Tucson to hold 2 more public meetings on controversial Project Blue

The city of Tucson continues to seek the public’s feedback on Project Blue, a planned pair of data centers for Amazon Web Services.

The city is holding two public meetings, one in person and one virtual, after the initial public meeting on July 23, where city officials and developers heard questions and concerns from several hundred people at Mica Mountain High School.

The next meeting, to be held online via Teams, is set for Thursday, July 31, from 5-7 p.m.

The meeting after that will be in person, Monday, Aug. 4, from 5-7 p.m. at the Tucson Convention Center’s Grand Ballroom.

City officials had initially said an in-person meeting would be held
Thursday, at the request of Mayor Regina Romero, but the turnout for the
previous event was greater than they anticipated. That meant arranging
for a larger space, they said.

Developers plan to build the first complex on a 290-acre property formerly owned by Pima County, located west of Houghton Road near the county fairgrounds on the Southeast Side.

Project Blue could garner $250 milion in tax revenue, create 3,000 temporary construction jobs and establish 180 permanent positions, averaging at $64,000 per year, according to developers.

Their contractual obligation is only to hire 75 workers.

Another data center is also planned by the same developer, inside the city limits at a location that has not yet been disclosed. A third data center is also part of the plans, to be located outside the city limits and be served by another water company.

Both of the first two data centers combined would require nearly 2,000 acre-feet of water per year, making it Tucson Water’s largest customer, and use more power than any other Tucson Electric Power customer. Combined, they would use as much water as nearly 7,000 private homes.

During the July 23 meeting, several dozen members of three labor unions voiced their support, while Councilmember Nikki Lee and researchers from the University of Arizona expressed concerns.

Those with questions or comments about Project Blue can send them via email to [email protected].