Boulder City to oppose BLM data center plan

Boulder City officials are preparing to oppose the Bureau of Land Management's (BLM) proposal for an 80-acre data center on federal land within city limits, with the City Council voting to file a notice of appeal before July 27. City Attorney Brittany Walker stated that the BLM's decision to approve the land use change from a solar farm to a data center, initially applied for by Skylar Capital Management (parent company Townsite Solar 2), was a "departure from previous precedent and procedure" as it lacked meaningful engagement with the city and adequate public comment.

Community members have voiced strong opposition, citing concerns about increased water consumption in the desert, energy use, heat, and noise emissions. Hundreds of residents have participated in protests and a Change.org petition gathered over 6,000 signatures. The Boulder City Planning Commission had previously voted 6-1 in May to reject a related data center application for city-owned land from the same developer, recommending against adding data centers to the Land Management Process list due to the need for more regulatory oversight. The city now faces the loss of an estimated $2.3 million in annual revenue that the project would have generated.

U.S. Rep. Dina Titus, D-Nev., has also intervened, sending a letter to BLM directors requesting robust public consultation and transparency for data center permitting processes, highlighting environmental concerns. The article notes similar data center-related discussions in other Nevada communities, including Reno's extended moratorium on new data center approvals and proposals for moratoriums in Nye County and Henderson.