PORT TOWNSEND -Jefferson County’s commissioners sat down with the North Olympic Peninsula’s state legislators Monday to make their case for state funds – with a new Tri-Area sewer system at the top of the list.
“Our number one priority is the Tri-Area [urban growth area],” said County Commissioner David Sullivan, D-Cape George, adding:
“It’s the center to our economic development strategy.”
Port Hadlock-Irondale-Chimacum can’t assume the label of an urban growth area until it has an adequate sewer plan in place, Sullivan told the 24th District lawmakers.
An urban growth area – known in bureaucratic circles by the abbreviation UGA – allows for denser development than rural land.
“The vision really is having two complementary UGAs in Jefferson County,” said Sullivan, referring to separate Port Townsend and Tri-Area urban growth areas.
The three commissioners met Monday morning with state Sen. Jim Hargrove, D-Hoquiam, and state Reps. Lynn Kessler, D-Hoquiam, and Kevin Van De Wege, D-Sequim, at the Jefferson County Courthouse.
They told the lawmakers that initial implementation of a sewer system in the Tri-Area is expected to cost about $23.5 million, with the overall cost in a 20-year period amounting to $60 million.
An estimated 2,900 people live within the proposed Tri-Area urban growth area.
