Locals are challenging a million-square-foot data center that would be the biggest in California

In April, developers of the massive Imperial Data Center cleared a major hurdle after Imperial County Supervisors approved a plan to combine several tracts of land for the nearly one-million-square-foot facility in rural Southern California.It would be the largest data center in the state; the parent company, Imperial Valley Computer Manufacturing, LLC describes it as a hyperscale facility, “designed exclusively for advanced artificial intelligence and machine learning operations.” Last week, that progress came to a halt when the county board walked back its decision, declaring a 45-day moratorium on data centers and forming a public commission to advise the county on zoning policy for the facilities. Their reversal came after months of backlash, and a more than hour-long public hearing in which residents voiced sharp criticism of the sweeping project and its swift approval.

The developer, Sebastian Rucci, said he’s filing a lawsuit to seek a temporary restraining order against the moratorium today, arguing that the county failed to show a true emergency, explain what harms and impacts it will cause, and what specific concerns residents have raised.

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