BESSEMER, Ala.—The reverend knew what was coming.

As Tuesday’s City Council meeting began, The Rev. Thomas Thrash delivered a prayer that set the stage for the dynamic that would play out in the council chambers.

“May truth rise above deception,” Thrash said. “May righteousness rise above greed.”

Thrash requested divine guidance to help the council consider the harm a proposed hyperscale data center could bring to Bessemer and the surrounding, rural communities in central Alabama.

After the prayer, the council got down to business. Despite vocal opposition from residents, local and state environmental groups and the NAACP, the entire council—save one absent member—voted to amend the city’s zoning code to allow the location of data centers in areas designated for light industrial use.

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