Palm Springs Weighs Two-Year Data Center Freeze as Valley Cities Pile On Bans
Palm Springs is considering extending its temporary data center moratorium from 45 days to nearly two years to develop comprehensive regulations. This follows similar actions by other Coachella Valley cities, including Desert Hot Springs and Coachella, which has banned large-scale data centers due to community opposition. Concerns over water and electricity strain are fueling these legislative efforts across California.
Palm Springs city leaders are set to vote next week on whether to extend a temporary ban on new data center applications from 45 days to almost two years, specifically until late August 2028. This extension would provide the Department of Planning Services adequate time to establish definitions and regulations for data centers, which are currently absent from the city's municipal and zoning codes, as the city undertakes a broader zoning code update.
This proposed action in Palm Springs mirrors a broader trend in the Coachella Valley. Desert Hot Springs' City Council already voted unanimously on July 7 to extend its own data center moratorium by 22 months and 15 days, resulting in a two-year pause. Furthermore, the Coachella City Council adopted a measure on August 26 to prohibit large-scale data centers entirely, influenced by community opposition regarding electric grid capacity and water strain.
The anxiety over data centers stems from the significant demand these facilities place on resources, such as water and electricity, which are already scarce in California's desert regions. The California Energy Commission projects the state's data center electricity demand, currently at 2%, will double in the next decade, with high-density AI server farms particularly straining local grids.
These local measures come as Governor Gavin Newsom recently signed a package of seven data center bills into law on September 21. These new state laws mandate developers to disclose projected water and electricity use, fund power grid upgrades, and contribute to wildfire mitigation costs. Public opinion in California, as evidenced by a July survey from the Public Policy Institute of California, strongly opposes data center construction in local communities due to utility strain and electricity costs, leading to moratoria in Los Angeles County and a permanent ban enacted by voters in Monterey Park.