PORT TOWNSEND — Jefferson County is struggling to find funds for the Port Hadlock wastewater system as officials aim to keep the system affordable for residents of the Irondale and Port Hadlock urban growth area.
The waste water system is expected to cost $45.2 million, according to Monte Reinders, director of the county Public Works Department.
To date, the county has confirmed only $13,394,987 of the funds needed from program grants, appropriations, existing grants and county funds, and is seeking $30 million in state and federal assistance to complete the project.
“The project needs to be subsidized heavily if it’s going to affordable,” Reinders said during a Monday afternoon meeting with the commissioners.
Without more state and federal funding, the residents of the Irondale and Port Hadlock area would be looking at $20,000 in connection fees to hook up to the new system and an $87 sewer bill each month.
“We’re looking at the average income in that area to be in the medium- to low-income areas,” Reinders said. “Affordability is concerning.”
Reinders noted that Belfair in Mason County took on a similar project and has struggled to make it affordable.
“Their customer base was not meeting what their model was,” County Administrator Philip Morley said. “That’s a cautionary tale.”
Reinders expects a complicated and long process to make the sewer system affordable.
He explained that without the sewer, landowners can’t up-zone their properties until the sewer system is in place.
However, he added, not everyone will want to up-zone their land at the same time and won’t need to connect to the sewer until they actually build something.
“The initial connection rate will be a slow process,” Reinders said. “You’ll be carrying the initial cost of the sewer on the initial users.”
County officials have completed most of the planning steps for the project, including land acquisition and obtaining permits, but are seeking funding to complete the design process.
“This is our top-priority infrastructure project,” Reinders said. “We have to start acting like it.”
According to the Washington State Growth Management Act, the Irondale and Port Hadlock area can continue to be designated an urban growth area only if it has “fundamental infrastructure,” which includes a sewer system.
Currently, the area is served by private septic systems.
There is no deadline on when the sewer must be built, according to Reinders.
However, the county must maintain an up-to-date plan for the sewer. That is laid out in the county’s comprehensive plan.
Residents can access information on the project’s new website, www.porthadlocksewer.org.
________
Jefferson County Editor/Reporter Cydney McFarland can be reached at 360-385-2335, ext. 55052, or at cmcfarland@peninsuladailynews.com.
