Bayonne banned data centers after months of resident organizing turned a local land-use fight into a major political issue.
The unanimous vote made the city the latest municipality in New Jersey to join a growing push to keep data centers out.
Here's what to know
A proposal to bring a data center to Bayonne had been under scrutiny since December, as residents packed council meetings and pressed city officials to reject it.
The fight also became a major issue in Bayonne's May mayoral and council elections. Mayor Sharon Ashe-Nadrowski and her council slate campaigned on a promise to ban data centers and then swept the election.
Bayonne is the state's 32nd municipality to enact a data center ban, according to Insider NJ. The ordinance was approved by the City Council in a 5-0 vote last week, and Ashe-Nadrowski signed it.
Ben Dziobek, executive director of Climate Revolution Action Network, said the outcome sent a message beyond Bayonne, arguing that there is "a price to pay for officials who side with Big Tech over the people who elected them," per the outlet.
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More background
Residents organized, attended meetings, and made the issue central to the elections.
The coalition behind the effort included neighborhood advocates, local officials, and groups such as the North New Jersey Democratic Socialists of America and Friends of Liberty State Park along with state Sen. Angela McKnight, Insider NJ reported.
Climate Revolution Action Network said opposition to data centers is emerging in places that look very different from one another, from South Jersey farm towns to Hudson County cities.
What's being done?
Bayonne's action is part of a town-by-town strategy.
Climate Revolution Action Network said it is training residents and working alongside communities across the state to push for similar bans and, ultimately, a statewide policy.
"The movement to ban data centers is spreading to every corner of the state," Dziobek said, according to Insider NJ. "This is an issue that unites people across the political spectrum."
Bayonne's new law shows that residents who organize and engage civically can influence what gets built — and what does not.
"We showed that the people can fight back and that we're the ones who have power, not the developers," resident Jennah Reddick, who organized neighbors in support of the ban, said.
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