Governor Gregoire Announces Communities Recommended for Critical Infrastructure Loans
For Immediate Release: September 6, 2006
19 Washington communities recommended to receive loans totaling $71 million
OLYMPIA � Governor Chris Gregoire today announced that 19 Washington communities have been recommended for state water and sewer loans totaling $71 million. The funds will be loaned to local governments for sanitary sewer, domestic water and storm water improvements. The loans require Legislative approval and will be awarded next May.
�Investments in Washington communities, such as these by the Public Works Board, enhance our quality of life,� said Governor Gregoire. �These projects protect public and environmental health while laying the foundation for businesses to move or expand here.�
The Public Works Trust Fund is a revolving loan fund that offers low-interest loans to help local governments and special purpose districts finance critical public works projects, such as bridges, roads, solid waste, domestic water, sanitary sewers and storm sewer systems. Funds come from the Public Works Assistance Account, which is administered by the Public Works Board.
�We want to help communities finance necessary infrastructure so they can be successful, sustainable and safe,� said Juli Wilkerson, director of the Washington Department of Community, Trade and Economic Development, which staffs the Public Works Board.
�There is a significant amount of investment that is needed to meet water and sewer needs in our state,� said Dr. Diana Gale, chair of the Public Works Board. �Safe drinking water and sound systems are part of the basic foundation in any community.�
The board will recommend to the Legislature the following projects for funding:
- Annapolis Water District - $595,000
The water district will preserve the structural integrity of the water tank and foundation. This will eliminate breaches in the paint coating systems.
- City of Blaine - $7,000,000
The city will construct a new wastewater treatment plant to serve the projected demand for the next 20 years, using the latest membrane filtering technology to produce reuse-quality water and minimize impacts to local shell fishing.
- City of Bremerton - $675,000
The city will upgrade a sewage pump station to increase capacity from 1,900 gallons per minute to 3,500 gallons per minute, eliminating sewage overflow into the Puget Sound.
- City of Bremerton - $3,000,000
The city will design and construct a treatment plant upgrade to address the vital needs of the plant, create redundancy for essential treatment processes and replace 20-year-old components.
- City of Bremerton - $300,000
The city will construct approximately 1,300 feet of new sewer interceptor and collector pipes to replace old sewer pipes.
- Chelan County Public Utility District No. 1 - $5,267,000
The public utility district will design and construct two pump stations to increase capacity from 4,000 gallons per minute to 6,000 gallons per minute, a two million gallon reservoir and approximately 5,000 feet of water transmission mains to provide a reliable water source for approximately 4,500 customers.
- Cowlitz County - $340,000
The county will recoat the interior and exterior of four reservoirs to address failures with the original coatings and protect the structural integrity of the reservoirs.
- Cross Valley Water District - $532,525
The water district will relocate and replace a failing water supply line that is located in an extremely wet cow pasture. Approximately 3,500 feet of asbestos cement line will be replaced with 12-inch ductile iron pipe.
- East Wenatchee Water District - $2,772,700
The water district will construct 6,000 feet of 12-inch water main that will serve as the supply main to a 1.5 million gallon reservoir.
- Town of Friday Harbor - $4,378,000
The town will construct a new offshore marine pipeline 1,900 feet in length, a new pump station and 3,650 feet of pipeline to the wastewater treatment plant.
- Grays Harbor County Water District No. 1 - $6,717,575
The county water district will provide water from the primary supply source to the north end of the system in order to mitigate low-pressure problems and comply with a bilateral compliance agreement. They will extend the distribution system to provide service to residences with failing individual supplies, construct standby power generation facilities for the primary supply source and construct additional storage and pumping facilities to provide reliable service and fire flow.
- Lake Stevens Sewer District - $7,000,000
The sewer district will construct a state-of-the-art membrane bioreactor wastewater treatment facility outside the flood plain, an interceptor line and a pump station.
- Town of Mattawa - $465,585
The town will complete public bidding and construction of a 622,000 cubic foot high-density polyethylene lined long-term biosolids digestion basin, associated piping, rehabilitation of the existing biosolids drying beds and fencing.
- City of Port Angeles - $1,875,000
The city will design and construct 4,500 feet of 30-inch sewer main to the headworks of the wastewater treatment plant.
- City of Snohomish - $7,000,000
The city will construct a 15- and 10-inch sewer to reach an existing pump station, extend the sewer using an 8-inch pipe to another pump station and replace an existing sewer with a 10-inch pipe to provide additional capacity for future service.
- Snohomish County - $7,000,000
The county will construct the county�s portion of a joint regional storm sewer and sanitary sewer project with the Olympus Terrace Sewer District. The project will correct ongoing erosion degradation problems in the Big Gulch creek drainage, restore the stream habitat of Big Gulch Creek and repair a sanitary sewer line.
- City of Toppenish - $7,000,000
The city will construct a single activated sludge process to replace the existing wastewater treatment facility, including the installation of ultraviolet disinfection channels to replace chlorine gas. The solids handling system will be improved.
- City of Walla Walla - $6,856,875
The city will conduct the final upgrade at the wastewater treatment plant to meet class A water reuse standards and to comply with an agreed order from the Department of Ecology.
- City of Yakima - $2,300,000
The city will replace chlorine gas with ultraviolet disinfection at the Yakima regional wastewater treatment plant to complete the first phase of the facility improvements.
For more information, visit the Public Works Board.
