Mississauga council voted unanimously Wednesday to put a one-year freeze on new data centre projects, the latest municipality to hit the brakes on the artificial intelligence-fuelled build out.
The pause is framed as a chance to study what guardrails the city could place around new data centres as local lawmakers grapple with residents’ concerns about possible energy, water and noise impacts.
“We’ve heard your voice loud and clear,” said Martin Reid, the councillor who sponsored the moratorium.
Municipalities have found themselves on the front line of a debate over how to handle a new wave of data centre projects cropping up across Ontario.
While Ontario has long hosted data centres handling digital services, from cloud storage to financial transactions, the AI boom has led to a surge in projects with far more intensive energy demands.
Mississauga joins neighbouring Oakville, which last month passed the province’s first moratorium. Other cities, including Hamilton and Burlington, have directed staff to carry out data centre planning studies but rejected a moratorium
Mississauga’s pause applies to data centres with energy demands over 10 megawatts, or enough electricity to power roughly 10,000 homes.
The vote appears to put in limbo a 40-megawatt data centre project in a business park in the city’s northwest pursued by Prologis, a major U.S.-headquartered firm.
In a statement, the company said it’s disappointed by the vote and was considering its next steps.
“We remain committed to Mississauga and confident that a carefully planned data centre in Meadowvale Business Park can bring significant long-term economic benefits to the community,” read the statement.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 16, 2026.
Jordan Omstead, The Canadian Press
