Ephrata council discusses city services to new jail

EPHRATA — Water and sewer service, land use and the new Grant County Jail were subjects of discussion by the Ephrata City Council at the regular meeting Wednesday. Council members approved an ordinance allowing the city to provide water and sewer services to the new facility.

“This ordinance allows both water and sewer service outside not only your municipal limits but outside your urban growth area, which is pretty extraordinary under the Growth Management Act,” city attorney Anna Franz told council members. “This is in response to a request by (Grant County) in developing their correctional facility, which is an essential public facility, to receive services before it’s designated as part of the (urban growth area).”

The ordinance requires a contract, which will be submitted to the council for review, Franz said.

“This just gets it started,” Mayor Bruce Reim said.

County officials purchased property on State Route 28, formerly the home of the Ephrata Raceway Park, for the new jail. The project general contractor currently is working on a cost estimate, which will be presented to the Grant County Commissioners this summer or fall. Grant County Central Services Director Tom Gaines said in an earlier interview that site cleanup is scheduled to begin this fall.

County officials have submitted a request for inclusion in the urban growth area, which promoted a question from council member William Coe.

“What happens if the UGA (application) is not approved? Does this (ordinance) still supersede that?” Coe asked.

Franz said the ordinance allows the city to provide water and sewer service now, due to its status as an essential public facility.

“If they wanted to develop that land as anything else other than that correctional facility, it would not be authorized unless it was in the UGA,” Franz said.

Coe asked if the contract would be valid even if the property was not added to the UGA, and Franz said it would.

The property is located in the southwest part of town, and council member Sarah McDonnell said the city already is coping with issues with its water and sewer systems there.

“Is that going to have a further impact on some of the things we’re already facing challenges with?” she asked.

McDonnell asked if the county would contribute to mitigating some of those problems if the jail added to them.

Franz said there is the potential for impacts on the city’s existing system.

“That’s why there’s a contract, so you can establish those terms and conditions that would be necessary to mitigate any detrimental impact to service inside the city,” Franz said. “With that contract, there’s a first determination by the city through the council that you do have that capacity to serve that request. So if there was something going on with either the water or sewer system (where) serving that parcel would be detrimental inside the city, you could deny it.”

Cheryl Schweizer can be reached via email at education@columbiabasinherald.com.