(The Center Square) – Data centers have become an increasingly prominent topic in West Richland this month, with discussions continuing through City Council and Planning Commission meetings as residents ask elected officials to slow down and more closely examine how major industrial projects could affect the community.
The debate is one of many going on at city, county and state governments across the state and country as officials grapple with how to deal with the influx of data centers.
A large crowd showed up at a Planning Commission meeting Thursday night, where residents from West Richland and elsewhere in the Tri-Cities raised concerns about how future data center projects could be approved and who ultimately should have the authority to make those decisions.
No final decisions were made.
According to materials shared by Tri-Cities Data Center Watch, residents are asking the city to stop automatically allowing large data centers in light industrial zones and instead require additional review through a conditional-use permit process.
The group is also calling for studies examining potential impacts involving water, power, noise, wastewater, fire safety and the environment.
Residents are additionally questioning a separate city proposal identified as TXT-0006-2026 and whether decisions involving major industrial developments could ultimately be placed before an appointed hearing examiner rather than the City Council.
The group is scheduled to hold a community canvassing event Saturday, Sept. 12, beginning at 9 a.m. at the Bombing Range Sports Complex.
West Richland City Councilmember John Smart addressed some of those concerns during the Sept. 1 council meeting, urging residents not to simply oppose data centers because they are data centers.
“Don’t organize based on anti-data center rallies just for the sake of being against data centers,” Smart said. “These data centers, what we are concerned with is how will it impact quality of life with their industrial presence?”
Smart specifically raised questions about whether projects could affect water quality, create unwanted noise or require significant amounts of land.
“What are the concerns? What are the studies going to show us?” Smart said. “What should we ask data center proponents about? What are the questions to mitigate?”
Smart said he would not support bringing a data center into the city if concerns could not be adequately addressed.
Those questions resonated with Jonathan Tallman, a Tri-Cities-area resident who attended Thursday night’s Planning Commission meeting and said he appreciated commissioners listening to the public.
However, Tallman said he was concerned after hearing commissioners acknowledge they knew little about the land involved while considering a process that could leave significant decisions to a committee or, effectively, one appointed person.
Tallman said his concerns are informed by eight years of publicly speaking about data center development in Boardman, Oregon.
“With reports of a $264 million land sale in this area, the public deserves independent studies, full disclosure, proper notice, and genuine public hearings,” Tallman said.
Tallman said West Richland should learn from communities such as Boardman and Morrow County rather than repeat what he believes were mistakes involving large-scale development.
“I am not against technology or data centers,” Tallman said. “But decisions involving land, taxes, infrastructure, noise, water, pollution, and neighboring property values must be made openly by informed elected officials … not handed to an outside committee or placed in the hands of one person.”
The growing debate comes as communities across Washington and the country confront a rapid expansion of data centers, fueled largely by growing demand for artificial intelligence and cloud computing.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration has said electricity demand has been increasing in recent years after more than a decade of relatively little growth, with data centers among the major drivers. The agency forecasts some of the strongest growth in U.S. electricity demand in decades through 2027.
The International Energy Agency has similarly projected that global electricity consumption from data centers could more than double by 2030, with the United States accounting for the largest share of the increase.
That national trend is now playing out in communities such as West Richland, where residents and city officials are weighing potential economic development against questions involving infrastructure and quality of life.
Washington lawmakers are also grappling with how to encourage data center investment while evaluating the costs and benefits. The state offers sales and use tax exemptions for qualifying data centers, though lawmakers narrowed some of those incentives in 2026.
A recent legislative review noted that at least 38 states offer incentives specifically targeting data centers, while lawmakers in multiple states have introduced measures to restrict or more closely regulate their development.