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Eastport council schedules Aug. 5 hearings on petitions to restrict large-scale data centers and require voter approval
Summary
After weeks of public pressure, the Eastport City Council scheduled public hearings for Aug. 5 on petitioned ordinances that would (1) prohibit large-scale data centers and (2) require voter approval for certain commercial or industrial projects. Councilors clarified publication and venue logistics and heard sustained public comment urging the ballot measures be left unchanged.
The Eastport City Council moved on Monday to schedule public hearings for two petitioned ordinances — one that would prohibit large-scale data centers and another that would require voter approval for certain commercial and industrial developments — setting the hearings for Wednesday, Aug. 5 at 6 p.m., with publication targeted for July 24.
The scheduling motion was made during agenda adjustments and was approved after a second and a roll call. Councilors discussed whether to hold the hearings during a regular meeting or on a special date; the Aug. 5 special date was chosen pending confirmation of venue availability.
The action follows repeated public comments at the council meeting. Jonathon Middleton, an Eastport resident, asked why the city had not filed a challenge with FERC after he said the data-center applicant, identified in public comment as Deep Green, had represented community benefit agreements in a federal filing that, in his view, were inaccurate. The city manager said he would raise the issue in the city manager’s report and review the FERC docket.
Other residents urged the council not to alter petition language before it reaches voters. One commenter, identifying herself as Britney, told the council: “Do not weaken the language. Do not amend them in a way that will allow a data center to come and build here without voter approval,” and urged the council to place the petitions on the November ballot “the way that it is.” Another resident pressed whether any council or port-authority members had signed nondisclosure agreements with the data-center company.
City staff advised the council that the ordinance requires publication in the local newspaper and that legal timelines put the earliest feasible hearing after the July 24 publication date. The council directed staff to confirm the Aug. 5 venue availability (the Port Authority venue was discussed as an option) and to proceed with required public-notice steps.
What happens next: staff will confirm the hearing venue and publish the legal notice on July 24. The council will hold the hearings on Aug. 5; any formal action on the petition language, or placement on the ballot, would follow the hearing process.
