Patterson, Riverbank hit pause as Valley experts weigh data centers’ tradeoffs

Key Takeaways

Patterson approved a 45-day data center moratorium in July after a developer inquiry.
Riverbank paused data center proposals in September at the former ammo plant site.
Stanislaus State experts say cities must quantify water, power and long-term jobs.
A March 2026 Little Hoover Commission report flagged who pays for grid upgrades.

Megan Thomas did not waste words. "A lot of electricity," the Stanislaus State computer science chair said when asked what a data center needs first.

That blunt answer is why this story matters in Stanislaus and Merced counties. Patterson and Riverbank have already tapped the brakes, and any serious proposal in Turlock or Modesto will have to pencil out power, water and jobs before it sees daylight.

Hard questions, before any ground breaks.

Why cities hit pause

Patterson approved a 45‑day moratorium in July after a developer came knocking, giving the council space to study impacts before opening the door again. Riverbank followed in September with a pause tied to interest at the former Army ammunition plant. Neither city called data centers good or bad. They bought time.

State officials are watching too. In March 2026, the Little Hoover Commission raised alarms about surging electricity demand from data centers and the risk that grid upgrades could be pushed onto existing ratepayers. If a project leans on utility infrastructure outside city control, that agency needs a seat at the table from day one.

A dented Diet Coke sat on the council table during one workshop.

Power and water questions

Thomas said the AI boom has sharply increased computing loads, which means more heat and bigger cooling systems. Where that power comes from, and what it costs to deliver, is the first filter. So is who pays for new lines and substations if they’re needed.

Cooling is the other pressure point. Alison McNally, who teaches geography and environmental resources at Stanislaus State, said Valley cities should ask a plain question first: where would the water come from. Groundwater, surface supplies, reclaimed water, and how much a system can reuse all change the footprint. She urged councils to weigh not just the parcel today but what grows up around it in 10 or 20 years.

Jobs versus promises

Construction jobs can number in the hundreds while a site is built. After opening, the headcount tends to be small compared with the land it takes. Thomas framed the local test this way: "How much water, how much power, how many jobs, and for how long and what kind of pay scales are we talking about?"

She cautioned against conflating a big tech investment with direct gains for residents. As she put it, money going to a startup is not the same as money going to Turlock.

What a moratorium actually does

Charles Kaye‑Essien, an associate professor of public policy at University of the Pacific’s McGeorge School of Law, called it a three-part balancing act: people, environment and economics. A temporary pause gives staff time to test zoning, map where data centers could go, measure water and power capacity, and draft conditions on noise, reuse and who shoulders infrastructure costs.

"The moratorium can be best framed as a first step, not an answer in itself," he said. "If it is a moratorium that a candidate is going for, what is the essence of that?"

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.mercedsunstar.com/news/business/article317459405.html