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2026 Maine Senate
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Last Update: 10/27/2026 at 5:34 AM EST
Massachusetts Data Center Development
Coverage from Greenfield Recorder, Boston Globe, and others
Data-center development in Massachusetts brings local land-use decisions together with statewide permitting and environmental safeguards.
The policy debate includes local approval and public participation, community benefits agreements, clean-energy and grid requirements, water and wastewater capacity, emissions, and protections against shifting project costs to ratepayers. State rules and municipal decisions intersect in project disputes, including opposition to Markley Group generator plans in Lowell. Together, these issues show how communities and public agencies weigh infrastructure needs and potential impacts when deciding whether and how data centers may be built.
Key Articles4 of 82 articles
If you read one thing
It gives the clearest broad overview of the new local-approval framework and its implications for projects already in the permitting pipeline.
Best explainer
It explains the resource and grid obligations while identifying unresolved transition and enforcement questions.
The evidence
Its reporting on the Lowell permit challenge shows how participation and pollution-review questions play out in a concrete case.
The local angle
It connects the statewide rules to the proposed Westfield campus and the growing local resistance shaping project approvals.
Key Issues
Local consent is a permitting gate
Massachusetts requires local approval and a state-standard community benefits agreement before covered projects can advance through state permitting. Municipal bans, moratoria, and proposed restrictions add further local barriers to development.
Large projects must address resource and grid costs
Permitting for large data centers is tied to clean-power procurement or alternative payments, water protections, and safeguards against shifting grid-upgrade costs to other ratepayers. Infrastructure readiness and environmental compliance are also part of the state approval framework.
Transition rules and existing-project disputes remain unresolved
The order leaves uncertainty about how requirements apply to projects already under review or development, and questions persist about enforcing community commitments. Litigation over Lowell’s Markley facility shows that existing permits and environmental review remain contested as well.
Key Numbers
25 megawatts
peak electricity demand threshold
“Under the executive order, data center projects with peak electricity demand above 25 megawatts must demonstrate compliance with the administration's framework to obtain permits.”
360-day days
moratorium duration
“In March, Lowell’s City Council imposed a 360-day moratorium on expanding existing data centers and constructing new ones; the existing Markley facility was grandfathered in.”
about $1 million per structure
cost of decibel-reduction structures
“Markley said the company has spent millions of dollars on sound attenuation and landscaping. Twenty-one operating diesel backup generators on the north side of the facility are enclosed in decibel-reduction structures costing about $1 million each, in addition to the generators’ approximate $30,000 cost. Four generators on the south side are buffered by an earthen berm, trees and shrubs. The 16 chillers on the east side are being placed in a soundproofed enclosure.”
10 buildings
planned campus buildings
“The order could affect a multibillion-dollar project proposed by Servistar Realties in Westfield. The company has proposed a campus of 10 buildings constructed over a decade.”
274 megawatts
electricity requirement of proposed project
“The project would require 274 megawatts of electricity, roughly enough to power all the homes in a mid-sized city, and would be the largest data center project in New England.”
Looking Back
162 Day Timeline
May 13
Jun 9
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Aug 23
Sep 19
Oct 13
The Story So Far
No material change
The new reporting reinforces existing local opposition and permitting concerns but does not establish a material change in Massachusetts data-center policy or project status.
Previously
Massachusetts is adding local approval and community benefits requirements before proposed data centers can advance through state permitting. Facilities over 25 megawatts face standards addressing clean electricity, grid and infrastructure costs, water, wastewater, emissions, and community engagement; projects unable to meet some energy requirements may pay into a Ratepayer Protection Fund. The rules follow local disputes and sit alongside municipal proposals to restrict or more closely review facilities, making project approvals and timelines more dependent on local consent and demonstrated capacity.
History
10/27/2026
A court halt on four proposed generators at Markley Group’s Lowell facility adds a concrete legal setback over data-center impacts. Municipal restrictions have also gained measurable traction, with 18 communities adopting or approving limits and at least 17 more considering them.
All Articles82 articles
Important
Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey issued Executive Order 658 on September 8, requiring local approval and state review before data centers can advance statewide.
9/15/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
Everett, Massachusetts, approved a conditional ordinance for a future data center on a former ExxonMobil site near the Mystic River, limiting footprint and electrical capacity.
5/26/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
Massachusetts issued Executive Order 658 on September 8, 2026, requiring large data center projects statewide to secure community benefits agreements and environmental justice review before permits.
9/17/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
Westfield, Massachusetts saw a $4 billion hyperscale data center proposal collapse after missing environmental permits and grid and substation milestones.
6/6/2026 • Community & Local Opposition • General
Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey established Executive Order No. 658 on September 10, 2026, creating statewide review requirements for large data center projects in Massachusetts.
9/10/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
Lowell residents sued the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection in Middlesex Superior Court over its 2025 approval of Markley Group's data center expansion in Lowell, Massachusetts.
7/29/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
Jim Fleming filed a Massachusetts ballot initiative seeking statewide data center permitting safeguards ahead of a possible 2028 vote in Massachusetts.
8/26/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
Mansfield Massachusetts voters approved May 5 Article 23, creating dedicated zoning that restricts data centers to Tier I facilities under special permits with detailed noise, power, and water requirements.
5/13/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey signed Executive Order 658 in 2025, requiring developers of data centers exceeding 25 megawatts to submit community benefits agreements for state approval in Massachusetts.
10/12/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
Bedford planners are preparing dedicated data center zoning rules for November while Massachusetts requires large facilities to address grid costs, clean power, and community impacts.
9/10/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
New Bedford Mayor Jon Mitchell filed a citywide data center prohibition proposal on September 1 as Massachusetts officials examined local infrastructure and permitting impacts.
9/8/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
Westfield City Council approved a one-year data center moratorium on July 6, 2026, after public hearings in Westfield, Massachusetts, to assess environmental and infrastructure impacts.
8/8/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
Lowell residents sued MassDEP and Markley Group over a data center expansion on July 29 in Lowell, Massachusetts, alleging unlawful permitting and neighborhood pollution risks.
8/4/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
On July 13, 2026, Senator Edward J. Markey released a discussion draft requiring federal certification before data center permitting and construction and offering community monitoring grants.
7/13/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
Hopkinton Town Council voted to study and recommend an ordinance prohibiting data centers, citing environmental, water, and power impacts amid no current local build plans.
7/11/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
Massachusetts state lawmakers passed Senate Bill S.3143 in the Senate to impose clean energy, water, reporting, and tax-exemption conditions on new or expanded data centers.
7/7/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
Holyoke City Council voted 9-4 in Massachusetts on a zoning amendment that bans new data center development while allowing a 12-megawatt capped HPC center to operate.
6/17/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
Holyoke’s City Council passed a 9-4 ban on AI data centers over 12 MW on Tuesday after weeks of public opposition tied to water and local utility supply concerns.
6/17/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
Mansfield, Massachusetts voters approved Article 23 on May 5 to restrict most data centers through tiered zoning and noise and water requirements.
5/15/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
On September 14, 2026, Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey issued an order requiring local approval and community benefits agreements before state permitting for covered data centers in Massachusetts.
9/13/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
Boston City Councilor Miniard Culpepper proposed a citywide zoning ban on new data centers and expansions, with approval pending before the Boston Zoning Commission in Massachusetts.
9/18/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
Westfield City Council approved a unanimous 12-month data center moratorium on July 6, 2026 after resident concerns, with Massachusetts pausing data center tax incentives for new guardrails.
7/13/2026 • Community & Local Opposition • General
Massachusetts developers and contractors are evaluating data center power, permitting, incentives, and contract risks before construction begins across Massachusetts and New England.
9/1/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
Boston City Councilor Miniard Culpepper proposed in 2026 a zoning amendment that would require community review and variances for new data centers in Boston.
9/15/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
Westfield's Planning Board considered extending Servistar Realties LLC's permit for a proposed $4 billion data center campus in Westfield, Massachusetts, amid local opposition and state utility requirements.
9/15/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
As of Oct. 15, Massachusetts communities had enacted or considered data center moratoriums and bans over concerns about noise, water use, emissions and land use.
10/15/2026 • Community & Local Opposition • General
Westfield, Massachusetts, imposed a one-year moratorium on additional data centers after residents and officials raised water, air-quality, and power-rate concerns tied to a Servistar campus.
7/14/2026 • Community & Local Opposition • General
Lowell residents sued MassDEP and Markley Group in April over generator and cooling-tower approvals at Markley Lowell, while opposition expanded around noise, utility costs, water, and future development.
8/8/2026 • Community & Local Opposition • General
On Tuesday in Massachusetts, Gov. Maura Healey required proposed data centers to secure local approval and meet energy, water, and ratepayer conditions before state permitting.
9/8/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey signed an order in Boston requiring local approval, community benefits agreements, and energy safeguards before data centers receive state permits.
9/13/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey signed Executive Order 658 on September 8, requiring state agencies to condition permits for data centers above 25 megawatts on environmental, power, water, and community safeguards.
9/10/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey ordered state agencies in late June to require local approval and framework compliance before permitting proposed data centers statewide.
9/9/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey signed an executive order requiring data center developers statewide to secure community agreements and fund grid impacts for projects of 25 megawatts or more.
9/9/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey signed an executive order requiring local approval and infrastructure safeguards for proposed data centers across Massachusetts.
9/9/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey signed an executive order requiring local approval and community benefits agreements for data centers statewide, while New Bedford considers a prohibition.
9/9/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey signed an executive order requiring local approvals, clean-energy compliance, and cost coverage before state agencies permit large data centers in Massachusetts.
9/8/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey signed an executive order Tuesday requiring data centers statewide to obtain local approval and meet infrastructure and ratepayer protections before state permitting.
9/8/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey signed Executive Order 658 on September 8, requiring large data centers statewide to satisfy community, energy, water, and ratepayer protections before receiving state permits.
9/8/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey signed an executive order requiring data centers above 25 megawatts to obtain local approval and meet energy and community requirements statewide.
9/8/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey signed an executive order requiring local approval and community benefits agreements before state agencies permit data center projects in Massachusetts.
9/8/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey is scheduled to address data center safeguards at the Massachusetts State House after Westfield and Holyoke restricted new projects.
9/8/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey issued a September 8, 2026 executive order requiring community benefits and impact protections for new data centers statewide, while Lowell residents continue reporting pollution and noise concerns.
9/8/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey signed an order Tuesday requiring local approval and new energy safeguards for data centers seeking state permits across Massachusetts.
9/8/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
Interesting
Cynthia Mendes and Mireille Bejjani urged Massachusetts officials in a recent op-ed to prioritize environmental justice and community participation in data-center decisions statewide.
8/12/2026 • Community & Local Opposition • General
In 2026, Servistar Realties and construction unions promoted a proposed $4 billion data center complex in Westfield, Massachusetts, while residents and politicians challenged environmental and utility impacts.
8/1/2026 • Community & Local Opposition • General
Westfield residents expressed environmental and infrastructure concerns in a recent poll as officials reviewed Servistar Realties LLC's proposed data center campus in Massachusetts.
9/18/2026 • Community & Local Opposition • General
During a heat wave in Lowell, Massachusetts, residents and officials criticized a Markley Group data center for air quality and zoning impacts tied to electricity demand and backup diesel generators.
7/11/2026 • Community & Local Opposition • General
Lowell, Massachusetts residents and officials contested data center zoning at a community forum as heat-wave conditions raised concerns about power strain and diesel generator air quality.
7/11/2026 • Community & Local Opposition • General
WBZ-TV reported that Lowell, Massachusetts imposed a one-year moratorium on data-center expansion as residents raised concerns about Markley’s existing facility power and water impacts.
6/17/2026 • Community & Local Opposition • General
Wilmington officials in Massachusetts are considering a bylaw before a September 29 hearing to prohibit primary-use data centers above two megawatts and permit smaller facilities conditionally.
9/20/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
Mansfield, Massachusetts approved a data center zoning bylaw limiting maximum electrical demand to 2 megawatts after residents voted earlier this month.
5/16/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
Westerly, Rhode Island Town Council consulted solicitor William Conley on temporary moratorium and zoning options for potential data center proposals.
6/28/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
Holyoke, Massachusetts, with Mayor Joshua Garcia signing, adopted a zoning amendment banning new data centers while capping the existing Massachusetts Green High-Performance Computing Center at 12 megawatts.
6/19/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
Holyoke City Council voted 9-4 on Tuesday to pass a citywide ordinance banning data centers, blocking a proposed $200 million Water Street project in Holyoke, Massachusetts.
6/17/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
Ten Lowell residents sued Markley Group and the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection in April over generator and cooling-tower approvals at Markley's Lowell colocation campus.
9/13/2026 • Community & Local Opposition • General
Lowell residents sued Markley Group and the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection in April over permits for generators and cooling equipment at Markley Lowell, as Lowell imposed a data-center expansion moratorium.
9/13/2026 • Community & Local Opposition • General
Gov. Maura Healey said Massachusetts will keep paused sales- and use-tax exemptions for qualified data centers until statewide protections address resident impacts and environmental requirements.
7/12/2026 • Policy & Utility Planning • General
Gov. Maura Healey required Massachusetts data center developers to obtain local approval and address energy, environmental, and community impacts statewide.
9/8/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
Lowell Massachusetts residents and Markley Group data center neighbors prompt a 10-0 City Council vote for a one-year expansion moratorium in February.
7/5/2026 • Community & Local Opposition • General
Lowell, Massachusetts residents and Lowell City Council voted for a one-year moratorium in February due to community concerns about a Markley Group data center expansion and associated noise, air quality, and water use.
7/2/2026 • Community & Local Opposition • General
Lowell, Massachusetts residents and officials increased opposition to a Markley Group data center, leading to a one-year expansion moratorium after heat-wave-driven cooling and air-quality concerns.
7/2/2026 • Community & Local Opposition • General
At a June 29 Lowell, Massachusetts, zoning forum, police removed 14-year-old EY after EY attempted to speak about data-center expansion amid neighborhood concerns and subsequent online threats.
8/23/2026 • Community & Local Opposition • General
Massachusetts lawmakers advanced S.3143 in the Senate to restrict data centers through clean energy, water standards, public reporting, and tax-exemption consequences after local bans in Holyoke and others.
7/12/2026 • Policy & Utility Planning • General
Massachusetts Senate passed S.3143 to require clean energy, water protections, and reporting for data centers while limiting tax incentives, amid local moratoriums in Holyoke and Western Massachusetts.
7/8/2026 • Policy & Utility Planning • General
Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey announced a pause on data center sales and use tax exemption applications and issued siting guidance tied to clean energy and environmental and water protections.
6/29/2026 • Policy & Utility Planning • General
Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey announced a pause on accepting data center sales and use tax exemption applications while state guidance increases energy and water protections.
6/28/2026 • Project Finance & Incentives • General
Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey halted applications for 20-year data center sales and use tax exemptions, linking future approval to protections against higher energy bills and water-related environmental impacts.
6/27/2026 • Project Finance & Incentives • General
Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey announced a pause on accepting new data center tax exemption applications while issuing a framework for clean energy, water and air safeguards.
6/25/2026 • Policy & Utility Planning • General
Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey announced a pause on data center sales tax exemption applications and issued a responsible development framework to protect residents, ratepayers, and public health.
6/25/2026 • Policy & Utility Planning • General
Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey paused new data center sales tax exemption applications and issued a framework defining energy, water, public health, and community expectations.
6/25/2026 • Policy & Utility Planning • General
Gov. Maura Healey in Massachusetts announced a data center guidance framework and a temporary halt to tax breaks tied to clean energy, grid and water upgrade costs, and community protections.
6/25/2026 • Policy & Utility Planning • General
In Lowell, Massachusetts, a community forum on data center development tied to a zoning rewrite ended with police removing a 14-year-old student during public comment.
6/30/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey issued a Sept. 8 order requiring data centers above 25 megawatts to satisfy state development standards and community-benefit conditions statewide.
9/19/2026 • Policy & Utility Planning • General
Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey announced data center guidance that halts tax breaks and requires clean energy, developer-funded grid and water upgrades, and health and environmental safeguards.
6/26/2026 • Policy & Utility Planning • General
Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey and state lawmakers are pursuing stricter data center rules as large facilities increase grid costs and community concerns across Massachusetts.
9/7/2026 • Policy & Utility Planning • General
Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey signed an executive order requiring proposed data centers across Massachusetts to secure local approval and meet energy, water, and transparency conditions before state permitting.
9/14/2026 • Permitting & Regulation • General
Lowell residents during a heat wave raised concerns about data center cooling operations and backup diesel generator emissions affecting neighborhood air quality and health.
7/2/2026 • Community & Local Opposition • General
On June 2, 2026, Westfield Mayor Mike McCabe said the city was reviewing Servistar's revived data center project in Westfield, Massachusetts, for potential water, power, and municipal service impacts.
6/2/2026 • Community & Local Opposition • General
Mike Minogue's Massachusetts campaign opposes new data center development, arguing that added electricity demand would increase grid pressure and costs for households across Massachusetts.
9/8/2026 • Policy & Utility Planning • General
Massachusetts released a statewide data center framework on expectations for power, water, and permitting, while temporarily pausing applications for the state sales and use tax exemption.
7/2/2026 • Policy & Utility Planning • General
Additional
Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey paused data center tax incentives in 2026 and released a framework focused on energy cost protections, pollution mitigation, and water safeguards for communities.
6/25/2026 • Project Finance & Incentives • General
Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey was scheduled to announce data center policies Tuesday at the State House amid disputes over power, water, and local approval authority.
9/8/2026 • Policy & Utility Planning • General