TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — The Tucson City Council voted unanimously to kill Project Blue, a large data center proposed for land near I-10 and Houghton.
Council members cited public opposition to the proposal, and concerns that the project would use far too much water and electricity to be appropriate in Tucson’s fragile desert environment.
Pima County Supervisors approved selling about 290 acres of the land for the project but to move forward Tucson City Council had to agree to annex the land, and to allow Tucson’s water utility to supply water to the project.
Instead of approving those moves, the Council ordered city staff to stop all work with Project Blue developers and instead start work on new regulations to govern any new data centers planned for the city.
For many months Pima County worked on Project Blue under a veil of secrecy. The developers demanded a strict non-disclosure agreement that threatened legal penalties if anyone divulged the name of the companies involved or any details of the project.
The nature of the project was only revealed as the Pima Supervisors vote to approve the land sale was just a few days away.
