Mesa residents are fighting a Tokyo tech giant’s data center
Mesa residents are actively opposing a proposed 2.2-million-square-foot data center by NTT Data Group Corp due to concerns about water depletion and strain on the energy grid in the drought-stricken Arizona desert. The project's rezoning request, recommended by the Planning Commission, awaits a decision from the Mesa City Council, while activists organize a town hall to further rally against it.
Domonique Carter and Nathan Taylortaft, co-director of East Valley Unite, are among Mesa residents urging the City Council to reject a rezoning request for a massive data center proposed by Tokyo-based NTT Data Group Corp. The company acquired 173 acres for $300 million and plans a seven-building, 2.2-million-square-foot campus with private and Salt River Project substations. Residents express significant concerns about the project's potential to exacerbate water scarcity in the drought-stricken Arizona desert and increase local energy costs, despite NTT's claims of using efficient closed-loop cooling systems.
Mesa's Planning Commission unanimously recommended approval for the project's rezoning and permits, but the City Council has yet to vote, with the request expected to be scheduled for introduction later this summer. The project benefits from being grandfathered under Mesa's stricter data center rules, having submitted its application just before a new ordinance took effect. Activists, including the Party for Socialism and Liberation, are organizing community town halls to rally further opposition against the development.