Spokane County Commission confronted by data center opponents as potential development discussions continue

The Spokane County Commission on Tuesday heard from more than two dozen people concerned about the possibility of a data center landing in the area.

The board did not issue a decision, but the vocal, standing-room-only crowd highlights the concern and uncertainty rampant among Spokane County residents since Avista entered into now-paused negotiations with a data center company in June. The company, while not identified by the utility, could eventually draw more power than the rest of Spokane County combined.

The meeting provided residents with their first opportunity to discuss the matter with the county commissioners since the local data center discussion kicked off, but most of the focus was on just one: Commissioner Al French.

In July, French’s discussions with a company seeking to build a massive data center on the West Plains were brought to light by a Spokane resident’s public record request. The emails and video conferences with California -based Apricus Energy Solutions, the company behind the proposed data center, dated back more than a year and a half.

When reached by The Spokesman-Review in June about Avista’s negotiations with a “large load data center,” French said he learned of the Avista deal alongside everyone else. He said he did not know either the company or what type of operation it seeks to build.

Several members of the public challenged French’s claims in their testimony Tuesday, and accused him of questioning the patriotism of those in opposition to data centers, intentionally leaving the public in the dark and potentially benefiting financially from the proposal.

“Who’s paying you? Who have you been talking to in the last year, secretly,” Spokane County resident Elizabeth Boyle asked French. “Why does this have to be so secret if this is such a good idea?”

In a long statement following public testimony, French maintained that he never intended to hide anything and that he will receive no personal benefit if a data center lands in the county. The meetings with Apricus were on his calendar, and available to the public upon request, he said.

“This is the first opportunity that I had to actually respond to some of the rumors, fear mongering, conspiracy theories, amongst other nonsense that quite frankly we heard today,” French said. “And so I’m gonna set the record straight.”

French said his comments at a July 21 meeting about patriotism and data centers were taken out of context by those who cited the remarks in heated testimony Tuesday, some demanding apologies. Last month, French said in a county meeting that being against data centers could be “anti-American,” because foreign countries could get a leg up in technological advancements.

French said his involvement in the project began with an interest in how to attract hydrogen fuel producers to Spokane County around three years ago, as he told The Spokesman-Review last month. Part of his role is to foster economic development in the county, he said. He views hydrogen fuel as a reliable and growing field to support other local industries like agriculture and trucking, as the state continues to work toward its climate goals.

French said economic development is part of his statutory responsibilities as an elected leader, and that he approaches development discussions with a commitment to protecting ratepayers and natural resources.

“I was not interested in bringing a new industry to Spokane that would either, one , negatively impact our water, or two , negatively impact electrical rates for ratepayers because I am one of those ratepayers.”

The potential for a data center entered the picture more recently, he said, after a developer told him one could go hand-in-hand with a hydrogen fuel project. The cost of hydrogen production would be lessened if the water used was first heated by running through a data center.

French had already heard from prospective data center developers at the time, he said, but none was able to meet his aforementioned requirements.

“All three of those projects fell by the wayside,” he said.

Spokane County residents voiced concerns about what a data center development could mean for quality of life in the region. Residents pointed to noise generated by the centers, the energy demands and potential impacts for ratepayers and water use, which is front of mind for West Plains residents who are dealing with forever chemicals in the groundwater and drought conditions above ground that contributed to the fast -moving Old Trails fire.

Craig Volosing, a longtime Palisades rancher and conservation advocate, told the commissioners they should also be concerned about how a data center could impact rebuilding efforts in the wake of the Spokane Complex fires, which destroyed hundreds of structures and left thousands without a home.

“They are exerting huge pressure with demands for both labor and materials,” Volosing said. “So if we allow a data center rush to make rebuilding our citizens’ homes even more expensive and prolonged …”

Volosing ended his testimony with a call for raised hand s in the room to indicate support for a moratorium against data centers while answers to the community’s questions were flushed out. Almost every attendee indicated support for a moratorium.

Ahead of the commissioners’ hiatus, the board discussed a pair of proposals centered around data centers. The first, a nine month moratorium on data center developments as the county drafts legislation and explores questions, came from Commissioners Chris Jordan and Amber Waldref.

French and Commissioner Josh Kerns countered with their own proposal: temporary policies that would hold data centers to requirements for other entities already listed in county code, like noise restrictions from legislation on airports.

“I’ve lived here in Spokane County since 1977, I plan on dying here,” French said at the end of his remarks Tuesday. “This is my home. I’m not going to do anything to jeopardize it.”

The commissioners are expected to continue the discussion on the future of data center developments next week, and could take action on one of the proposals as soon as Tuesday.