SolarRisk Tracker / Explore / OR / Crook

Crook County, OR — Solar Development Risk Assessment

Local solar ordinance barriers, board sentiment, and utility policies that affect development timelines and risk.

41
Risk Grade
Good
Data center industry has normalized large-scale energy infrastructure development; excellent central Oregon solar irradiance; EFU restrictions apply but county pragmatic; growing population (Bend spillover) improves distributed solar market
Assessment Snapshot
Population
24915
State Rank
#9
Compliance
45%
Trajectory
35

Moratorium Status

✓ No Active Moratorium
No

Ordinance & Regulations

Setback Requirements
100 ft from property lines; 150 ft from residences
Zoning Mechanism
EFU (Exclusive Farm Use), Forest (F), Rural Industrial, Light Industrial (Prineville), Residential; BLM and USFS federal lands require separate federal authorization
Acreage Caps
No county acreage cap
Spacing Rules
None specified
Size Restrictions
ODOE >35 MW; BLM right-of-way authorization for federal land solar; county CUP for private land

Board Sentiment & Political Risk

Sentiment Analysis
Moderately Supportive — data center industry has created pro-economic development culture; solar seen as compatible with industrial energy corridor; Central Oregonian newspaper shows neutral-to-positive coverage
Basis for Assessment
Crook County planning records 2020-2024; Central Oregonian (Prineville) newspaper; Crook County Economic Development reports; BLM Prineville District records
Political Risk Factors
Stable — pragmatic conservative; tech-industry data center presence has normalized large energy infrastructure development; county board views energy as economic development
Board Members
Seth Crawford (Chair), Brian Barney, Jerry Berry

Grid, Utilities & State Context

Grid Operator
Pacific Power (PacifiCorp); BPA transmission (Coyote–Boardman corridor); Central Oregon electric grid
Utilities
Pacific Power (PacifiCorp), Central Oregon Electric Cooperative
State Permitting Process
ORS 215 EFU CUP; ODOE Energy Facility Siting >35 MW; BLM ROW for federal lands; Crook County Code Ch. 17
State Incentives
Eligible — Oregon Solar + Storage Rebate Program; Energy Trust of Oregon Business programs

Development Activity

Active/Completed Projects
Millican Solar Energy Center (71 MW, 2021); Solar Star Oregon II (70 MW, 2017)
Denied/Withdrawn Projects
0

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Last verified: April 2026 (web research) | SolarRisk Tracker | Data sources: Government records, utility filings, public meeting minutes