Malden City Council, Planning agree: No Data Centers welcome here; one-year moratorium established

Ward 5 Councillor Taylor originated push in May; Council colleagues approve zoning amendment, ordinance

By Steve Freker

 In one of the swifter processes of the municipal legislative year, the Malden City Council backed a formal report of the Malden Planning Board in passing a new zoning amendment aimed at preventing data centers from coming to this city. In successive votes, the members unanimously voted to adopt and ultimately ordain a zoning amendment establishing a one-year moratorium on siting data centers in Malden, effective June 16, 2026, through June 16, 2027.

Voting in favor of the new zoning amendment and ordinance were Councillors Peg Crowe (Ward 1), Paul Condon (Ward 2), Ryan O’Malley (Ward 4), Ari Taylor (Ward 5), Stephen Winslow (Ward 6), Chris Simonelli (Ward 7), Jadeane Sica (Ward 8), Karen Colón Hayes (At-Large), Carey McDonald (At-Large), Michelle Luong (At-Large) and Council President Amanda Linehan (Ward 3).

Ward 5 Councillor Ari Taylor initiated the process of addressing the potential establishment of data centers in Malden with a resolution on the Council docket at its May 16 meeting. At that meeting, Councillor Taylor first proposed a moratorium on building or creating data centers here while the city “studies environmental and infrastructural impacts.” Councillor Taylor also sought to have the Malden City Council and Planning Board collaborate on defining a “data center” for the city of Malden, as well as exploring a zoning amendment to restrict establishment of the same.

At present, data centers are most often associated with the growing impact of the artificial intelligence (AI) industry. According to online reports, “data centers are the physical infrastructure that makes AI possible. While traditional data centers (as well as ‘clouds’ host websites and store photos, AI data centers are specialized, high-performance facilities that process, train, and run the complex machine learning models driving today’s AI applications.”

Potential deleterious side effects of data centers, particularly on densely populated communities in the greater Boston region like Malden, have led local municipal bodies to initiate responses, such as Councillor Taylor’s proactive push, which resulted in final Council action in exactly one month’s time. Similar action is either underway or has been completed in nearby communities by those municipal legislatures in Everett and Somerville. According to online reports, AI-focused data centers require “massive amounts of energy — primarily electricity — and water, to operate properly.” Should this energy and water be drawn from local grids, it would greatly strain both electricity and water sources in a community like Malden.

In addition to local moves, like Malden’s, to address potential data center growth, Mass. Governor Maura Healey is monitoring the potential for data centers from a statewide perspective. Just last week, at a press conference on Thursday, Gov. Healey announced Massachusetts will not accept applications for data center tax incentives until further notice. “Data centers can support innovation and economic growth, but if developers want to build in Massachusetts, they need to first demonstrate that they can do so without driving up costs or harming our communities,” the governor said.

Due to a number of determining factors, such as high energy costs, state environmental regulations and a paucity of undeveloped space, Massachusetts has not been a major destination in the national rise of data centers. State officials are also in the midst of broad policy discussions about ways to reduce overall high energy costs.

Regarding guiding principles that she said her staff is working on for data centers, Governor Healey said in a recent interview: “You can’t suck energy off the grid and hurt other ratepayers, and you can’t do harm to our environment, especially when it comes to water.”

SIDEBAR to the Story

Malden Planning Board Report Supporting Zoning Amendment Establishing Moratorium on Data Centers in Malden

PETITION. The petition is made under §12.32.050; the City Council is petitioner; and Ward 5 Councilor Ari Taylor is the sponsor. For full text of proposed amendments, see attached petition (CCP 276/2026).

SUMMARY of PROPOSED AMENDMENTS.

1. Use Category and Use Regulations (§12.12.030). The proposed amendments establish a new business use category, Data Centers, and prohibit this use in all zoning districts. Currently, this use would be classified under the business use category, retail services. By establishing a category for this use, the amendment will preclude classification of this use as retail services or another type/kind of use.

Note 1: If use regulations are not ordained as proposed and less restrictive regulations are proposed to allow this new use by right, by special permit, by site plan review, those may be considered covered by the current notice; however, another petition and noticed public hearing will be necessary to amend the ordinance to establish dimensional controls and parking and loading requirements for this new use.

2. Definitions (§12.32.060). The proposed amendments establish a definition for Data Center:

—Data Center: A building, or part thereof, which has a principal use to house computers and/or servers, data storage systems, networking systems, and/or computing resources, that are used to process, store, manage and/or disseminate data.

3. Certificates & Permits (§12.32.030). The amendments establish a moratorium on permitting Data Centers.
4. a) Duration of moratorium: May 22, 2026 – September 8, 2027 (estimate – depends on enactment date)

(“commencing first date of publication of the public hearing [notice] for this ordinance amendment and ending one year from the date of final enactment of this amendment”)

1. b) Purpose: “The foregoing moratorium is imposed to allow the City time to undertake studies and obtain resident input on the impacts that Data Centers may have on the infrastructure, environment, health, and economy of the City and community, and to consider amendments to the ordinance.”

APPLICATION and EXEMPTIONS: The amendments will apply to new construction and new use/occupancy of existing buildings, unless exempt by City ordinance (§12.28.010); the express language of the amendment; state law (M.G.L. c. 40A, §6), which exempts the subject of a building permit or special permit issued before the first publication of notice of the public hearing (May 22, 2026); or the state Permit Extension Act (Section 280 of Chapter 238 of the Acts of 2024).

Note 2: The City is unaware of any existing data centers and there are no approved or proposed projects.