The Tucson city council voted unanimously Wednesday against bringing the massive and water-devouring Project Blue data center — tied to tech giant Amazon — into city limits.
After weeks of escalating public outrage over the lack of transparency around Project Blue, the council voted to end negotiations and remove the annexation and development agreement from the upcoming council meeting agenda — a move that effectively shuts down one of the largest development projects ever considered by the city.
“We can all agree this project got off on the wrong foot,” said council member Nikki Lee, who represents Ward 4, where the proposed site is located. “The way that data centers are being built is not sustainable. This is not the type of development that residents of Ward 4 would like.”
Cheering erupted from opponents packed into the council chambers after the vote.
“I had hope but zero expectations,” said Vivek Bharathan Wednesday, breathing a sigh of relief as No Desert Data Center members celebrated and cheered around him. “This is a huge win.”
Bharathan said the group would, in some form, plan to take part in a coming conversation about how to protect Tucson’s natural resources from future data centers. “Some collection of us will be here to carry the work forward.”
That vote doesn’t mean that Project Blue won’t exist in the region in the future.
Beale Infrastructure and Pima County entered into a purchase and sale agreement for 290 acres of unincorporated land in June. The project developer was interested in having that land annexed into Tucson to access city water supplies, but could consider other locations to build outside Tucson city limits.
Moving ahead, city council will begin the process of creating local ordinances to keep large water users accountable and update zoning requirements to address the impacts of possible future data centers. Those ordinances could be up for consideration as soon as the Aug. 19 city council meeting, said Mayor Regina Romero.
“I feel a weight has totally lifted,” said No Desert Data Center artist Maria Renée, who made one of the first visuals for the group. “i also feel a continued responsibility to show up and continue to advocate for policy that puts guard rails on large water users.”
Council members also expressed concerns about how the process of Project Blue took place, echoing a conversation happening at the county level about the use of non-disclosure agreements spurred by concerns around the project.
“I believe that this proposal should have never made it this far,” said Ward 1 council member Lane Santa Cruz. “We need to be the city that says not here, not now and not like this.”
This is a developing story. See all of Arizona Luminaria’s Project Blue coverage.
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