Bourbon County on Nov. 1 convened its newly formed Planning Commission for an organizational meeting in which members elected officers, set a meeting cadence to begin drafting a comprehensive zoning plan and heard sustained public comments about noise from a nearby Bitcoin-mining operation.

County counselor Bob Johnson, who opened the legal briefing, told commissioners the body must follow open-meetings law and public-record rules and "this is an open meeting," adding that the commission "shall convene for your first meeting and then you shall meet at least 4 times a year." Johnson referenced state planning statutes in his remarks and said the commissions work will culminate in recommendations to the Board of County Commissioners.

The commission elected Brian Ashworth chairman and Luke Casper vice chairman by unanimous voice votes; a secretary was appointed but not identified by name in the public record. Members agreed to meet frequently while drafting a plan and to target regular meetings on consecutive Wednesdays at 5:30 p.m., aiming for sessions of about one hour with a 90-minute maximum when necessary.

Members and counsel outlined the likely scope of zoning work: agricultural base zoning with conditional-use processes for uses such as solar arrays, wind turbines, data centers and cell towers; technical definitions of commercial versus industrial uses; and the possibility of adding enforceable conditions to special-use permits, including decibel limits. "If you don't keep this at a decibel level less than this many feet from the property line, then you're in violation and you're gonna have to pay fines," Johnson said, describing how permit conditions could be enforced.

During public comment, residents urged the commission to act quickly. "Every day that goes without this county being zoned, there's another nice guy ... who can sneak in here before you do it," said Jill Franklin, who identified herself as living about a half-mile from the site. Other residents described a site north of Willow Road and near a known gravel road and said generators and shipping-container equipment at the location produced audible noise in nearby valleys. One resident said the sound was audible "mile and three quarters" away and that he could hear it while loading children onto a school bus.

Speakers asked the commission to consider special-use permitting, enforceable noise limits and inspections as tools to address the operation. Johnson advised the commission that existing operations could be "grandfathered" under zoning but that new permits or changes could subject a site to permit conditions and enforcement. He also recommended the commission review state statutes (K.S.A.) and adopt a public outreach and hearings plan before crafting final proposals.

Commissioners agreed on homework for the next meeting: read the cited statutes, review advisory-committee recommendations and compile zoning and ordinance examples from neighboring counties. The commission scheduled its next two meetings (referred to in the record as the Fifth and the Twelfth) for consecutive Wednesdays at 5:30 p.m. and said materials will be circulated in advance.

Members closed the meeting after taking public comment and setting next steps. The commission and counsel emphasized that the body is advisory: final zoning adoption would require action by the Board of County Commissioners.