Indio City Councilmembers established a 45-day moratorium on any data centers within the city, which was in effect Thursday, during a council meeting.
In a council meeting Wednesday, council members unanimously approved an urgency ordinance establishing the moratorium. Although the city does not have any current applications to develop data centers, the moratorium was adopted so city staff can have sufficient time to evaluate and study matters regarding data centers.
The urgency ordinance comes after the city of Coachella’s drew large number of protests from the city’s proposed data center.
“Data centers have caused a huge concern from some of our residents due to the high demand of water use, fossils fuels, potential environmental impacts and public health impacts, Councilmember Oscar Ortiz said in a social media post. Ortiz requested the issue be added to the city’s agenda item for a later date.
The next steps will include a review and policy options during a planning commission meeting on June 24 followed by a discussion with city council on July 15. City officials said staff might develop “very strict regulations for data centers, extending the moratorium, or considering a permanent prohibition on data center uses within the city” during these meetings.