Issaquah Development Commission October 21, 2026

The City of Issaquah Development Commission held a quasi-judicial public hearing on October 21, 2026, on Puget Sound Energy’s proposed Grand Ridge substation site development permit, SDP25-00012, in Issaquah Highlands. The applicant described the project as a way to increase local electrical capacity, reliability, and redundancy. Staff found the proposal generally consistent with applicable standards and recommended approval with conditions. The commission approved the permit, directing staff to prepare findings and conclusions, subject to the conditions as amended. Amendments included requiring a complete review and approval of the lighting plan and adding Blue Point junipers along the eastern project boundary to the maximum extent possible, as approved by the city arborist. Other conditions include a landscape permit and landscape, irrigation, and tree-replacement plans; the substation cannot be energized before landscape-permit approval. Four trees will be removed and replaced, and wetland-buffer impacts will be addressed through on-site mitigation and the Keller Farm Mitigation Bank.

Commissioners discussed visual screening, lighting, construction access and hours, and wetland mitigation and bonding. No public comments were submitted. The meeting addressed a utility infrastructure land-use approval; no contract award, procurement, purchasing decision, or budget allocation was identified.