HomeMy WebLinkAboutEDC LOS - Hadlock Sewer 3.25.21
2409 Jefferson Street, Port Townsend, WA 98368 | edcteamjefferson.org
March 25, 2021
EDC Team Jefferson is pleased to provide this letter in demonstration of our support for Jefferson
County, Washington’s Port Hadlock Sewer project. This project has been in the planning for over 15
years and is essentially shovel-ready, with all property acquired, and engineering and design work well
underway and scheduled for completion this year.
Since the adoption of the Growth Management Act (GMA), Port Hadlock is the only designated urban
growth area in the County outside of our one municipality, Port Townsend. Many years of planning,
public meetings, and legal challenges resulted in Port Hadlock being the designated receiving zone for
density and economic development for unincorporated Jefferson County.
The County seeks to build the sewer in order to “turn on” the greater density allowed in an urban growth
area, per GMA. Jefferson, like most rural counties, has struggled to make the project financially feasible
given the high startup costs for a new sewer which must initially be borne by the existing water customers
until new development and greater density occur. Business and property owners, who petitioned the
County in 2018 to assess the costs and benefits of the project, seek to expand their businesses, build
housing and develop their properties without the constraints of septic systems. Until this sewer project is
built, growth and development are stymied.
This is why federal infrastructure funding is so important. It has historically served to bring basic services
like safe drinking water and electrification to marginalized areas that cannot otherwise afford the capital
investments themselves. This project is no different. The Port Hadlock sewer cannot be financed by the
rural property owners alone. We support Jefferson County’s request for capital funding to off -set costs for
this project, which will serve many low-income families and create jobs, housing and much-need
opportunity to the region.
De-commissioning of septic systems also has environmental benefits, particularly for a commercial area
that drains to salmon-bearing streams and directly to marine shorelines. A modern facility will treat
wastewater to Class-A water quality standards and infiltrate it back into the groundwater, supplementing a
basin that experiences low flows in the summer when endangered summer chum need it most.
We join the voices of affordable housing providers, existing businesses, and venerable public institutions
such as the local school and library in supporting this #1 priority infrastructure project in Jefferson County.
Jefferson County, the City of Port Townsend, the Port of Port Townsend and Jefferson Public Utility
District formed the Intergovernmental Collaborative Group (ICG) in 2020, in response to the Covid-19
pandemic. Our support of the Port Hadlock sewer project is a demonstration of the work the ICG is doing
to strategically identify and problem-solve the complex issues facing our communities.
Thank you for your support of rural, maritime communities like ours. We strive to be good partners in
carrying out responsible growth management and creating equitable opportunities for our residents.
Signed,
Brian Kuh
Executive Director