1 requires constitutional change. Olsommer’s plan — if successful at all — needs some amendments to free up the money, something that would take a lot of time given the way things move in the state Capitol.

For now, the best deal for Panther Valley would come if things stand pat. Any data center windfall could help reduce taxes up to the homestead limit. Any leftover cash could be spent as school board members see fit — new roofs, new floors, new teachers and new buildings — without a major tax increase for existing property owners, whether homeowners or businesses.

State lawmakers have indicated their support for locals to make decisions on dealing with data centers.

Nesquehoning council took the first step in that direction. The tax windfall trickles down to the county level, and its cash would almost double the borough’s own budget.

Taxpayers can explore on their own how they’d benefit at those levels.

If all goes well, it’s a deal that would put anyone over the moon.

ED SOCHA | tneditor@tnonline.com

Ed Socha is a retired newspaper editor with more than 45 years’ experience in community journalism.

The foregoing opinions do not necessarily reflect the views of the Editorial Board or Times News LLC.