A large cherry processing facility northeast of Sela was approved by a Yakima County hearing examiner this week after dozens of local residents, local businesses and several agencies filed objections.
Following a June 30 public hearing and nearly a year of reports, studies and written comments, Hearing Examiner Patrick Spurgin issued his decision Wednesday to approve the conditional use permit for the 280,000-square-foot site near the Yakima River. Northeast of Sela.
Spurgin wrote that the proposal is consistent with Yakima County development regulations and the Yakima County General Plan, and those findings “support the proposal to approve the proposed agribusiness (cherry processing and packing facility) on 56.4 acres.”
Conditions include construction and county approval of the new roadway required prior to construction of the processing facility and improvement of Pomona Road along the western border of the property. A stormwater pollution prevention plan is required and must be approved by the state Department of Ecology.
Finally, at least 300 parking spaces should be built for the facility’s workers, unless housing for H-2A workers is built on the property, which would reduce the number of workers who drive there, Spurgin wrote.
Details of the proposal
The proposal was presented to Yakima County planning officials on September 22021, Leanne Liddicoat, a digital design and development (3D) developer in Yakima.
Submitted on behalf of property owners Aaron and Marlena Buchanan. The site was subsequently sold to Gidding Cerasus USA, a fruit company based in The Dalles, Ore. The company is part of Giddings Fruits, an exporter of cherries, berries and other fruits based in Santiago, Chile.
The 56.4-acre site is located at the southeast corner of Pomona and East Pomona roads, about 2 miles northeast of the Sylla city limits. Also adjacent are 10 homes on the river’s edge, sitting in the midst of a proposed processing facility in the middle of the Yakima River. A lot north of the residences is owned and operated by the Department of Defense to serve the nearby Yakima Training Center.
Plans submitted to the county call for the facility to operate seasonally, primarily during the cherry harvest, six days a week with one or two shifts of 300 workers each. It is expected that a temporary housing for agricultural workers will be built on the site in the future. Building heights will not exceed 35 feet and primary access to the site is via State Route 821 and East Pomona Road, the developer said.
Two polling sessions last fall generated more than 35 letters, most opposing the proposal. Objections include the project’s traffic impact, potential interference with existing wells or other water sources, impacts on the rural character and property values of the area, and conflicts with the military’s use of Pomona Road.
Issues raised by neighbors Bill and Molly Madison, who have lived in the area for more than 21 years and believe a processing facility that employs 300 to 500 people, “the size of two Costcos” would dramatically change the area. .
“I understand that they’re trying to do something on the ground, but it’s not in the right place,” Bill Madison told the Yakima Herald-Republic in late October.
In addition to residents, objection letters or questions about the project came from Salah City, Zirkle Fruit Company, the state Department of Ecology, Salah-Mokse Irrigation District and Rosa Irrigation District.
Most of these concerns were addressed in person and online during the June 30 public hearing, Spurgeon said in the decision. After the hearing, he visited the place and its surroundings.
“Agricultural Industry”.
Finally, Spurgin cited conclusions in the county’s final mitigation decision, filed May 31 of this year, which determined the project would not have a significant negative impact on the environment, with three caveats:
- There is a problem that a human skeleton may be created during the construction
- Acquiring a headwater or tributary water right to the Yakima River (pre-1905).
- Working with Northwest Pipeline Corporation on site rights-of-way encroachments and development.
These issues are discussed in the list of conditions for approval by Spurgin.
Regarding residents’ concerns about the rural character of the area and their property values, Spurgin wrote that housing development on areas zoned for agriculture and related activities would “allow agriculture-related industries a minimum assessment on such areas.”
“Industry related to agriculture is specifically allowed in the R10/5 zone (the zoning of the processing plant), the main purpose of which is to ensure compatibility with neighboring uses, so it is difficult to classify such uses as “non-rural”.
Spurgin added that concerns about future H-2A housing residents at the site will be addressed in accordance with U.S. Department of Homeland Security regulations and Washington Department of Health regulations.
His decision stipulates that the conditions imposed on the developer must be met with three years.
