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BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
<br /> COUNTY OF KITTITAS
<br /> STATE OF WASHINGTON
<br /> RESOLUTION NO. 2026-
<br /> ADOPTING AN EMERGENCY SIX-MONTH MORATORIUM ON THE
<br /> ACCEPTANCE, PROCESSING,AND APPROVAL OF LAND USE APPLICATIONS
<br /> FOR DATA CENTERS; SETTING A PUBLIC HEARING; ESTABLISHING A WORK
<br /> PROGRAM; ADOPTING FINDINGS OF FACT; AND DECLARING AN EMERGENCY
<br /> PURSUANT TO RCW 36.70A.390
<br /> WHEREAS, Kittitas County is as Washington county planning under the Growth Management Act,
<br /> RCW 36.70A; and
<br /> WHEREAS, RCW 36.70A.390 authorizes the Board of County Commissioners to adopt a
<br /> moratorium or interim official control, including without first holding a public hearing, provided
<br /> that a public hearing is held within the time required by law; and
<br /> WHEREAS, RCW 36.70A.390 provides that a moratorium or interim official control adopted
<br /> pursuant to that section may be effective for not longer than six months unless a work plan is
<br /> developed for related studies supporting a longer period; and
<br /> WHEREAS, Data Centers are a rapidly evolving land use involving large-scale buildings, high
<br /> electrical demand, backup power systems, mechanical cooling systems, water or wastewater
<br /> considerations, noise-producing equipment, exterior lighting, traffic and construction impacts,
<br /> emergency response considerations, and potential impacts to public infrastructure and neighboring
<br /> land uses; and
<br /> WHEREAS, Kittitas County existing land use, zoning, development, environmental, building,
<br /> infrastructure, and permitting regulations may not adequately define, classify, review, condition, or
<br /> mitigate data center development or data center-related facilities; and
<br /> WHEREAS, the County has a legitimate and substantial public interesting evaluating whether data
<br /> centers should be specifically defined and regulated within Kittitas County Code, including but not
<br /> limited to review of zoning districts, conditional use requirements, development standards, utility
<br /> and infrastructure impacts, energy and water demand, emergency access, fire protection, noise,
<br /> lighting, screening, environmental review, transportation impacts, and compatibility with
<br /> surrounding rural, agricultural, commercial, industrial, and residential uses; and
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