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Public comments & Al French's response

• Public comments - Starts at 3:40
• Al French's Response - Starts at 45:00

Great job to everyone who showed up today! So many people came to speak that the county ran out of time for public comment. Whatever side people are on, that level of turnout matters.

🚨 Contact Governor Bob Ferguson 🚨

Governor Ferguson has already made data-center impacts a statewide issue through his Data Center Workgroup.

Contact his office and ask the state to closely review its water use, 1,000+ MW-scale power demand, grid impacts, tax incentives, potential costs to ratepayers, and to make sure promises about water and ratepayer protection are actually enforceable.

👉 Contact governor 👈

Breaking down Al French's response & contradictions 🤡

Al French covered a lot, but several of his answers either conflicted with other points he made or left the main questions unresolved.

1. “Fear-mongering, conspiracy theories, and nonsense”

Questions about water use, electric load, transmission lines, substations, tax incentives, and meetings with developers are not conspiracy theories. Those are basic questions about a project of this size.

Calling the discussion fear-mongering doesn’t answer those questions.

2. Solar panel farm? Importing electricity?

French stated they'd use a solar panel farm, but later states they'd import electricity from out of state? Mentions solar panel farm at 49:34.

If the project is supposed to be powered by solar, why is Avista involved in approving or studying the project’s power needs? And if the plan has changed to imported power, what happened to the solar-farm plan?

3. “They’ll use wastewater”

Airway Heights already reuses a substantial amount of its wastewater. Its reclamation plant produces about 600,000 gallons per day, and the city says nearly 50% of its water use comes from reclaimed or recovered water. That reclaimed water is used for irrigation and groundwater recharge. Source

4. “They’ll buy power from another state, so it won’t affect our rates”

The proposed data center could scale to roughly 1,000 MW, More than all of Spokane county's current usage!

Buying that power out of state doesn’t make the local grid impact disappear. It still has to reach the site through transmission lines, substations, and transformers.

The real questions are: what upgrades are needed, who pays for them, and what guarantees those costs won’t hit existing ratepayers?

French didn’t really answer that.

5. “Not a single nickel of public money” vs. tax incentives

French said there would be “not a single nickel” of public money used for the project - yet he's been publicly pushing for tax breaks for these data centers.

6. “The meetings weren’t secret because they were on my calendar”

French said the meetings weren’t secret because they appeared on his calendar and could be obtained through public records requests.

But if the public has to request records after the fact to learn when meetings started, who attended, and what was discussed, that’s not the same as proactive transparency.

7. “No potable water, no aquifer water, no rate impact”

Great, put them into legally binding conditions.

8. Criticizing a moratorium while saying the county needs data center rules

French criticized a temporary moratorium while also talking about creating rules for data centers.

But that’s largely the point of a moratorium: pause approvals long enough to write the rules before a massive project gets locked in.

At the end of the day, people are asking for pretty basic information:

• Show the load studies.
• Show the transmission plans.
• Show the water agreements.
• Show the incentives.
• Show who pays.

9. Hydrogen doesn’t answer the normal power-demand question

French spent a lot of time talking about hydrogen, but from his explanation it appears to mainly replace diesel backup generators.

That may be useful, but it doesn’t address the data center’s normal 24/7 grid demand.

I’ve been learning how to better protect our home from wildfires since moving here last year. I haven’t seen this discussed much here, so I thought I’d share some resources I’ve found and steps I’ve taken in case others find them helpful.

*Disclaimer: I'm not an expert or a firefighter* *Certified wildfire preparedness Redditor by firefighter u/TacitMoose 🙏🫡

Helpful Resources

1. Request a fire risk assessment from the Firewise program (government program, it's free, they don't sell anything or advertise to you). They walked my property with me and made some good suggestions (took less than 20 minutes) https://spokanecd.org/pages/firewise
2. This video highlights how embers spread wildfires and why creating defensible space around your home matters. It really shifted where I’m focusing most of my efforts now. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DvsjNBGwoFo

Actions I've personally planned/taken:

1. Trimmed tree branches up to about 15 feet. This cost about $900 for 20 or so trees. I got 3 quotes from different companies.
2. Removed plants, trees, mulch, or anything combustible within 5 feet of my house. I only have gravel within the first 5 feet of my home.
3. Replace exterior exhaust vents with metal ones - the flimsy plastic ones most homes have can let embers in during wildfires - Example
4. Install backdraft dampers in bathroom exhausts (I noticed wildfire smoke coming in from my bathroom vents) - Example
5. Cover small gaps where embers could get in with 1/8-inch steel mesh - especially vents, under decks, and gaps around siding or trim. Don’t cover dryer vents or anything that needs to drain or move
6. Sealing garage door better so no embers can fly in. Embers can easily fly in and ignite wood, cardboard, gasoline, and other combustible materials
7. Moving anything combustible out from under our deck
8. Made sure our address is clearly visible for firefighters

Other Resources:

1. Fire-resistant plants
2. Guide for home upgrades and maintenance to protect from wildfires
3. Washington wildfire resources

Also, I've noticed a lot of people walking around without masks during all this smoke. I'd highly suggest getting some N95 masks with an exhalation valve. Wildfire smoke contains PM2.5, which can travel deep into the lungs and worsen breathing and heart problems, even if you don’t feel symptoms right away.

Indoor air quality matters too! I’d recommend using a HEPA air purifier and an indoor PM2.5 monitor. For air quality monitoring, I use the AirThings monitor (also measures radon), and IQAir Visual. IQAir makes some of the best air filters, but they're expensive. Austin Air Filters and Honeywell also make good HEPA air filters.

If anyone has other useful resources or suggestions, please share!

The last major petition here effectively helped ban them for 1 year in Spokane city limits. We need to take this to the county level! There's already 2 planned data centers and Al French is trying to quietly fast track approval for one here in Spokane! Take action NOW!

Petition 👉 change.org/Save_Spokane_Kootenai_Water_And_Power

• Avista is trying to raise electricity prices by 25% by 2030. Likely for upgrades to support the massive amount of power these data centers need. - source
• Spokane County is currently in a level 2 severe drought - source
• Al French wants to give these data centers tax breaks - source
• 1 of the 2 data centers alone require up to 1,000 megawatts of electricity - more electricity than the roughly 731 megawatts currently used by every home, school, store, and business in Spokane County combined‼️

🚨 Take Action Here - NOW  (less than 5 minutes)🚨

(Optional copy and paste message at the bottom of  this post)

1. Contact Spokane County Commissioners
2. Contact Kootenai County Commissioners
3. Contact the UTC (regulates companies like Avista) - Reference Docket UE-260162 - State you want large customers to pay their own costs and that alternatives should be evaluated before any contracts are approved.

 

>I oppose the construction of any new hyperscale data centers in the Spokane Kootenai region. These facilities would consume enormous amounts of electricity and water while threatening residents with higher costs and major infrastructure burdens. Please ban these projects and reject all permits, tax breaks, subsidies, and public infrastructure support connected to them. Our water, affordable power, and public resources must be protected for residents and local businesses.

https://mergstm.substack.com/p/the-big-rock-project-a-secret-ai?r=5ceud2&utm_medium=ios&triedRedirect=true

• District 1: Chris Jordan (cjordan@spokanecounty.org)
• District 2: Amber Waldref (awaldref@spokanecounty.org)
• District 3: Josh Kerns (Jkerns@spokanecounty.org)
• District 4: Mary Brooks (mbrooks@spokanecounty.org)
• District 5: Al French (afrench@spokanecounty.org)

Find your district here  https://www.spokanecounty.gov/DocumentCenter/View/43155/County-Commissioner-District-Boundaries-with-Precincts-PDF

Contact Spokane County Commissioners all at once here

https://www.spokanecounty.gov/FormCenter/Board-of-County-Commissioners-22/Contact-Us-66

Spokane County Commissioner Al French has been quietly advocating for a proposed data center near Airway Heights that could eventually require up to 1,000 megawatts of electricity -more than the roughly 731 megawatts currently used by every home, school, store, and business in Spokane County combined‼️

The developers have also discussed finding additional water sources, while major questions remain about infrastructure costs, utility rates, environmental impacts, and public oversight.

Please email your commissioner and tell them you oppose the project. Demand full transparency, independent water and infrastructure studies, and no public funding or incentives for the data center.

• Al French claims the proposed data center is “very public,” yet the extent of the county’s discussions only came to light after public-records requests. That is not meaningful transparency.
• Al French wants to give this data center a tax exemption‼️

👉 Email template if you don't want to write one 👈

>I oppose the proposed data center near Airway Heights. It could use more electricity than all of Spokane County currently uses combined and place additional pressure on our regional water supply, while Avista is already seeking major residential rate increases. Please oppose the project and reject any permits, tax incentives, infrastructure commitments, or other public support for it.

Data centers are not harmless “tech buildings.” They are massive industrial facilities that can use enormous amounts of water and electricity, strain the power grid, require expensive infrastructure, create noise from cooling equipment and generators, and bring pollution risks from diesel backup generators, fuel storage, cooling systems, stormwater runoff, and construction.

This could raise our electric prices and strain our water supply.

That is a huge concern for Spokane because our drinking water depends heavily on the Spokane Valley–Rathdrum Prairie Aquifer. We should not gamble with our aquifer, our water supply, our utility rates, or our neighborhoods for facilities that create relatively few permanent jobs.

Once these projects get approved, it is much harder to stop them. We need to make it clear now that Spokane residents do not support turning our city into a data center hub.

Please email the Spokane Plan Commission and City Council and tell them you oppose data centers being approved in Spokane.

Take Action:

🚨 Quick and easy - Copy & send the email template below (scroll to end) 🚨

Sign the petition - Please post the petition anywhere you can!

• https://c.org/vw9xRXq9kH

Contact Spokane Planning Commission

• plancommission@spokanecity.org
• https://my.spokanecity.org/bcc/commissions/plan-commission/

Contact City Council

• citycouncil2@spokanecity.org
• https://my.spokanecity.org/citycouncil/members/

Contact Mayor

• https://my.spokanecity.org/mayor/ask-the-mayor/
• mayor@spokanecity.org

https://www.spokesman.com/stories/2026/jun/03/avista-working-with-developer-to-provide-massive-a/

🚨 Quick and easy email to send! 🚨

Send to:

mayor@spokanecity.org,plancommission@spokanecity.org,citycouncil2@spokanecity.org

Title:

We Oppose Data Centers in Spokane

Body

Hello,
I am writing to oppose data centers being approved in Spokane.

Data centers are massive industrial facilities that can consume enormous amounts of electricity and water, strain the power grid, increase utility costs, create noise pollution, rely on diesel backup generators, and put additional pressure on local infrastructure.

This is especially concerning because Spokane depends heavily on our aquifers for drinking water. Residents should not be expected to accept increased electric demand, potential water strain, noise pollution, diesel emissions, aquifer risk, or public infrastructure costs for private data center development.

I urge Spokane officials, city planners, City Council, Avista, and all relevant agencies to act now and prevent data centers from moving forward in Spokane.

Please protect Spokane’s water supply, power grid, neighborhoods, and residents.

Thank you.

https://www.spokesman.com/stories/2026/jun/03/avista-working-with-developer-to-provide-massive-a/