Kittitas County hearing examiner closes record on proposed outdoor training center; decision due within 10 working days

Kittitas County Hearing Examiner Andy Cotkamp on April 9 closed the public record for conditional use permit application CU24-00001, a proposal for an outdoor training center that would include a shooting range and facilities for law enforcement and search-and-rescue training on roughly 24.7 acres near Vantage Highway.

The permit application, which staff processed under Kittitas County code and for which Community Development Services (CDS) issued a Mitigated Determination of Nonsignificance on Nov. 7, 2024, drew several hours of testimony from the applicant and about two dozen residents. Jeremy Johnston, a CDS staff member who presented the staff report, told the examiner that staff reviewed written comments and the application and "finds the applicant has demonstrated consistency with the applicable standards and is recommending approval of the application as conditioned." Johnston said the staff report and associated exhibits were admitted into the hearing record.

Why it matters: The project would create a local facility for firearms and emergency-response training that supporters say would improve first-responder preparedness and bring business to the county. Opponents…