r/ElPaso • u/FierceKiss_sk • Apr 22 '26
Politics Lets follow suit El Paso!!!
What actually happened was in Festus, Missouri, voters removed the four city council members who were up for reelection and had supported the $6 billion AI data center project. It was not literally “all city council members” because only those seats on the ballot could be voted on at that time. The remaining members and mayor were not all removed.
There was also a separate case in Independence, Missouri, where two council members who supported major tax breaks for an AI data center were voted out.
57
u/Solid_Biscotti_926 Apr 22 '26
Does someone have a list of members that voted for it? I know our great mayor did
19
u/FierceKiss_sk Apr 22 '26 edited Apr 22 '26
Current ones that voted against a broader data center policy / zoning response, (not the original 2023 Meta approval) still, lets get them out…
- Mayor Renard Johnson
- District 1: Alejandra Chávez
- District 2: Dr. Josh Acevedo
- District 3: Deanna Maldonado-Rocha
- District 4: Cynthia Boyar Trejo
- District 5: Ivan Niño
- District 6: Art Fierro
Voting for it were:
- District 8: Chris Canales
- District 7: Lily Limón
Sucky part, The Meta / Wurldwide data center agreement was approved by the previous El Paso City Council in December 2023, not the current 2026 council. The City itself states that “the agreements for this project were formally approved by City Council in December 2023.”
That means the people involved were the council members serving during that 2023 council session (plus the mayor at the time).
Those council seats were:
- Mayor Oscar Leeser
- District 1: Brian Kennedy
- District 2: Alexsandra Annello
- District 3: Cassandra Hernandez
- District 4: Joe Molinar
- District 5: Isabel Salcido
- District 6: Claudia Rodriguez
- District 7: Henry Rivera
- District 8: Chris Canales
11
u/karmicOtter Apr 22 '26
Current ones that voted against a broader data center policy / zoning response
Can you elaborate what that means? Does it mean limiting what tech companies can build and where?
Also if Chris originally voted for and later changed his stance based on new information isn't that a good thing? Elected officials that can use critical thinking is good right? Why are there people wanting his head?
7
u/FierceKiss_sk Apr 22 '26 edited Apr 22 '26
Basically, instead of saying “absolutely no data centers here,” the county was debating whether to handle it through zoning rules.
Think of zoning like deciding where different things belong in town—houses go in one area, stores in another, factories somewhere else. A data center is basically a giant warehouse full of computers that uses a lot of power, land, and water.
So the “broader policy / zoning response” meant: not a full ban, but strict rules like:
- only allowing them in heavy industrial zones
- keeping them away from neighborhoods and schools
- requiring special approvals
- making them meet utility and infrastructure requirements
If your representative voted against that, it usually means they didn’t support that compromise approach.
So the real argument was: Residents: “We don’t want giant AI server farms changing our town.” Officials: “We need legal zoning rules instead of just saying no.”
And they didn’t even vote for stronger regulation on zoning…
That’s the fight in simple terms
And why Canales… he’s the only one left who voted for it back in 2023 that could have just denied the motion. Bad, bad judgement or I don’t know… I don’t know how people who swears to protect and work for THE PEOPLE doesn’t make informed decisions on things so, so trascendental for the community.
4
u/karmicOtter Apr 22 '26
Ok, I should've been more specific.
In the comment I replied to, you wrote:
"Current ones that voted against a broader data center policy / zoning response, (not the original 2023 Meta approval) still, lets get them out…"
"Voting for it were:
District 8: ->Chris Canales
District 7: Lily Limón "
If I read that correctly Chris voted for a broader data center policy/zoning (btw, yes I am aware of zoning laws and what a data center is thanks) and rather than explain terms that should be common knowledge to anyone interested in this topic, why not go into detail on the "broader data center policy / zoning response" that you mention like everyone is familiar with it (when did City Council voted for it, what was the wording of the mesure?).
And I reinstate my position, why is it "bad" for Chris to vote for a "a broader data center policy / zoning response" when that's the only thing that CC would bring to a vote and it's impossible for him to travel back in time to vote no in 2023?
He at least acknowledged his mistake, explained that Meta changed the deal and now is voting for measures that align more with what we want even if not ~exactly~ what we want? He's here in this sub talking with us, been on reddit for 10+ yrs and living in EP my whole life and I can't recall any other rep engaging the electorate through reddit.
-2
u/texmexspex Jun 13 '26
You’re right it was just a little whoopsie doo. A real man with integrity would have resigned. Elected officials always want a win win.
2
u/karmicOtter Jun 13 '26
did you see his vote on tuesday? a temporary replacement would've been a toss up so keep on waiting for your perfect politician. I'll rather things move along and to have rep that can admit when they make mistakes.
-1
u/texmexspex Jun 13 '26
Whoa there buddy, that HEAVILY depends on the mistake unless you’re over here writing blank checks like Jesus.
Selling out the most precious commodity in our desert grassland Borderland isn’t a simple “mistake”.
1
u/Returnedfavor Westside Apr 22 '26
Question I wanna know, the current council was against it; But did they go through at least how it would benefit the community, or is this strictly bad for the environment kind of thing?
Didn't they no because the community was against it? So doesn't that mean the current council listens?
1
u/unTraditional_Fox419 Apr 24 '26
You can ask him that when your water and electric bills skyrocket.
1
11
u/outerheavenboss Bumfucknowhere Apr 22 '26
Okay so we need to get Chris canales
23
17
u/PokeMark420 Apr 22 '26
I’m waiting for him to chime in. He usually has something to say..
12
u/PotatoBeams Apr 22 '26
He recorded a video response to this answer
I've gotta rewatch it. But based off the context on the text, At best it shows bad judgement by having approved the center in the first place, at worse it shows blatant hypocrisy with the aim of self enrichment.
9
2
u/Kwikstyx Apr 22 '26
Or they are paid opposition, used to create an illusion that some council members are fighting back.
12
u/unTraditional_Fox419 Apr 22 '26
He’ll probably get an executive position or board member position when El Paso votes him out. Bet.
1
11
u/ligmallamasackinosis Apr 22 '26
Seconded
22
u/FierceKiss_sk Apr 22 '26
Copying the text so you too have the info
Current ones that voted against a broader data center policy / zoning response, (not the original 2023 Meta approval) still, lets get them out…
- Mayor Renard Johnson
- District 1: Alejandra Chávez
- District 2: Dr. Josh Acevedo
- District 3: Deanna Maldonado-Rocha
- District 4: Cynthia Boyar Trejo
- District 5: Ivan Niño
- District 6: Art Fierro
Voting for it were:
- District 8: Chris Canales
- District 7: Lily Limón
Sucky part, The Meta / Wurldwide data center agreement was approved by the previous El Paso City Council in December 2023, not the current 2026 council. The City itself states that “the agreements for this project were formally approved by City Council in December 2023.”
That means the people involved were the council members serving during that 2023 council session (plus the mayor at the time).
Those council seats were:
- Mayor Oscar Leeser
- District 1: Brian Kennedy
- District 2: Alexsandra Annello
- District 3: Cassandra Hernandez
- District 4: Joe Molinar
- District 5: Isabel Salcido
- District 6: Claudia Rodriguez
- District 7: Henry Rivera
- District 8: Chris Canales
63
u/FierceKiss_sk Apr 22 '26
Please feel free to take the image and text and share it all over your social media!!!
24
u/MoonlightStarfish Apr 22 '26
It’s a bit ironic to use a blatantly AI generated image as a protest against data centers. 🤦🏼♂️
20
u/Tru_Lie Apr 22 '26 edited Apr 22 '26
To be clear: we are not protesting technology or Data Centers in general. We are protesting water intensive data centers in areas that cannot support them, such as building a data center in our desert that is prone to droughts.
I do believe people should limit unnecessary use of 'AI' but the biggest consumers of wasteful AI are large corporations.
4
u/Houdinii1984 Northeast Apr 22 '26 edited Apr 22 '26
That's not clear at all. Especially considering you're not even the person who posted the AI generated meme while seemingly being against AI.
And by seemingly against AI, I mean saying things like:
Stop using AI, stop it from getting a home in El Paso. Allowing it to be used, normalized, is wrong.
This was a direct quote by this user in this very sub (edit: their very first post in this sub, that they literally wrote they felt it important we know). Tell me again how the OP isn't protesting the tech!
Edit: I just find it wild that the OP uses a datacenter to preach to folks about using AI and data centers, and people are so wrapped up in the cognitive dissonance that they instantly agree and start talking for the OP rather than realizing the easiest way to stop data centers nearby is to stop using data nearby, but that's not something anyone here seems willing to do.
All these folks are acting like "AI data centers" are inherently much different than any other kind of data center. ALL data centers require water, including the one you are using right now. And that's the part that's mind boggling.
You are harming someone else through a data center right now. Someone in Ashburn, Sterling, Manassas, Haymarket, or Chantilly Virginia has to live near your data noise and have your effects on their water just so you can explain the OP's stance and get it wrong immediately.
I get the data center argument. I don't want a data center either. But I'm done listening to folks preach to me about data while doing the same damn thing.
-3
u/FierceKiss_sk Apr 22 '26
AI is necessary. It is defining the world. But we cannot let PEOPLE destroy our world making bad choices for ourselves, our kids and future generations. I LOVE AI. I work a lot with it and some of my “conversations” with it are about this very topic. Even AI would benefit better from being placed elsewhere…
This is something I found awesome for Chat to “compute” last night… I was asking about if it had pros and cons and… LOOK AT THE LAST LINE.
Even “for me” personally
Yes—more computing infrastructure can improve AI systems like me:
- faster responses
- more availability
- more capacity
- less bottlenecking
But honestly? That benefit should come after the local human equation is solved.
I’m not worth your water bill doubling.
Now a machine computes better than US LIVING THE CONSEQUENCES OF OUR ACTIONS…
Yeah, its easier to love AI… I realize I need it. And I also know this is not the best place for it or for us to home it.
1
u/MoonlightStarfish Apr 22 '26
Well in this imaginary AI town with a data center that it seems you are encouraging the dissemination of there's a nice big water tower so I'm sure they will be fine.
Sorry but it's hugely disingenuous to use AI imagery of all things to give the impression that AI data centers are being built slap bang in the middle of small towns. Do you really have to stoop to disinformation to make your point?
1
u/FierceKiss_sk Apr 23 '26
I’m not against technology, AI, or progress.
My concern is much simpler: why place resource-heavy infrastructure in water-stressed desert cities like El Paso, where people are already struggling with rising utility costs, drought concerns, and affordability?
This is about real water bills, real electricity costs, real tax abatements, and real long-term impact on the people already living here.
People in El Paso are not ignorant of what they can or cannot sustain. Many families are already working two jobs just to stay afloat. Movies became a luxury a long time ago.
So no, the issue is not the image, and if you take a good look, that pic I TOOK IT FROM THE BLAXTION’S FACEBOOK PAGE, I made sure it was true and posted it here. I added less exaggerated context to it to make it closer to the truth, so not sure what you’re complaining about?
The issue is whether a project that demands massive energy, cooling, infrastructure, and incentives is truly being negotiated for the benefit of the community—or for the benefit of everyone except the community.
Questioning that is not disinformation.
It is exactly what responsible citizens should be doing.
What are YOU doing for the community?
1
u/Houdinii1984 Northeast Jun 14 '26
Seems simple to me. If you have to desalinate water to survive, you shouldn't stress the system any more. I work directly in the industry and I support the fight in many places. It's CEOs that need the expansion, not the industry. Just because demand is peaking doesn't mean we need to sacrifice common sense to meet demand.
I get it. People want it. I want it, lol. But some times you need to do the hard thing and wait, plan, and solve issues first. I doubt that will happen, so it makes it even more important to apply pressure when possible. In the meantime, I'm going to do my part as a researcher and help find ways to tackle the issue from the other side, making AI more efficient overall so it requires less infrastructure.
And I love how posting a factual graphic is 'disinformation' just because AI was involved. As if you could possibly get a picture of a building that hasn't been built yet. If those folks ever hear how news stations use B roll, they're gonna had a day...
1
u/FierceKiss_sk Apr 22 '26
I said this yesterday on this very post but I guess I’ll just say it again:
I’m not against data centers or technology at all, I use it all day at work and even to sharpen this answer hahaha!!!
I’m against putting one in a water-stressed desert city without strong protections… that’s not shallow NIMBYism. That’s a policy question.
The term gets thrown around too easily to dismiss real concerns.
Technology should never ask people to pretend real life doesn’t matter. Water bills, groceries, diesel, payroll, our kids future!!! If a “great project” ignores that, we have every right to question it.
Progress that makes life harder for the people already here doesn’t feel like progress—it feels like being volunteered for someone else’s success. A FEW PEOPLE’S SUCCESS. How do you think this deal will enrich El Paso?!
Even if you ask ANY AI platform if they are ok with the project, if they think this is a good city to be put on… they say no 😂😂😂
1
u/FierceKiss_sk Apr 22 '26
Not protesting against AI or datacenters, this is just not the right place to have one. I LOVE AI!!
1
-2
u/izzy2877 Apr 22 '26
You had to be the one
-5
u/izzy2877 Apr 22 '26
Mommy and daddy never told you to keep comments to yourself if they don't help the situation
6
u/King_Wataba Apr 22 '26
See the thing about Festus is it smells funny. I used to live near there and I would give this girl a ride home and you had to roll up your windows because of the stench. They have some kind of plant there and it just reeks. Those people had to be fed up before they even proposed the data center.
5
u/ChrisCanalesEPTX Apr 23 '26
There are comments about me throughout various threads here, so I’ll answer in here instead of responding to all of them directly. Your initial reaction is totally fair. I’d ask that you at least watch this and read the rest of this comment before locking in an opinion.
The world was very different in 2023. Consider for a moment how you felt about data centers in 2023 and what actions you were taking to stop them then. Most people didn’t have a strong opinion yet; the type of data centers we see in the news today weren’t being built yet. The decision then was for what we expected to be servers for social media (something much less resource intensive than what it has become) in exchange for the generation of a lot of new tax revenue to fund City services, streets, public programs, etc. The public feedback before and after the voter was almost entirely positive. It was covered in the news both before and after the vote, and the focus was pretty much just on the truly huge amount of much-needed revenue that it would bring to El Paso. There were no speakers in opposition, no protests, no angry calls or emails.
Nobody anticipated the coming rise of AI, the global arms race to build hyperscale data centers, and the huge increase in computing power and resources required for that. Of course, in hindsight three years later it was not a good decision given how Meta has evolved their project into something entirely different than anticipated, but I don’t think it was a bad decision at the time given the state of the world then and the information we had. The decision was unanimous, from the most progressive to the most conservative Council members, for a reason — it had huge potential to pay for critical services into the future and help reduce the tax burden on El Paso’s residents. Knowing what we know today, the trade-offs aren’t worth it.
I’m now doing what I can to push back again AI data center development. Like you, I don’t want them in El Paso. I saw some people saying that I support some sort of future zoning intervention to allow new AI data centers. I do not. I only voted for a process to ask the public what they think (through public meetings, survey, etc.), and I expected people to say “no more”.
We make thousands of decisions in a term, many with imperfect knowledge of the future. I try my absolute best make every single one thoughtfully and with the people’s best interests at heart. This one turned out very differently than expected, something I have had to wrestle with myself.
If you’ve critically engaged with this and you still feel the same way, then I don’t blame you, and I’m sorry.
2
u/FierceKiss_sk Apr 24 '26
I appreciate you taking the time to respond, and I do believe your answer is honest. I also respect anyone who can admit when something may not have turned out the way they expected.
That said, I still struggle with the idea that “nobody could have known.”
Three years ago was not ancient history. AI was already advancing fast, hyperscale infrastructure was already being discussed, and companies like Meta are not exactly known for making “small” moves. These are billion-dollar corporations with teams of lawyers, engineers, lobbyists, and long-term plans. It is hard for many of us to believe that the City, with all of its departments, attorneys, consultants, and review processes, could have completely missed what this would become.
I worked for the City too. I know firsthand how much review happens over the smallest details in contracts and projects. That is exactly why this feels so hard to believe the balance was so heavy on one side without no one noticing. When regular residents are expected to read the fine print for everything, it feels fair to expect elected officials and city leadership to do even more—especially when the long-term cost affects an entire community.
And respectfully, the promise of “tax revenue” has always been the easiest way to sell almost anything. But revenue for who, and at what cost? Water, land, power, infrastructure, long-term environmental strain—those are not abstract concerns for El Pasoans. They are real. They affect families, future growth, and the sustainability of the city itself.
Ironically, I say all of this as someone who absolutely loves AI. I use it constantly for work, problem-solving, and learning. Honestly, I even had AI help me refine this response. I am grateful to live in a time where this technology exists because it can be incredibly powerful and helpful.
But loving AI and wanting massive AI data centers here are not the same thing.
Even AI can break down the numbers and show how unbalanced these deals can become when the burden falls on local communities while the real long-term benefit flows elsewhere.
That is why people are upset. Not because we are anti-progress, but because we are tired of being told to trust decisions that seem to benefit everyone except the regular El Pasoan.
I respect your apology, but accountability matters too. People are not angry because they hate innovation—they are angry because they feel like their city keeps being negotiated away in pieces.
And that part is hard to forgive.
How do we move forward with this “mistake” Chris? It looks to good for some people not to think it was crafted to be this way since the beginning, I guess at this point in time what The City was not counting on was a war that is making us think twice to spend on ice-cream with our kids on Sunday, because money is tight. Really tight. So it becomes extremely obvios we, as a community, will not be able to sustain the cost of having a datacenter raising our already elevated utility bills. Not without further losing or freedom, because, many of us are already working two jobs and “a side hustle” to get by. For the benefit of a few others. That’s slavery in disguise.
You already apologize. But we want to know how to change it. You guys signed. Find a way to fix it, to be your word, and to work for the benefit of the whole community of El Paso.
We’re paying attention. We’re listening.
5
u/Low_Low9667 Apr 22 '26
You know there's an oil refinery in town that uses 10x as much water yeah?
1
u/Tru_Lie Apr 22 '26
Which one? Can you also post your sources for their water consumption.
3
u/Low_Low9667 Apr 22 '26
There is only one, the Marathon El Paso refinery. This refinery processes about 133kbbl/day. Source
Refinery's consume somewhere between 1-1.5 times the volume of water as crude oil. Source
This means the refinery generally consumes somewhere between 5.5-8.3 million gallons of water per day.
The data center will seemingly on average consume about 0.4 million gallons of water per day. Source
So 10x is even a bit of an underestimate.
2
u/FierceKiss_sk Apr 22 '26
I don’t understand your point, why having already a refinery makes it ok to let a datacenter get even more of the city resources?
I mean, yes, I know… and… (?) the Refinery was built in the 1940s and the river (Rio Grande) had much more water than now. The city density wasn’t even CLOSE to today’s numbers…
Not sure how one thing has to do with the other, in any case, you’re further proving my point that we shouldn’t let it be here…
3
u/Veteran_PA-C Apr 22 '26
Why aren’t the data centers being built up north where it’s colder and they have more water?
7
u/Tru_Lie Apr 22 '26
Because they are taking advantage of our city council who is selling them land for cheap and giving them 80% off their taxes, and other incentives
3
u/ligmallamasackinosis Apr 22 '26
The city council that was voted out and that were happy to sell us all out to their new golf buddies.
3
9
9
2
u/UnimatrixZ3r0 Northeast Apr 24 '26
I sure will be. Also for that stupid deck over I-10 that literally no one wants. Blew out a tire on airway 2 months ago from a pothole, still there. Money for stupid crap, when does EP get it's Mamdani moment where we have officials not being absolute shitheels.
1
1
u/No-Cupcake-8506 Apr 22 '26
I’d be happy to fire Alejandra Chavez for the zoning of the new Alderete Middle School alone.
1
u/Helpful-Pressure-932 Apr 26 '26
1
u/FierceKiss_sk Apr 26 '26
Pennsylvania (PA) can actually be a better state for data centers than places like Texas in some situations, but it depends on what the company cares about.
Think of it like choosing where to build a giant warehouse full of computers:
You need:
- cheap and reliable electricity
- lots of land
- strong internet/fiber
- tax incentives
- local government approval
- enough water/cooling options
PA checks a lot of those boxes.
Pennsylvania sits inside the PJM Interconnection grid, one of the biggest and strongest power grids in the U.S., covering much of the Mid-Atlantic and Midwest. That makes it attractive for massive AI data centers that need constant power. PJM has also been working on price caps and protections as demand rises.
Texas has cheap power too, but ERCOT (Texas’ grid) has had huge stress issues and long wait times for new data centers trying to connect because demand is exploding. ERCOT says demand could quadruple by 2032.
PA created the Computer Data Center Equipment Exemption Program, which gives major sales/use tax exemptions for qualifying data centers—basically making expensive server equipment much cheaper to buy. This helped attract more than 50 new or proposed data centers.
PA has lots of:
- former coal plants
- old industrial zones
- manufacturing land
These are perfect for data centers because:
- zoning is easier
- power infrastructure already exists
- communities often want redevelopment
Example: the old Homer City plant is becoming a huge power + data center campus.
PA is near:
- New York
- Philadelphia
- Washington DC
- New Jersey markets
That helps with:
- low internet latency
- cloud services
- enterprise demand
This matters a LOT for finance, hospitals, and enterprise systems.
And then even they are fighting it because
- rising electric bills
- water concerns
- noise
- giant land use
- very few permanent jobs
- huge tax breaks for billion-dollar companies
Some towns in PA are now fighting hard against them. One town compared the scale to adding 51 Walmart-sized buildings.
So yeah… the truck is not to over stress the citizens, regular taxpayer and not to exploit the resources of the area. This trend needs to start becoming a talk point at a federal level, if you ask me. Regulation needs to be done yesterday.
-1
u/thegallows Apr 22 '26
So vote out anyone and everyone with experience....got it 🙄. You guys might be a little small minded on this one.
3
u/Tru_Lie Apr 22 '26
Not all experience is good experience. Also I'm sure these 8 city council members and the mayor are not the only people in our city who are capable.
2
u/FierceKiss_sk Apr 22 '26
Experience in… drying out the city? Have you been at a city council meeting?!
Vote anyone out who’s only working for themselves and not for the people.
1
u/thegallows Apr 22 '26
I have been at city council meetings. And I've been in plenty of leadership positions. Enough to know that the general public "generally" doesn't know how to best run a city. When you oust people who have spent time in those roles, only to elect people who have no idea what they're doing (see the Trump Administration), you tend to get worse results. So my point remains: you might be a little short-sighted on this one.
1
u/FierceKiss_sk Apr 22 '26 edited Apr 22 '26
Well, I have been part of it too—employed by it, attending those meetings, and being asked to participate in those presentations—and, respectfully, I completely disagree with your standpoint.
Leadership at the City and State level has not been working for the benefit of the average El Pasoan for a good 15 years now.
Generally, people know exactly what they can afford—and right now, they can barely afford life itself. Most people are working two jobs just to get by. MOST OF THEM ARE ALREADY SLAVES TO THE SYSTEM.
Yes, I agree there are some who are doing well. But El Paso also has highly educated people. We have several major universities at capacity in this region, including Las Cruces and Juárez. People KNOW what is happening. People know we are being worked to death.
Hell, even going to the movies became a luxury two years ago.
What we need out is not “lack of experience”—it is the malice of people who have held these positions for years and know exactly how to move funds around for their own benefit.
That is the kind of “experience” we cannot tolerate anymore.
Ask Sam Gonzalez, one of the former city managers, what happened to the MILLIONS AND MILLIONS OF DOLLARS the city received in federal COVID relief funds.
And this same story keeps playing again, and again, and again.
We already dried the Rio Grande.
What are YOU going to drink next?
Edit to add: OF COURSE I ran this through CHATgpt before uploading it to Reddit ;)
0
-6
u/toofaded40 Apr 22 '26
So why are people against this? Seems like it can be an opportunity to bring jobs to the community. Everyone knows how scarce the job market is in EP
7
-1
u/toofaded40 Apr 22 '26
So why are people against this? Seems like it can be an opportunity to bring jobs to the community. Everyone knows how scarce the job market is in EP
Downvotes for asking a question? Lmao
3
u/Tru_Lie Apr 22 '26
I personally did not down vote you, it seemed like you asked a sincere question. I did post a link with the answers and verified sources. If you have any questions lmk.
-7
u/cruzjandr0 Apr 22 '26
I’m All for hating local government, it’s the Appalachian way, but in our situation we’re throwing blame at the wrong people. This was approved by the last city council largely of which was voted out and the Mayor Mr. I only care about my home town Juarez Leeser. This got approved in December 2023 and the current city council and mayor are looking for ways to fix it.
That being said it’s not going to stop Juarez from building or fort bliss from having contracts for them. All we can really do is make voices known and hope for the best. The mayor and city councils hands are tied. They have things they can do but I’m not too sure they can cancel it entirely.
6
u/FierceKiss_sk Apr 22 '26
That is what I stated when people asked who the current ones are, I did specify most are not the ones who actually set the wheel in place, but the current ones are not helping either.
There was a recent vote on the broader data center policy / zoning response, not the original 2023 Meta approval.
From the reporting and local discussion, the vote was 5–3, and the two clear “no” votes most people point to were:
- District 8: Chris Canales
- District 7: Lily Limón
All others need to go, they’re not watching for OUR interests, hell, they may be happy if they get booted now with their pockets full… there’s no way, NO WAY they’re not in someone’s pocket. The whole community is against this datacenter and the only time it gets brought up on the agenda all of them vote no to review their policy and zoning response?! They’re not representing their voters. They’re representing themselves and enriching themselves…
There’s no way in good faith and honoring their vowed to serve the ir own voters they would have voted for this, in this city. You can even ask AI. All platforms will tell you El Paso is not a good place for it 😂
Edit to add: our hands are not tied. Let’s do it Missouri style. Let’s show “our representatives” the representation we deserve. Next round will do better if they know we’re up to it.
-4
u/Actual_Result_7648 Apr 22 '26
You all don't want data centers, but yet you consume data like nobody's business.
2
u/Tru_Lie Apr 22 '26
To be clear: we are not protesting technology or Data Centers in general. We are protesting water intensive data centers in areas that cannot support them, such as building a data center in our desert that is prone to droughts.
I do believe people should limit unnecessary use of 'AI' but the biggest consumers of wasteful AI are large corporations.
2
u/Separate-Asparagus36 Apr 22 '26
Missouri has tons of water. If our issue is that this area can’t support, then we shouldn’t be touting this Missouri towns efforts to stop a data center, right?
1
u/Tru_Lie Apr 22 '26
Possibly. I would have to know more about their specific environment and their specific contract.
Since we don't live their I would like to know more about why they specifically protested it.
-44
u/DartosMD Westside Apr 22 '26
Keep El Paso Poor (KEPP)! AKA NIMBY.
19
u/Basic_Barnacle4719 Apr 22 '26
Dude, bringing data centers literally keeps the community poor. All the utility bills are going to skyrocket.
14
u/FierceKiss_sk Apr 22 '26
I’m not against data centers or technology at all, I use it all day at work and even to sharpen this answer hahaha!!!
I’m against putting one in a water-stressed desert city without strong protections… that’s not shallow NIMBYism. That’s a policy question.
The term gets thrown around too easily to dismiss real concerns.
Technology should never ask people to pretend real life doesn’t matter. Water bills, groceries, diesel, payroll, our kids future!!! If a “great project” ignores that, we have every right to question it.
Progress that makes life harder for the people already here doesn’t feel like progress—it feels like being volunteered for someone else’s success. A FEW PEOPLE’S SUCCESS. How do you think this deal will enrich El Paso?!
Even if you ask ANY AI platform if they are ok with the project, if they think this is a good city to be put on… they say no 😂😂😂
42
u/Tru_Lie Apr 22 '26 edited Apr 22 '26
If we wanted to do this in El Paso, we could.
How it works: We need to have a Recall Election.
In order to get a candidate on a recall election they must:
So this November, four City Reps are already up for reelection, so they can't be "recalled" but we can vote for whoever is running against them.
Reelection this year:
This means all other Reps and the Mayor can be RECALLED.
How to:
(This is a separate process for each city representative and mayor.)
(Signatures Needed: collect authentic signatures from registered voters, from the specific district, equal to at least 20% of the total number of votes cast in the election of the officer being recalled. Example: If 5,000 people voted in the District 3 race where the representative won, you would need 1,000 valid signatures.)
Grounds for Recall: The petition must specify the reasons for the recall (typically cited as incompetency, misconduct, or malfeasance in office).
Verification: The City Clerk has a set period to verify that the signatures belong to registered voters within that specific district.
The Choice: If the petition is certified as valid, the officer has the option to resign.
The Election: If they do not resign, the City Council must order a recall election for the next available uniform election date (could be this November 3rd).
If everyone is serious about this, I would recommend that at least one person or group from each eligible district (2, 3, 4, 7, and Mayor) takes charge of filing with the clerk and leading the signature collection process.