Mount Shasta appoints new acting city manager, contracts with new attorney, amid ongoing data center concerns

Amid ongoing public controversy regarding a data center inquiry, the city of Mount Shasta, located an hour north of Redding, has made two significant changes to top personnel. 

The agenda for Mount Shasta’s regular city council meeting yesterday noted that the council had recently released John Kenny, Mount Shasta’s previous city attorney, and had also placed Todd Juhasz, Mount Shasta’s city manager, on “paid administrative leave pending further review.” 

The changes were voted on in a closed meeting of the council on July 8.

About two weeks earlier, on June 22, Juhasz revealed during a city council meeting that an unnamed entity — which has since been revealed by SFGate as Dunlieh Infrastructure Group — had reached out about the potential to develop a data center project. The company, based in San Diego County, is a digital infrastructure developer which focuses on developing and powering data centers. So far, there’s been no evidence of a previous data center project completed by Dunlieh. 

According to Juhasz, Dunlieh had expressed interest in utilizing the former Crystal Geyser bottling site. That site, which is currently for sale, is located on unincorporated land that straddles the city of Mount Shasta and an unincorporated area of Siskiyou County. An earlier real estate posting for the site noted that it could be ideal for a data center, although the wording has since been updated to remove that language.

The information shared by Juhasz in June led to fierce pushback from community members, many who have voiced concerns about a data center being built in an area known for its clear water. Both Mount Shasta city officials and Siskiyou County supervisors have noted that they aren’t interested in a data center being built while attempting to reduce community fears. Mount Shasta city officials have also noted the site could potentially be annexed into the city in agreement with Siskiyou County, which would provide the city more control over the land moving forward. 

It’s unclear if Mount Shasta’s changes in personnel are related to the ongoing discussion about the data center. At yesterday’s council meeting, the city provided no explanation for Juhasz’s leave or for the city’s change in legal representation. 

To temporarily replace Juhasz, the council appointed Kim Fowler, the current planning director, as acting city manager. Before the vote, city officials noted that they weren’t able to comment on personnel matters, and emphasized that Juhasz’s leave, while for an indefinite period, was not a disciplinary action. 

“The council is well within its rights to manage its employees as it sees fit, and Mr. Juhasz remains as a city employee, and his contract remains in effect,” the city attorney noted. “He has not been terminated.” 

In response to questions today, both Fowler and Mount Shasta Mayor Casey Glaubman reiterated that they were unable to provide additional context for Juhasz’s leave. 

“Unfortunately, as the City Attorney shared with the City Council and the general public last night, city staff cannot comment on personnel matters, and this is one of them,” Fowler wrote in an email to Shasta Scout. 

In the same meeting, the city also approved a contract with legal firm Colantuono, Highsmith & Whatley, PC for legal services. The city attorney role is responsible for providing legal guidance and representation for the council and the city as a whole. John Kenny, Mount Shasta’s previous attorney, served in his role for over two decades. 

“With regards to the change in firms performing legal services, the City Attorney reports to and is hired by the City Council,” Glaubman wrote to Shasta Scout today. “We absolutely thank Mr. Kenny for his many years of service to our city, but the City Council opted to contract with a new attorney moving forward.” 

Many community members showed up to yesterday’s council meeting to voice their concerns about the potential for a data center, with some also offering alternative ideas for how the former Crystal Geyser facility could be used. 

Council member Tessa Clure responded with enthusiasm.

“These ideas in replacement of the data center for the Crystal Geyser building are amazing,” Clure said during the meeting, noting that residents, not council members, ultimately hold the most power — by voicing their concerns and organizing alternate initiatives. 

“We’ll do our job to best support,” Clure added, “but I would love to see this kind of commitment and momentum moving forward from all of you.” 

Moe Shimizu is a student at Yale University. She’s reporting for Shasta Scout as a 2026 summer intern, with support from the Nonprofit Newsroom Internship Program — created by The Scripps Howard Fund and the Institute for Nonprofit News.

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