Data Center Case · Source records
A curated guide to the documents behind Cle Elum's data-center discussion, including city meetings, development agreements, land-use decisions, environmental records, and independent analysis.
Compiled November 4, 2026 · Return to the Data Center Case
How to use this library: Documents are linked to issuing agencies or their public meeting systems whenever available. Some links open the city’s document collection or CivicClerk portal rather than one fixed PDF. A secondary index is provided where useful for locating a particular meeting. This page does not claim that every underlying record has been uploaded or independently reproduced here.
Status matters: A draft minute, an agenda, a public comment, an applicant claim, a planning condition and a final city decision are different types of evidence. Links and document availability may change. For the authoritative record, consult the issuing agency.
Source category
Public deliberations, procedural actions and the committee's evolving work plan. The October 21 record is still labeled draft in the November 4 packet.
September 8, 2026 City of Cle Elum · City Council
Minutes indexed
Planning Director Shannon Johnson said the municipal code did not address data centers. The hearing record does not, by itself, determine the permitted use of the Blue Fern parcel.
Original agendas and minutes portal ↗ Indexed meeting with minutes ↗
October 21, 2026 City of Cle Elum · Advisory Committee
Published agenda
Introductions, public comment, draft work plan, initial priorities and questions on land use, environmental effects and economics.
October 21, 2026 City of Cle Elum · Advisory Committee
DRAFT, not confirmed approved
Two-page draft minutes appear on pages 3–4 of the November 4 packet. Chair Harper distinguishes possible future committee recommendations from the existing Bullfrog Flats development agreement; the minutes also summarize residents' comments and the proposed work plan.
Official city meeting portal (select Nov. 4 packet) ↗ Nov. 4 indexed packet and meeting ↗
November 4, 2026 City of Cle Elum · Advisory Committee
Agenda and packet
Agenda includes October 21 draft minutes, definitions and a Planning Director report. The four-page packet reviewed contains the agenda and draft minutes, not a separate written Planning Director report. Later materials may be published.
Official CivicClerk meeting portal ↗ Indexed Nov. 4 meeting and packet ↗
Source category
Historical rights, amendments, plats and conditions that must be distinguished from a parcel-specific approval for a data center.
2002 City of Cle Elum · Planning
Original approvals (historical)
Governing land-use framework and permitted development conditions. The city publishes the agreement, master plan and environmental impact documentation for review.
City original agreement and EIS collection ↗ City Bullfrog Flats development hub ↗
2017 and March 2025 City of Cle Elum · Planning
Amendments documented by city
The city identifies a 2017 amendment and a 2025 Second Amendment transferring the agreement to Bullfrog Flats, LLC, with conditional extension provisions. Actual text controls; vesting and applicability to a data center are unresolved in this library.
City background, amendments and decisions ↗ City 2025 complete hearing record ↗
January–March 2025 City of Cle Elum · Planning
City planning record
Includes Master Plat conditions; Conditions 75 and 76 address noise-sensitive receiving areas such as homes and school property. These are broader master-plan conditions, not proof of specific data-center construction approval.
Complete 2025 city exhibit list ↗ Master Plat conditions (city PDF) ↗
2024–2026 City of Cle Elum · Planning
Project applications and staff records
Useful to distinguish overall master-planned residential and business-park development from a distinct data-center use, and to review later applications and conditions.
Bullfrog Flats application files ↗ 2026 Phase P-4 staff and exhibit record ↗
Source category
State records and standards relevant to generator emissions, noise and historical PSE activity.
October 17, 2017 City of Cle Elum / Washington Ecology SEPA Register
Historical environmental-review determination
PSE's separate 2017 modular data-center proposal at 1980 SR 903. The city acted as lead agency; this does not authorize Blue Fern's proposed 2026 facility.
January 29, 2018 Washington Department of Ecology
Historical approval order 18AQ-C225
Air-quality approval for backup-generation equipment serving PSE's separate project. No presumption that the order applies to a different development.
Current rules Washington Department of Ecology / Washington Administrative Code
Regulatory resources
Background requirements for generator permitting and toxic air-pollution review, alongside state environmental noise standards. Which thresholds apply depends on project design and receiving property.
Ecology data-center regulation ↗ Chapter 173-60 WAC: noise limits ↗
Source category
WHCER's related interpretive and scenario materials. Their conclusions and assumptions should be tested against original sources.
October 2026 Karl Ohlemann · Independent analysis
Commentary and illustrative analysis
Economic-development framing, potential public benefits, risks and questions. Not a city finding or land-use determination.
October 2026 Karl Ohlemann · Independent analysis
Scenario model, not project forecast
Fiscal and utility-tax scenarios with assumptions and sensitivities. Does not resolve permitted uses, official tax values or project-specific engineering.
Help improve the record
If you have a source document, subsequent approved minutes, a written Planning Director analysis, a permit decision, or an accurate correction, please share the agency name, document title, meeting date and source URL. Do not send private correspondence or confidential records. We will identify later updates with their dates rather than silently revise historical entries.