Voters in the southern California city of Monterey Park, near Los Angeles, voted in a referendum to ban the construction of data centers used to power artificial intelligence (AI). Among local residents, 86.38% supported this decision, which was the first of its kind in the United States.
The Monterey Park City Council voted unanimously in March to submit an initiative known as Measure NDC to a referendum on June 2 Election Day. It was aimed at a complete ban on the construction of data centers within the city. According to city officials, the initiative “changes the city's general plan and land use system” by introducing a citywide ban.
The ballot measure stated that the purpose of the ban was to “protect air quality, drinking water resources and public health by preventing impacts on electricity and water rates.” At the same time, it was also stated that only voters themselves would be able to lift the ban, if supported in a referendum.
As the city said after the vote, the community “made history through the power of community,” and Monterey Park became “the first city in the country” to permanently ban the construction of such projects. The community of about 60,000 people is located in the San Gabriel Valley, about 8 miles (13 kilometers) east of downtown Los Angeles. Some other U.S. municipalities have previously enacted moratoriums on such projects, but not permanent bans.
In late 2024, HMC StratCap purchased a vacant office complex in Monterey Park for $39 million, The Los Angeles Times reported at the time. The developer proposed constructing a data center building that would also house several backup diesel generators and a 24,000-foot (2,200 m²) electrical substation.
Then in 2025, members of nearby communities began protesting the development – local activists pushed for a complete ban and called on city officials to act, saying residents did not want the idea to go ahead, the petition said.
“We don't want a data center built in Monterey Park. No amount of mitigation measures will make this project acceptable,” the document emphasized.
Opponents of data centers argue that such projects create constant noise, raise electricity rates due to the power consumed, do not provide enough well-paying jobs and can exacerbate the problem of a shortage of water needed to cool equipment, writes The New York Times (NYT).
For example, in a report from the United Nations University's Institute for Water, Environment and Health, researchers report that data centers will consume twice as much electricity and water by 2030 as their numbers increase over time due to growing demand for artificial intelligence.
Proponents of the idea, however, argue that data centers are a good source of tax revenue for municipalities, the NYT adds. They believe the facilities create jobs for local people and say concerns about noise pollution and electricity rates are overblown. According to the global catalog of such facilities Data Center Map, there are more than 4,300 such centers in the United States.
In support of data centers, arguments are also made that the further development of AI will make a contribution to the development of various fields – from medicine and astronautics, to programming and security. The Pentagon previously reported a 1,775% year-over-year increase in the use of artificial intelligence by its employees, and Nvidia and Microsoft are preparing personal computers with embedded AI agents.
