Spokane City Council vote on data centers postponed
The Spokane City Council postponed a vote on a proposed emergency moratorium for new data centers following significant public backlash. Despite the postponement, many residents voiced environmental and infrastructural concerns. The council plans to re-agenda the moratorium vote for the following week.
The Spokane City Council's proposed emergency moratorium on new data centers in the city has been put on hold. The council initially pulled the vote from last night's agenda before the meeting commenced, following public backlash and Avista's decision last week to pause negotiations with a large data center developer.
Despite the vote cancellation, dozens of community members attended to express their concerns regarding a potential data center. Residents voiced strong opposition, citing worries about resource extraction, the financial burden on taxpayers for infrastructure, and negative environmental consequences, specifically questioning water availability.
While the vote on the one-year ban was canceled yesterday, the Spokane City Council is now planning to re-add the moratorium vote to next week's agenda, indicating that the issue remains active and unresolved.