Coachella to host town hall on proposed data center and municipal utility

COACHELLA, Calif. (KESQ) - Coachella will host a community town hall on Monday regarding the city's Municipal Utility and the proposed data center concept.

The meeting will be held on Monday, May 11, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the Boys & Girls Club of Coachella Valley at 85350 Bagdad Avenue.

According to a Coachella news release, city representatives will share an overview of the municipal utility, provide a timeline of actions to date, and outline the process for evaluating any potential future projects, as no project has been approved at this time.

The town hall will be facilitated by CV Strategies, a local communications firm that has worked with the City on community outreach efforts, to support a structured and respectful discussion. Attendees will have an opportunity to ask questions of both City representatives and the developer team and receive direct responses, the city added.

The proposal has raised a lot of controversy in the city over the past few months, with more than a hundred people protesting the plan during the April 22 city council meeting. Many against the project say they are concerned about the project's environmental impacts as well as the city's lack of transparency.

Coachella's proposed 240-acre technology campus would be located at Avenue 52 and Filmore Street. City records show the campus could grow as large as 450 acres with six data centers.

Newly appointed Coachella Mayor Dr. Frank Figueroa told News Channel 3's Athena Jreij last week that the campus is still in the early stages, but that hasn't done much to quell residents' concerns about potential pollution from the project.

"From what I know and what I've asked, there's no plan submitted for this data center at this time. I think that's what's very important is there's no actual formal process, and it still has to go through all these layers of applications, reviews and processes," Figueroa said.

Stay with News Channel 3 for continuing coverage.