A company called Townsite Solar 2 LLC wanted to build a data center near Boulder City. First, it asked the city for permission to use city-owned land. Then something changed. The company pulled that request.
Instead, it's moving forward on a nearby piece of federal land, thanks to a decision by the Bureau of Land Management.
What Happened
The original plan was for an 88.5-acre data center on land owned by Boulder City. Since February, city leaders had been walking through a public process. Residents got a chance to weigh in. The Planning Commission was set to make a recommendation.
But at the same time, the same company applied to the BLM for a separate approval. That request covered 80 acres of federal land right next door. On June 26, the BLM said yes. It amended a right-of-way grant to allow a data center there.
Here's the catch. Back in 2023, the BLM had already studied that land under a federal law called NEPA. That study looked at solar power and battery storage. Not a data center. Critics say approving a data center under a solar-focused study skips real scrutiny.
City Manager Ned Thomas addressed the shift directly.
“Since February, the city has followed the city's (land management process) to facilitate an open and transparent discussion with residents about the possibility of leasing city land for a data center,” he said in a city release.
The developer who proposed the TS2 Data Center near I-11 and US-95 has withdrawn its application to BC. The Bureau of Land Management approved TS2’s application to amend its ROW Grant for a data center at an adjacent federally-owned parcel.
News release: https://t.co/BhzxRSpbT7— CityofBoulderCityNV (@BoulderCityNev) July 7, 2026
Why Boulder City Became Ground Zero
This isn't just one project. Boulder City has turned into the loudest anti-data-center flashpoint in the state.
It started with 350 hand-painted yard signs popping up across town. A Change.org petition against the project gathered more than 6,200 signatures.
Resident Brynn deLorimier compared it to the town's ban on gambling:
“We're a historic town at our heart and soul, and one example of that is with respect to gambling. We've all said we just don't want it in this town, even though it's lucrative.
You can do it right up the street at Railroad Pass, a five-minute drive away. We said, ‘We don't care, we don't want it, bring it there.'”
The pushback moved the Planning Commission, too. More than 20 residents turned out to protest before the vote, and commissioners recommended rejecting the project 6-1.
One commissioner didn't hold back on the developer's water claims:
“I don't want to be rude, but that is absurd. There are hourly blowdowns all over the equipment. You're going to be constantly refilling the system. That's just the nature of the animal.
If you're putting out misinformation like this, how can I trust anything else you people say?”
Boulder City is one of only two Nevada communities — Panaca is the other — that prohibits gambling. Residents see this fight the same way. It's about whether a small town's character gets overridden by outside development pressure, even after the community said no.
Why This Matters To Conservatives
Conservatives believe government works best close to home. City councils answer to the people who live there. Federal agencies in Washington do not. When a company can route around local government by going federal, it weakens the whole idea of local control.
There's also a dollars-and-cents angle.
Initial estimates put the annual lease value for a data center on city land at roughly $1.47 million, while a competitive bid process likely would have brought in more, adding up to roughly $2.3 million a year in total new revenue including property taxes, permit fees, and administrative charges. That's money that could pay for police, fire, and water infrastructure — money the city may now lose out on.
The Ballot Question
Voters will still have a say. Boulder City's November ballot includes a question asking whether data center facilities should be an approved land use in the Eldorado Valley Transfer Area, outside a protected habitat zone.
A “yes” vote wouldn't approve any specific project. It would simply let the council consider future lease proposals there.
A separate citizens' effort tried to go further, pushing a measure that would have required voter approval before the city could commit land, water, or power to any future data center townwide. That petition needed 1,700 signatures by the end of June. It came up short, so that broader measure won't appear on the ballot.
What Critics And Supporters Are Saying
Supporters of the shift to federal land say it's simply the company using an available legal pathway. Nothing stops a business from applying to more than one government body at once. Federal land is federal land, and the BLM has its own review process.
But skeptics point to a real problem. The 2023 environmental study never evaluated a data center's water use, power draw, or noise. It evaluated solar panels and batteries. Swapping in a data center under that old approval, they argue, dodges the kind of scrutiny NEPA is supposed to guarantee.
Not Just A Boulder City Problem
This fight is playing out across Nevada.
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Reno was the first city in the state to hit pause on new data center construction permits, and that pause has since been extended into 2027.
Nye County commissioners approved their own temporary moratorium after the county's water district raised alarms about a stressed aquifer in the Pahrump Valley.
Henderson is weighing a 180-day building pause of its own.
Clark County is a different story. Commissioners just approved a Switch data center expansion in the southwest valley on June 17. Weeks later, on July 7, more than a dozen residents and environmental advocates packed the commission chambers urging a pause.
Commissioners took no formal action, but two of them, William McCurdy and Tick Segerblom, said they'll work together on a framework that could set uniform standards for future projects. Segerblom called it potentially “Herculean.”
Commissioner Jim Gibson pointed to the county's existing conservation plan, saying:
“It's critical to us that we keep looking, keep searching for improvements that we can make.”
That's the tension conservatives should watch. Local governments are the ones stepping up to pump the brakes, exactly as you'd expect in a system built on local control.
But when a company can sidestep a city and go to the federal government instead, as happened in Boulder City, it shows those local guardrails only work as well as Washington lets them.
What Happens Next
There's a 30-day window to appeal the BLM's decision. Boulder City's council meets July 14. It will hear the Planning Commission's recommendation and decide whether to file a formal appeal. A city council resolution already on the table would authorize the city attorney to challenge the BLM's approval and ask for a stay.
Conservatives who care about local control should watch that July 14 meeting closely. Show up. Speak up. Contact council members. This is exactly the kind of decision where local voices can still make a difference, if people show up before it's finalized.
The opinions expressed by contributors are their own and do not necessarily represent the views of Nevada News & Views. This article was written with the assistance of AI. Please verify information and consult additional sources as needed.
