PORT ANGELES — Clallam County has requested bids for the construction of the Carlsborg sewer project.
Commissioners voted 3-0 Tuesday to approve an invitation for bids on the estimated $12.1 million construction project.
Beginning in April, a contractor will build a pump station along Carlsborg Road and lay sewer pipes that will transport effluent from the unincorporated hamlet to the existing wastewater treatment plant owned and operated by the city of Sequim.
Commissioners will open bids for the Carlsborg project in a public meeting March 1.
County officials will analyze the bids and revise the funding plan before awarding a contract in mid-April.
The contractor will then have 225 days to complete the work.
Commissioners did not discuss the project, which had been vetted in recent meetings, before calling for bids.
Officials have been planning for a sewer in Carlsborg since the late 1980s.
Thanks issued
Former Commissioner Phil Kitchel thanked those who have worked on the effort, including Public Works Administrative Director Bob Martin.
“If and when we do get to a point where there is a ribbon-cutting ceremony on this, I would encourage you to invite all former county commissioners to attend that event,” Kitchel told the current board during a public comment period Tuesday.
“This has been on our docket for a period of 20-plus years now, and I appreciate the fact the county has stuck with that.
“Hopefully we’re going to actually live long enough to see this thing done,” he added.
“It’s a very worthwhile project, and I want to give my thanks to Bob Martin and others who have pursued this.”
Urban growth area
The Carlsborg Urban Growth Area was invalidated by a state Growth Management Act hearings board in 2008 because it lacked sewer infrastructure.
That ruling prevented Carlsborg businesses, which support more than 1,000 jobs, from expanding.
In response, Clallam County secured a $10 million loan from the state Public Works Trust Fund to build a sewer for Carlsborg.
The loan will be paid back over 30 years at 0.25 percent interest, which would double if the system is not operational by April 1, 2017.
A controversial plan to treat the wastewater in Carlsborg was shelved because it was determined to be more expensive than the city-treatment option.
Clallam County has already spent $3.1 million on the project, including $1.3 million to the city for the additional capacity.
Much of the rest was spent on design and the requisite studies.
The county has $11.4 million available for the project and would need to make up a $726,000 shortfall if a conservative engineer’s estimate holds true, officials have said.
Carlsborg residents are not required to connect to the sewer immediately.
Those who choose to connect will pay about $70 per month for the service.
Connection fees are $500 while the sewer is being built, $1,500 within two years of operation and $8,000 in subsequent years.
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Reporter Rob Ollikainen can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5072, or at rollikainen@peninsuladailynews.com.
