Data center restrictions tracker · Arizona

Mesa, Arizona: data center zoning exclusion (2026)

Data snapshot 2026-08-15 · part of Pricing the Fear of Data Centers

Mesa, in Maricopa County, Arizona, adopted a data-center zoning exclusion on May 18, 2026. Its status in this snapshot is pending.

Mesa, in Maricopa County, Arizona, adopted a data-center zoning exclusion on July 8, 2025. Its status in this snapshot is enacted.

The records read: "A 2.3M sq ft NTT Global Data Centers campus in southeast Mesa passed its first Planning & Zoning review. A City Council vote was set for June 8. (datacentertracker.org)." "Mesa City Council adopted new zoning rules on July 8, 2025, restricting data centers to General Industrial and Heavy Industrial zones (roughly 4.1% of city land) and requiring special use permits with City Council approval, design… (datacentertracker.org)."

Details

ActionClassStatusDateMW thresholdScopeSource
Zoning exclusionrestrictionpendingMay 18, 2026not county-widedatacentertracker.org
Zoning exclusionrestrictionenactedJuly 8, 2025not county-widedatacentertracker.org

Jurisdiction type: municipality. County: Maricopa County. Dataset: datacentertracker. Snapshot August 15, 2026; documented actions, not a census.

Elsewhere in Maricopa County

Arizona context

Arizona has 10 documented local actions across 9 jurisdictions in this snapshot. At the state level, the state has an incentive rollback (in force, July 1, 2026).

A town that says no to a data center gives up local tax revenue, not jobs: one large campus pays $2M to $90M a year depending on the tax regime, against roughly 50 permanent jobs. The parent piece prices it and lists the conditions that beat a ban.

Sources

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