California city votes to permanently ban data centers in first-of-its-kind measure

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Voters in aSouthern California cityoverwhelmingly approved a ballot measure that permanently prohibits data centers within city limits. underscoring growing local resistance to the infrastructure powering the artificial intelligence boom.

Monterey Park voters approved Measure NDC by a margin of 10,321 votes to 1,362 votes. or 88.34%, according to official election results fromLos Angeles County.

The measure amends the city's General Plan to prohibit data centers citywide. specifies that the ban will remain in effect unless voters choose to reverse it in a future election.

Signs of protest against data centers pepper front yards in a residential neighborhood in Monterey Park. California, on April 1, 2026.(Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)

The ballot measure was presented to voters as a way toprotect air quality, drinking water resources. public health while preventing potential impacts on electricity and water rates.

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The vote follows months of controversy surrounding a proposed data center project at 1977 Saturn Avenue. which became the focal point of community opposition to large-scale digital infrastructure development.

The project. proposed by Australian investment firm HMC StratCap through its DigiCo platform, would have converted the site into a roughly 218,400-square-foot data center designed to support large-scale computing operations, including artificial intelligence workloads.

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Project documents estimated the facility would require approximately 50 megawatts of peak electrical capacity. generate about $5 million annually in tax revenue for the city.

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Opponents argued the project's electricity demands, water consumption and environmental footprint outweighed its economic benefits. Public opposition to the Saturn Avenue proposal intensified throughout 2024. 2025, eventually prompting city officials to pursue restrictions on future data center development. The project was later withdrawn.

On March 4, the Monterey Park City Council unanimously voted to place the measure on the June ballot.

Following the election, Mayor Elizabeth Yang celebrated the outcome in a Facebook post.

"Landslide win!!" Yang wrote. "Congratulations to our city Monterey Park on making history!!!"

The vote comes as technology companies. developers invest billions of dollars in data centers to support the rapid expansion ofartificial intelligenceand cloud computing services.

On March 4, the Monterey Park City Council unanimously voted to place the measure on the June ballot.(iStock)

That growth has fueled debates across the country over electricity demand, water usage, land-use planning. the economic benefits such facilities can bring to local communities.

Monterey Park officials have described the measure as a historic step in limiting data center development, though broader questions remain about how communities nationwide will balance rising demand for digital infrastructure with local concerns over energy use, resource consumption. quality of life.

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As artificial intelligence adoption accelerates, disputes over where. how data centers are built are likely to remain a key issue for local governments, developers and residents across the United States.

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