Fresno council votes 7-0 to start 10-year ban on AI data centers

Key Takeaways

Fresno’s City Council voted 7-0 on Sept. 3 to initiate a 10-year ban on AI and cloud data centers.
Mayor Jerry Dyer co-sponsored the item and said data centers aren’t an appropriate use under current technologies.
The council asked staff to ensure the ban covers current city limits and future annexed land.
The amendment must go to the Airport Land Use Commission and Planning Commission before a final council vote.

A stack of blue speaker cards curled at the edges on the clerk’s desk. By day’s end, the Fresno City Council voted 7-0 to start a 10-year ban on AI and cloud data centers. Councilmember Nick Richardson carried the item, and Mayor Jerry Dyer signed on as a co-sponsor.

The vote matters because it sets a clear direction on a hot issue tied to water, power, and the city’s Southeast Development Area plan. The council didn’t adopt a ban Thursday, but it told staff to write one.

What the council approved

The resolution instructs staff to draft a text amendment to Chapter 15 of the municipal code that defines data centers and prohibits them citywide for 10 years. It also directs staff to return with language the council can adopt after required reviews. The vote was 7-0.

Councilmembers Brandon Vang and Miguel Arias asked for wording to make plain the ban would apply to properties inside city limits and to any land the city later annexes. No final ban yet.

Why backers want a ban

Richardson said residents worry that the Southeast Development Area, known as SEDA, could open the door to data centers. Mayor Dyer backed the pause, saying the use isn’t right for Fresno under current technologies due to land, water and energy demands.

Planning Director Jennifer Clark has told commissioners data centers aren’t currently allowed because the city’s code doesn’t list them as a use. Richardson’s resolution cites a section that, absent a change, could let a planning director approve an unlisted use by determination, which is the loophole he wants closed.

The regional context

Local officials pointed to new and proposed facilities elsewhere in the Valley, including a planned 100‑megawatt project tied to Naval Air Station Lemoore and a recent moratorium in Tulare County. Supporters said a clear city rule helps keep Fresno from being the next test site while the council sorts out SEDA’s financing and infrastructure questions.

What happens next

The draft amendment heads first to the Airport Land Use Commission, then to the Planning Commission, before a final council vote. Dyer said he’s asked staff to continue drafting regulations that define and prohibit data centers in the meantime. A half-empty Diet Dr Pepper sat at one end of the dais.

"Insinuating that SEDA is to build a data center, this gets rid of that conversation," Richardson said.

Central Valley AI is produced by the CVAI Newsdesk team and developed by Kaweah Tech, a regional firm that builds, deploys, and integrates AI solutions for businesses across California's Central Valley.

Source

https://www.fresnobee.com/news/california/article317134658.html