‘Ban data centers entirely’: Seattle community urges council to keep restrictions ahead of Saturday protest

Seattle leaders heard strong opposition Wednesday to future AI data centers as they consider extending the city’s one-year moratorium.

Nearly every speaker urged the council to keep data center restrictions in place, citing environmental concerns.

“Our land, water, and energy resources are finite, and they should be allocated based on our public priorities,” one speaker said.

“Data centers must pay for new renewable energy and all associated grid costs,” another speaker said. “We should require data centers to pay for new renewable power and associated grid improvements, or we should ban them.”

Speakers call for community input, outright ban on data centers

One speaker argued residents should have a direct say in how much data center capacity is built in their communities.

“Residents deserve a voice in deciding what AI infrastructure is actually needed, and based on community conversations, how much data center capacity should be built out,” the speaker said.

Another speaker said new data centers in South Seattle at Tukwila would “expose our neighbors to heat islands and an increased air, water, noise, and light pollution, causing significant risks to their health.”

“I feel the only way we can protect our communities and meet our state’s climate goals is to ban data centers entirely,” they added.

The climate argument carried through the testimony, with another speaker questioning whether data centers can coexist with the city’s goals.

“During this work plan process, we should be open to the possibility that large data centers simply aren’t aligned with our climate goals and don’t have community benefits that outweigh their enormous resource use,” they said.

Protest to take place this weekend

No vote was taken Wednesday.

The hearing is part of a broader review as the city weighs whether to renew the moratorium, adopt permanent regulations, or prohibit new AI data centers altogether.

The push extends beyond the council chambers. Community members plan to rally Saturday in Olympia at 1 p.m., joining a nationwide protest against new data center development and related tax incentives.

Contributing: Tim Hohl, KIRO Newsradio; Julia Dallas, MyNorthwest