Other BESS Projects in King County

Cascadia Ridge is not the only BESS project proposed in unincorporated King County. The regulatory and community dynamics around these projects provide useful context.

Kingfisher Energy Storage (Covington area)

The Kingfisher Energy Storage Project was filed by Goldfinch Energy Storage, LLC, a Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP) portfolio entity, with Tenaska as the developer of record and point of contact. Lithium iron phosphate (LFP) on 14.1 acres in unincorporated King County near Covington, connecting to PSE’s Berrydale Substation. The parcel is privately owned. King County permit file CDUP23-0003, filed February 15, 2023 and canceled September 13, 2023.

The site is adjacent to Mattson Middle School (Kent School District, ~900 students), Soos Creek (salmon habitat with tribal significance), wetlands, and residential neighborhoods. Zoned RA5 (residential/rural).

Timeline

Current status

Stalled. The King County application appears inactive. The Army Corps wetland application was voided. The project has not been formally withdrawn.

Parallels to Cascadia Ridge

Both projects are in unincorporated King County where the adjacent city has no permitting authority. Both involve waterways connected to salmon-bearing watersheds with tribal significance. Both fall under Councilmember Perry’s Ordinance 19824.

Key differences: Kingfisher is adjacent to a middle school with ~900 students. Cascadia Ridge is larger (45 acres / 130 MW vs. 14.1 acres). Covington passed a moratorium within its city limits. Snoqualmie has not. Ordinance 19824 was drafted partly in response to Kingfisher. Cascadia Ridge is one of the first projects to move through it.

Hillsboro, OR — Jupiter Power “Blackberry Grove” (approved despite record opposition)

Same developer as Cascadia Ridge. Jupiter Power proposed a 100 MW BESS on 10 acres of agricultural land in unincorporated Washington County, Oregon, near the West Union substation. The project generated 350+ letters of opposition, making it the most contested land use case in Washington County history. An organized group, No Batteries In Backyards, formed to fight it.

It was approved anyway. Hearings Officer Joe Turner approved the project on December 17, 2025, concurring with Planning Director Stephen Roberts’ recommendation. The appeal window to Oregon’s Land Use Board of Appeals closed January 7, 2026.

Why the opposition failed

Washington County’s code classifies BESS as a “public utility” special use in the Agriculture/Forest zone. Under Oregon land use law, the hearings officer evaluates whether the application meets the code’s specific criteria, not whether the community wants it. Jupiter Power filed a compliant application, and 350 letters of opposition didn’t change the legal analysis.

The opposition raised fire risk, toxic emissions, noise, proximity to homes, notice problems (vague notice language, inaccessible documents, contradictory deadlines), and the argument that a privately owned battery farm shouldn’t qualify as a “public utility.” The hearings officer wasn’t persuaded.

Jupiter Power’s playbook

Jupiter Power’s approach at Hillsboro followed a pattern:

• File a compliant application under the existing code
• Hold a voluntary community meeting (poster stations, no presentation, no Q&A)
• Don’t engage publicly with the opposition
• Let the planning staff recommend approval and the hearings officer apply the code

This is the same approach playing out at Cascadia Ridge. The community meeting format on March 17 was identical. The key difference: King County’s Ordinance 19824 makes BESS a permitted use with no public hearing. The only formal public input is the 14-day SEPA comment period, which makes that window critical.

Conditions imposed at Hillsboro

The hearings officer imposed conditions beyond what Jupiter offered. These were won through detailed technical testimony:

Conditions that were not imposed at Hillsboro but are relevant to Cascadia Ridge given site differences:

• Battery chemistry specification (Jupiter did not commit to a chemistry in the application)
• Fire suppression water containment (Hillsboro had no streams; Cascadia Ridge has Fisher Creek)
• Scaled financial responsibility (Hillsboro had no dollar figure)
• On-site water storage (Hillsboro had municipal hydrants; Cascadia Ridge does not)
• Annual fire authority review
• Atmospheric dispersion modeling (Hillsboro is flat, open terrain; the Snoqualmie Valley traps emissions)

Site comparison

The lesson

Public comment alone does not stop these projects when the code allows them. The path to a different outcome runs through the SEPA process: building a comment record strong enough to compel a Determination of Significance and full Environmental Impact Statement. That’s what we’re focused on.

Oyster Bay, NY — Jupiter Power (withdrawn)

Same developer as Cascadia Ridge. Jupiter Power proposed a 275 MW BESS (“Oyster Shore”) in Oyster Bay, NY. The town enacted a moratorium in February 2024 and extended it serially, making the permit path unviable. Jupiter Power withdrew in May 2025, citing “no viable permit path.” The town subsequently made its BESS ban permanent.

Opposition was led by the Glen Head-Glenwood Civics Council, the Greenvale Civic Association, and the local school district.

Morro Bay, CA — Vistra 600 MW (withdrawn)

Vistra proposed a 600 MW BESS in Morro Bay, CA. Citizens for Estero Bay Preservation organized a ballot initiative that passed ~60-40% in November 2024, removing the city council’s zoning jurisdiction over the project. After the Moss Landing fire in January 2025, the council voted 5-0 for a moratorium. Vistra formally withdrew in April 2025.

Gillespie County, TX — 145 MW (court-blocked)

A court injunction halted construction of a 145 MW BESS less than 2,000 feet from a school with 600+ students and less than 100 feet from the Pedernales River. The county passed a formal resolution opposing the project. Opposition was organized by Fight BESS Texas.

Vacaville, CA — lithium-ion prohibition (adopted March 2026)

On March 11, 2026, the Vacaville City Council unanimously adopted a BESS ordinance that explicitly prohibits lithium-ion battery chemistry throughout the city. The ordinance nominally allows non-lithium alternatives such as vanadium redox flow batteries (VRFB) based on a technology assessment by consultants Larsen and Toubroo.

Vacaville is the first U.S. jurisdiction to enact a permanent ordinance restricting battery chemistry rather than banning BESS outright. It proves the concept is legislatively viable. But the implementation is closer to a ban than a standard.

After increasing setbacks from 300 to 500 feet, the city’s own suitability analysis found only one parcel in the entire city that qualifies: the former Gibson Canyon Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant. The council had already voted against a BESS project on that same site. The technology assessment recommended vanadium redox flow batteries, which have never been deployed at utility scale in the U.S. and cost roughly twice as much as lithium-ion. Sodium-ion, which is commercially available and eliminates thermal runaway risk, was not evaluated.

The result: lithium-ion is banned, the recommended alternative is impractical, and the only eligible site has already been rejected. That’s a de facto ban, not a technology standard.

Our position is different. We’re not asking for a chemistry ban or a moratorium. We’re asking King County to require a full Environmental Impact Statement that would evaluate the site-specific risks and require an alternatives analysis, including battery chemistry. Vacaville shows that chemistry-specific regulation can survive a council vote. An EIS alternatives analysis achieves the same scrutiny through the environmental review process rather than through legislation.

Note: multiple BESS projects are advancing through California’s AB 205 alternate permitting pathway at the state level, which could override local restrictions. Washington’s equivalent is EFSEC.

National context

As of March 2026, 150+ local governments across 17 states have enacted BESS restrictions. The EticaAG BESS Restrictions Database tracks moratoriums, bans, and other restrictions nationwide. The most common triggers are fire risk (especially after the Moss Landing fire), proximity to schools and residences, and inadequate setbacks.

BESS moratoriums in King County

Three King County cities have passed moratoriums on BESS within their city limits:

• Covington: May 2024, extended through May 2026. Planning staff developing permanent BESS code amendments.
• Enumclaw: Year-long moratorium, February 2025.
• Black Diamond: Six-month moratorium, renewed February 2025.

These moratoriums apply only within city limits. They do not affect BESS projects in unincorporated King County, which is where both Kingfisher and Cascadia Ridge are sited.