The Project Blue data center, a proposed 290-acre facility developed by Beale Infrastructure on unincorporated land near the Pima County Fairgrounds in Tucson, Arizona, represents a significant economic opportunity projected to bring $3.6 billion in investment, substantial tax revenues, and thousands of jobs. However, it faced intense scrutiny over environmental impacts, particularly water and energy usage in the arid region. The project’s journey began in early 2025, evolving from initial planning to community backlash, regulatory hurdles, and adaptations that culminated in Pima County’s 3-2 approval on December 17, 2025, despite prior setbacks.
Chronological Timeline of Key Events
- May-June 2025: Initial Planning and Outreach Pima County staff engaged with Project Blue developers in meetings on May 21-22, emphasizing the facility’s role in supporting local industries like government, education, and healthcare. By June 10, updates highlighted the project’s scope, including its potential for the first building to become operational by 2027, with plans for city annexation. The proposal positioned the data center as an economic driver, but early fact sheets raised concerns about job promises, tax revenue losses, and water sustainability.
- July 2025: Public Awareness and Organizing Begins The project gained rapid visibility, with community organizers mobilizing against it due to its location west of Houghton Road and potential strain on resources. By late July, public calls to action urged residents to contact city council members ahead of upcoming meetings, focusing on environmental risks.
- August 4-7, 2025: Community Meetings and Tucson City Council Rejection A contentious community information meeting was held on August 4 at the Tucson Convention Center, amplifying opposition to the water-intensive cooling system. On August 6-7, the Tucson City Council unanimously rejected the proposal to grant access to the city’s reclaimed water system, citing public pressure over water scarcity, energy demands, and grid strain in the desert environment. This denial blocked annexation and forced developers to pivot, while residents celebrated the decision as a win against unsustainable development.
- August 21, 2025: Post-Rejection Regulations Following the rejection, Tucson adopted new city ordinances for large water users, including data centers, to prevent similar projects without stricter oversight. Despite this, Project Blue remained viable, with developers announcing a switch from water to air cooling to address water concerns.
- Early December 2025: Amazon Withdrawal Around December 2, Amazon, long rumored as the end user, backed out, reportedly due to incompatibility with the air-cooling system. Sources indicated up to eight other companies, possibly including Meta, expressed interest as replacements, though no formal end user was confirmed.
- December 3, 2025: Arizona Corporation Commission (ACC) Approval The ACC voted 4-1 to approve a 10-year Energy Supply Agreement between Tucson Electric Power (TEP) and Beale Infrastructure (under Humphrey’s Peak Power LLC), ensuring power for the facility without burdening other ratepayers. Commissioners emphasized economic benefits, though the sole dissenting vote raised concerns over renewable energy and costs.
- December 17, 2025: Pima County Board of Supervisors Approval Despite ongoing opposition from residents and Supervisors Andres Cano and Jen Allen over long-term environmental and health impacts, the board approved the project 3-2, paving the way for construction. Developers also closed on the land purchase around this time.
This sequence highlights how initial enthusiasm for economic growth clashed with community-driven environmental advocacy, leading to adaptations like the cooling switch. The rejections and withdrawal created uncertainty, but regulatory approvals in December shifted momentum toward implementation.
Analysis: Why Project Blue Is Moving Forward Anyway
The most interesting signal here isn’t the community opposition, the water fight, or even the regulatory zig-zag. It’s that Project Blue is proceeding without a named hyperscale anchor, even after Amazon reportedly exited.
In most markets, losing a rumored hyperscaler at this stage would stall a project indefinitely. Not here. That alone tells us something important about how large-scale data center development is evolving in 2025.
First, this approval suggests the infrastructure itself has become the product. Beale wasn’t selling a bespoke, single-tenant build. They were selling zoned land, power entitlements, and a regulatory path that had already absorbed the hardest blows. Once the Arizona Corporation Commission approved the energy supply agreement, much of the long-term risk shifted away from the end user and onto the locality. From that point forward, the county was effectively voting on whether it wanted to be “data-center capable” at all, regardless of who ultimately occupies the space.
Second, the air-cooling pivot appears to have done exactly what it needed to do: neutralize water as the veto point, even if it complicated hyperscaler compatibility. If Amazon walked because the cooling design no longer fit its standard deployment model, that doesn’t mean the project failed. It means the project narrowed its buyer pool to operators willing to trade density for political survivability. In the current environment, that’s not a small group. If even half the rumored interest from firms like Meta materializes, the site still pencils out.
Third, the county vote signals a broader regulatory shift. Local governments are increasingly separating “should data centers exist here” from “who exactly will use them.” Once power contracts are approved and zoning is locked, the identity of the tenant becomes almost incidental. That’s a meaningful change from the last hyperscale cycle, where community buy-in was often anchored to a marquee brand name and job promises tied to it.
Finally, Project Blue highlights a growing asymmetry: community resistance is strongest early, but weakest once sunk approvals accumulate. Tucson’s reclaimed water rejection forced meaningful design changes. After that, opposition lost leverage. By December, the remaining decision was less about environmental tradeoffs and more about whether Pima County wanted to reverse momentum already validated by the ACC.
The takeaway is not that opposition failed. It’s that once a project survives the water and power gauntlet, it becomes structurally difficult to stop, even without a visible hyperscaler behind it. Project Blue isn’t an anomaly. It’s a preview of how second-wave AI infrastructure gets built: platform first, tenant later, politics absorbed upfront.
Articles Consulted
| Title | URL | Published Date | Key Information |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pima County Moves Forward With Rejected Data Center | https://azfreenews.com/2025/12/pima-county-moves-forward-with-rejected-data-center/ | December 30, 2025 (approx.) | Details Pima County’s 3-2 approval, Amazon’s withdrawal, cooling switch, and community opposition. |
| Project Blue FAQ | https://www.pima.gov/3552/Project-Blue-FAQ | N/A | Official county summary emphasizing $3.6B investment and economic benefits. |
| Pima County approves Project Blue data center agreement | https://news.azpm.org/s/102339-pima-county-approves-project-blue-data-center-agreement/ | December 17, 2025 | Covers the board’s approval vote and activist opposition. |
| Project Blue Updated Fact Sheet_250713 | https://www.tucsonaz.gov/files/sharedassets/public/v/1/government/city-manager-office/documents/project-blue-updated-fact-sheet_250714.pdf | N/A | City fact sheet on project scope and opportunities. |
| Tucson Project Blue Data Center Factsheet (Aug 2025).docx | https://mediajustice.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Tucson-Project-Blue-Data-Center-Factsheet-Aug-2025.docx.pdf | August 5, 2025 | Opposition fact sheet highlighting concerns over jobs, taxes, and water use. |
| The Project Blue data center proposal sprang up fast — so did the … | https://azluminaria.org/2025/07/21/the-project-blue-data-center-sprang-up-fast-so-did-the-organizing/ | July 21, 2025 | Describes rapid emergence of the proposal and community organizing efforts. |
| Project Blue Community Information Meeting August 4, 2025 | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=692lnQSHctQ | August 4, 2025 | Video of community meeting resisting the project. |
| Why Project Blue is happening and what you can do about it | https://www.reddit.com/r/Tucson/comments/1me5lww/why_project_blue_is_happening_and_what_you_can_do/ | July 31, 2025 | Community discussion urging action against the project. |
| June 10, 2025 – Project Blue Update and Additional Information for … | https://content.civicplus.com/api/assets/c389f127-6e01-48fc-b258-68508aa1841a | June 10, 2025 | Early update on staff meetings and industry support. |
| Newsroom | https://www.pima.gov/2720/Newsroom?contentId=f320deaa-0d2c-4697-8413-4c7261ca4c50&mode=dialog | N/A | County news on project timeline, including 2027 operational start. |
| Pima County approves deal with Beale Infrastructure, pushing … | https://www.kjzz.org/fronteras-desk/2025-12-17/pima-county-approves-deal-with-beale-infrastructure-pushing-project-blue-data-center-forward | December 17, 2025 | Reports on board approval and site details. |
| Tucson City Council rejects Project Blue data center amid intense … | https://azluminaria.org/2025/08/06/tucson-city-council-rejects-project-blue-amid-intense-community-pressure/ | August 6, 2025 | Covers council’s rejection due to community pushback. |
| Project Blue data center still alive despite Tucson city council rejection | https://www.kvoa.com/news/project-blue-data-center-still-alive-despite-tucson-city-council-rejection/article_900854b7-3ea7-4e11-986b-15d2d31f832d.html | August 26, 2025 | Discusses project’s continuation post-rejection. |
| Tucson cut ties with Amazon’s controversial data center Project Blue | https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/arizona/2025/08/07/tucson-city-council-rejects-project-blue-proposal/85551559007/ | August 7, 2025 | Details unanimous rejection over resource concerns. |
| Tucson rejects Amazon-linked data center amid water, energy … | https://www.azfamily.com/2025/08/09/tucson-rejects-amazon-linked-data-center-amid-water-energy-concerns/ | August 8, 2025 | Reports on rejection after public outcry. |
| How One Arizona City Blocked a Data Center | https://www.earthisland.org/journal/index.php/articles/entry/how-one-arizona-city-blocked-a-data-center/ | November 19, 2025 | Retrospective on Tucson’s block and pledge for ordinances. |
| Residents cheer as Tucson rejects Amazon’s massive Project Blue … | https://www.datacenterdynamics.com/en/news/residents-cheer-as-tucson-rejects-amazons-massive-project-blue-data-center-campus-in-arizona/ | August 8, 2025 | Highlights public celebration of the decision. |
| Tough Reception for Controversial Tucson, Ariz., Data Center | https://www.govtech.com/policy/tough-reception-for-controversial-tucson-ariz-data-center | August 8, 2025 | Notes public pressure leading to non-proceeding. |
| After ousting Project Blue, Tucson adopts new city regulations for … | https://www.kjzz.org/fronteras-desk/2025-08-21/after-ousting-project-blue-tucson-adopts-new-city-regulations-for-large-water-users | August 21, 2025 | Covers new regulations post-rejection. |
| Amazon pulls out of embattled Project Blue | https://www.kold.com/2025/12/02/county-city-leaders-amazon-pulls-out-embattled-project-blue/ | December 2, 2025 | Announces Amazon’s exit and potential replacements. |
| Amazon backs out of Project Blue data center campus in Arizona | https://www.datacenterdynamics.com/en/news/amazon-backs-out-of-project-blue-data-center-campus-in-arizona-report/ | December 5, 2025 | Links withdrawal to cooling change. |
| Rejected by Tucson and abandoned by Amazon, Project Blue data … | https://www.kjzz.org/the-show/2025-12-09/rejected-by-tucson-and-abandoned-by-amazon-project-blue-data-center-moves-forward | December 9, 2025 | Discusses continuation despite setbacks. |
| Tucson’s Project Blue won’t have Amazon as end user, supervisors … | https://www.kvoa.com/news/local/tucsons-project-blue-wont-have-amazon-as-end-user-supervisors-say/article_43b6bd36-017c-48eb-9d70-5c3b844debdb.html | N/A | Confirms Amazon’s non-involvement. |
| Project Blue developers close on purchase of Pima County land for … | https://www.tucsonsentinel.com/local/report/122425_project_blue_close/ | December 24, 2025 (approx.) | Reports land purchase and Amazon’s exit. |
| Amazon pulls out of Project Blue data centers, sources say | https://www.reddit.com/r/Tucson/comments/1pcfnde/amazon_pulls_out_of_project_blue_data_centers/ | December 2, 2025 | Community discussion on air cooling incompatibility. |
| Vice Chair Myers Pushes Back on Data Center “Green New Deal … | https://www.azcc.gov/news/home/2025/12/05/vice-chair-myers-pushes-back-on-data-center–green-new-deal–commitment | December 5, 2025 | Details ACC’s 4-1 approval. |
| Arizona Corporation Commission gives green light to Project Blue … | https://azluminaria.org/2025/12/03/arizona-corporation-commission-gives-green-light-to-project-blue-power-agreement/ | December 3, 2025 | Explains approval rationale for utility customers. |
| ACC greenlights energy agreement for TEP to power Project Blue … | https://azcapitoltimes.com/news/2025/12/04/acc-greenlights-energy-agreement-for-tep-to-power-project-blue-data-center/ | December 4, 2025 | Covers ACC vote and developers. |
| Arizona Corporation Commission approves TEP agreement … | https://www.kgun9.com/news/local-news/arizona-corporation-commission-approves-tep-agreement-connected-to-controversial-project-blue-data-center | N/A | Reports 4-1 vote and agreement details. |
| Arizona regulators approve TEP deal to power controversial Pima … | https://news.azpm.org/p/azpmnews/2025/12/10/227598-arizona-regulators-approve-tep-deal-to-power-controversial-pima-county-data-center | December 10, 2025 | Discusses debates over costs and renewables. |
| Project Blue electricity plan approved, paving the way for … | https://www.kjzz.org/fronteras-desk/2025-12-05/project-blue-electricity-plan-approved-paving-the-way-for-controversial-tucson-data-center | December 5, 2025 | Notes dissenting vote and data center needs. |
| ACC approves TEP Energy Supply Agreement for proposed data … | https://www.kold.com/2025/12/04/acc-approves-tep-energy-supply-agreement-proposed-data-center/ | December 3, 2025 | Confirms agreement with Humphrey’s Peak Power. |
