Warden looking at major sewer renovation, expansion

WARDEN — The city of Warden is looking at a $3 million major sewer renovation and addition that will increase the capacity primarily for industrial users in the north part of town.

At a regular meeting of the Warden City Council on Tuesday, Don Tulloch, a senior project manager with Yakima-based engineering consultants Gray & Osborne, recommended that the city build a fourth sewage lifting station on the northwest side of town and refurbish an older lift station, No. 2, underneath First Street North between Jensen Farms Produce and Baker Produce North.

The proposal would also add several thousand feet of new sewer line to the city, including a gravity line to the far west side for future development. The plan could lead to an increase in sewer rates for Warden residents of $11.25 per month to $67.41, a rise of 20 percent.

“This adds extra capacity to the city sewer,” Tulloch told council members. “And it gets rid of the sewage pond near the canal.”

Tulloch also presented two other plans to the city that bypassed the current No. 2 Lift station, but neither of those options would expand city sewer capacity and one would present the possibility of backups on the city’s main sewer line.

The city has until Oct. 15 to submit an application to the Washington Department of Ecology for a $820,000 loan or grant to from a state program to rebuild lift station No. 2, Tulloch said. Currently, the city has secured the rest of the funding from a combination of county and state grants as well as another $1 million already-approved loan from Ecology.

“It will take at least a year to get approval (for the loan) with Ecology,” Tulloch explained.

“I like this plan,” said Council member Byron Starkey. “It has room in the future to tie into it. I’d rather set up for the future and have in over with. Otherwise, we’re throwing our money away.”

Charles H. Featherstone can be reached via email at countygvt@columbiabasinherald.com.