Pittsburg's City Council unanimously approved a 45-day moratorium on new data center development during a council meeting that was briefly halted when demonstrators in the chambers interrupted the proceedings.

Council Members Acknowledge Community Fear After Overflow Chambers Disrupted

Police escorted the protesters out before the meeting resumed with public comment. Councilmember Jelani Killings addressed the unrest directly, saying, "We hear that there's a lot of concern…a lot of fear of what it could mean…for the City of Pittsburg."

The pause applies to the next two phases of the Avaio data center project proposed at the former Delta View Golf Course. The city approved the project's first phase in 2024, and that portion of the development is not affected by the temporary halt.

The moratorium takes effect immediately, and while the council could consider extending the pause before it expires, development on the first phase of the Avaio project remains unaffected for now.

Two Dozen Residents Rally Outside City Hall Over Health and Proximity Concerns

About two dozen demonstrators gathered outside City Hall ahead of the vote, voicing worries about potential health risks and the project's closeness to homes, schools, and a church.

Resident Marta Rodrigues said,

"It's right by a church, it's right by a school, I live in close proximity, I'm worried about the illnesses." Frustration carried into the public comment period, where speakers pressed the council over the project's momentum.

One commenter said, "What part of no don't you understand? I can spell it out for you it's N-O." Another added, "We can build a future without an industrial power plant besides the playground, protect the places where our children grown up."

For the residents who packed the chambers, the temporary pause did not go far enough to stop the controversial project, despite the council's unanimous support for the moratorium.

Proposition 45 Looms Over the Data Center Fight Ahead of Next Week's Election

The local pushback comes days before next week's election, where Proposition 45 has added another layer of controversy to the debate. Opponents of the measure fear it could streamline environmental reviews and make it easier to move certain data center projects forward.

Woody Little of Clean and Healthy California said of the measure, "It guts our environmental and public review…very broad definition of broadband internet projects."

A legal analysis from the California Chamber of Commerce, however, challenges that argument.

According to the analysis, conventional data centers would not qualify under the measure because they do not provide mass-market retail internet access directly to customers.