Monterey Park, a small city seven miles east of downtown Los Angeles, became the first in California to pass a measure permanently banning the construction of data centers. The city council voted unanimously on three overlapping ordinances that officially label data centers a public nuisance, and “prohibit all data centers within city limits.”

The vote came after an hours-long public comment period, in which dozens of Monterey Park residents spoke out against the prospect of new data center construction, and after months of community organizing galvanized opposition to the project. No Data Centers Monterey Park (NDCMP), a small band of concerned citizens, and the San Gabriel Valley Progressive Action, a local activist group, made headlines earlier this year when they successfully pushed the city to halt a proposed data center project.

But the organizers weren’t done. They pushed city council to take up an ordinance installing a permanent ban, and to put a measure to voters to enshrine it at the ballot box, ensuring the ban could only be overturned by another such democratic vote. The ordinance passed on April 20th, and the ballot measure is up for a vote on June 2nd.