Yes, I’m aware of the NY ones, and that there are others in the US. Heck, my alma mater (Louisiana State University) had it. But northern Europe still has more incentives to pursue it than any US location, as they have fewer alternatives....basically coal, nuclear, or natural gas. And given their “green(er)” perspective...coal is dirty, nuclear fission is evil, and natural gas is controlled by Russia...none particularly palatable.
And from a personal perspective, I have ZERO desire to live anywhere the population density is sufficiently high to make “district heating” practical.
As I said on another LENR thread....I’m looking forward to my LENR powered RV, and LENR/CHP “Backwoods Home” (a great magazine, BTW).
If LENR pans out (and I've been disappointed so far), district heating would just be among the first applications. If the rig needs somebody 24/7 to monitor operation, then it's restricted to large-scale operations.
As operation becomes more "hands off", and reliability and safety become proven, then it would evolve to heating office complexes and factories, then hotels, hospitals and apartment buildings, and finally residential homes.