Zipline Proposes Commercial Drone Delivery Network Across Seattle Area, Including Kitsap County
Why It MattersLocal zoning gaps and Navy-notification rules across Kitsap County highlight emerging land-use friction that could shape how drone delivery networks scale in dense, mixed-use metro regions.
Zipline has proposed to the FAA the establishment of commercial drone package delivery operations across the Seattle area, including Kitsap County, Washington. The plan covers up to 75 sites at commercial locations such as shopping centers, large retailers, malls, laboratories and warehouses, with as many as 500 individual docks built across the Puget Sound region, each site holding a maximum of 20 docks used as partner, charging or maintenance locations.
Zipline intends to run its P2 aircraft around the clock, seven days a week including holidays, with up to 400 delivery flights per operating day from each site, about 95% occurring during daytime. The drones currently operate within a five-mile radius. A draft Environmental Assessment published in October 2025 identifies the area of potential effects as covering most of the Kitsap Peninsula, and the FAA public comment period on the proposal closed on November 2, 2025.
Zipline's precision delivery service, launched in 2025, already operates in Pea Ridge, Arkansas, and in more than 20 communities across the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, partnering with Walmart and more than a dozen restaurant brands including Chipotle, Crumbl and Little Caesars, with most orders arriving within 30 minutes via the Zipline app.
On September 14, Kitsap County commissioners and Department of Community Development staff held a 30-minute meeting on potential local regulations for drone hubs and commercial drone delivery facilities. Staff reviewed Redmond, Washington's approach, where the City Council voted to prohibit commercial drone port land uses in Manufacturing Park and Industry zones following public hearings on June 2 and July 21, and Kitsap County leaders said they would monitor Redmond's regulatory path. Kitsap County currently has no land-use regulations governing commercial drone hubs, though under County Ordinance 571-2019 drones launching or landing within notification areas around the county's five Naval bases must notify the U.S. Navy, with Navy Base Kitsap Commanding Officer authorization required for UAS operations over NBK.
