Grant County PUD candidate details positions

EPHRATA - Incumbent PUD commissioner Larry Schaapman said he's learned a lot in two years on the board, and wants to continue to put that knowledge to work. Schaapman was appointed to the board in 2012, and is running for a full four-year term in the general election Nov. 4.

Schaapman's challenger, Robert Hogg of Quincy, did not respond to requests for information.

Schaapman is a 41-year resident of Quincy and operates the family farm in conjunction with his sons, he said. He was appointed to the commission to fill the term of the late Randy Allred.

The commissioner's job provides a way to explain to PUD customers what's going on, and the reasons behind PUD actions, Schaapman said. When he took the job, he said, he thought most of the focus would be on electrical generation and system maintenance. Actually those issues must be juggled with fishery and shoreline management and recreation and fishery enhancement, he said. "It (PUD operations) really became quite fascinating," he said.

The PUD's debt restructuring will have a beneficial effect on rate increases, Schaapman said. The way the debt was financed was contributing to rate increases of 6 to 8 percent; the restructuring helped drop that closer to 2 to 3 percent, he said. People have asked him why regular rate increases are necessary at all, he said, and the answer is that utility officials are working on major projects at Wanapum and Priest Rapids dams.

"You're talking millions and millions of dollars," Schaapman said, for projects including replacing turbines at Priest Rapids.

Schaapman said he supports the order issued by Federal District Court Judge Justin Quackenbush in August, ordering mediation between the PUD and homeowners on Crescent Bar, north of Quincy. The PUD and homeowners have been involved in a long-running dispute over the status of the homes, which are built on land owned by the PUD. But, Schaapman said, while he supports the mediation, the PUD's license will require some changes in shoreline management, including Crescent Bar. The mediation will cover the period in the current lease, through 2023, Schaapman said, but what happens after that is still to be determined. The homeowners and the PUD did cooperate on dredging projects this summer, he said. It's a good sign for all river users "that we could have a cooperative effort even though we still had some litigation going on," Schaapman said.

The PUD recently completed a pilot project to provide broadband via wireless delivery, and Schaapman said he was encouraged by the results. There are parts of the county where it would be very expensive to expand the fiber network, he said, and the wireless option might be a feasible alternative.

The district's fish hatchery construction is almost complete, he said, and that will allow the PUD to keep its commitment to help maintain salmon and steelhead populations.