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Pittsburg Residents Protest Approved Data Center Amid Environmental Concerns
On Monday night, a throng of Pittsburg residents gathered in City Hall to challenge a data‑center that the council had approved in 2024. The protest, which stretched for several hours, ended with the council adjourning after a series of interruptions and threats directed at council members.
The facility, dubbed Project Perseus, will occupy 76 acres on West Leland Road and will replace the former Delta View Golf Course. AVAIO Digital, the developer, is planning a 300,000‑square‑foot campus that is expected to draw 99 megawatts of power from the Pittsburg Power Company.
AVAIO says the site will use 100 percent recycled water, a condition that was part of a settlement with the Center for Biological Diversity last December. The city argues that the power contract keeps costs out of the hands of Pacific Gas & Electric customers and that the water use is less than 1 percent of the regional supply.
Residents say the approval process did not give them adequate notice or a chance to weigh in. “For $45 I can put a sign in my yard and everyone will know that house is for sale. On projects that will reshape this city, your neighbors got less notice than that,” said Wolfgang Croskey, a local homeowner. The protest group, led by Amhari Perkins, has gathered more than 14,000 signatures on a petition demanding the city halt the project.
The opposition echoes a broader pattern in East County. In Oakley, residents successfully persuaded the city to remove a data‑center clause from a development near the Big Break Regional Shoreline, leading to a temporary ban that is now being considered permanent. City senior planner Alison Spells said that the Pittsburg project is different because it uses local power and recycled water, but critics argue that the environmental footprint remains significant.
John DeLacio, a representative for AVAIO, said the company had spent six years planning and conducting community outreach before the 2024 approval. The developer also highlighted that the project will bring an estimated $800 million investment and create jobs, though the exact number of positions has not been released.
Mayor Dionne Adams acknowledged the threats received by council members and said the meeting would continue despite the hostility. Vice‑Mayor Angelica Lopez proposed forming a subcommittee that would include community members, councilors and planning staff to oversee compliance and regulation. The suggestion was met with vocal opposition in the chamber, and the council will likely continue to revisit the issue.
The meeting was adjourned after a final outburst. The data‑center debate remains unresolved. The city has not yet issued a final decision on the project, and the protest group continues to push for a halt. The next city council meeting is scheduled for the following month, where the council will likely revisit the issue. Meanwhile, AVAIO has not announced any changes to its plans, and the city has not released a timeline for construction.
The controversy highlights the tension between the growing demand for data‑center infrastructure to support artificial‑intelligence workloads and the environmental and community impacts that local residents perceive. As the Bay Area’s data‑center market expands, similar disputes are expected to arise in other municipalities. The outcome in Pittsburg will likely influence how future projects are negotiated and approved.
The facility, dubbed Project Perseus, will occupy 76 acres on West Leland Road and will replace the former Delta View Golf Course. AVAIO Digital, the developer, is planning a 300,000‑square‑foot campus that is expected to draw 99 megawatts of power from the Pittsburg Power Company.
AVAIO says the site will use 100 percent recycled water, a condition that was part of a settlement with the Center for Biological Diversity last December. The city argues that the power contract keeps costs out of the hands of Pacific Gas & Electric customers and that the water use is less than 1 percent of the regional supply.
Residents say the approval process did not give them adequate notice or a chance to weigh in. “For $45 I can put a sign in my yard and everyone will know that house is for sale. On projects that will reshape this city, your neighbors got less notice than that,” said Wolfgang Croskey, a local homeowner. The protest group, led by Amhari Perkins, has gathered more than 14,000 signatures on a petition demanding the city halt the project.
The opposition echoes a broader pattern in East County. In Oakley, residents successfully persuaded the city to remove a data‑center clause from a development near the Big Break Regional Shoreline, leading to a temporary ban that is now being considered permanent. City senior planner Alison Spells said that the Pittsburg project is different because it uses local power and recycled water, but critics argue that the environmental footprint remains significant.
John DeLacio, a representative for AVAIO, said the company had spent six years planning and conducting community outreach before the 2024 approval. The developer also highlighted that the project will bring an estimated $800 million investment and create jobs, though the exact number of positions has not been released.
Mayor Dionne Adams acknowledged the threats received by council members and said the meeting would continue despite the hostility. Vice‑Mayor Angelica Lopez proposed forming a subcommittee that would include community members, councilors and planning staff to oversee compliance and regulation. The suggestion was met with vocal opposition in the chamber, and the council will likely continue to revisit the issue.
The meeting was adjourned after a final outburst. The data‑center debate remains unresolved. The city has not yet issued a final decision on the project, and the protest group continues to push for a halt. The next city council meeting is scheduled for the following month, where the council will likely revisit the issue. Meanwhile, AVAIO has not announced any changes to its plans, and the city has not released a timeline for construction.
The controversy highlights the tension between the growing demand for data‑center infrastructure to support artificial‑intelligence workloads and the environmental and community impacts that local residents perceive. As the Bay Area’s data‑center market expands, similar disputes are expected to arise in other municipalities. The outcome in Pittsburg will likely influence how future projects are negotiated and approved.
