Box Elder County data center opponents to appeal referendum denial
Opponents of the Stratos Project data center in Box Elder County, Utah, have vowed to continue their fight despite the denial of their referendum applications by the county attorney. The B.E.A.R. organization plans to appeal the ruling to Utah's First District Court, arguing the county commission's initial approval was a legislative, not administrative, act subject to voter referendum. The project is still in early stages of permitting and environmental review.
Opponents of the proposed Stratos Project data center in Box Elder County, Utah, continue to resist the development, vowing to appeal an adverse ruling regarding their referendum applications. The Box Elder Accountability Referendum (B.E.A.R.) organization announced plans to take their case to Utah's First District Court after Box Elder County Attorney Stephen R. Hadfield denied their applications on May 28.
B.E.A.R. co-sponsor Brigette Cottam explained that the county attorney determined the referendum applications were not legally referable to voters because they challenged administrative decisions by the Box Elder Commission, rather than legislative ones. However, B.E.A.R. and their lawyers argue that the county commission's resolutions (26-11 and 26-12), which provided initial approval for the project and reshaped land governance, are legislative and therefore subject to referendum under Utah's Election Code, citing the Utah Supreme Court's Baker v. Carlson (2018) ruling.
The multi-billion dollar hyper-scale Stratos Project, spearheaded by Canadian billionaire developer Kevin O’Leary, is planned for the remote Hansel Valley. State Senator Chris Wilson (R-Logan) noted that the project remains in early stages, requiring extensive planning commission review, land-use approvals, infrastructure evaluations, and environmental studies, all subject to public input. Various environmental and advocacy groups, including Friends of the Great Salt Lake and the Center for Biological Diversity, are aligned with B.E.A.R. in their opposition.