Council okays water treatment plant construction

City Public Works Director Fred Buckenmeyer said, “We think this is the largest public works project, outside of transportation, ever undertaken in Skagit County.”

The City Council also was briefed Monday night on proposed higher water rates to help pay for the water plant.

The City Council Monday night awarded the construction contract worth $56 million to IMCO, Inc of Ferndale. Construction of the plant is expected to take 2 1/2 years and will start on January 1.

The Council also approved hiring two consultants to manage the project: MHW Americas, Inc., will be paid up to $1.3 million and HDR Engineering, Inc. will be paid up to $1.2 million for the first year of construction. The city will review the work after a year and set new amounts, if necessary. Buckenmeyer said the annual contracts were a way to watch costs more closely.

MHW Americas will provide on-site construction management and HDR Engineering will provide engineering services during construction.

The Council was also briefed on a proposal to raise water rates to pay for the new plant. Under the rates, the 'average' Anacortes residential user, who now pays $11.46 per month for 700 cubic feet of water, would pay $16.73 in 2013, an increase of about $5 per month. That's a 45 percent hike. The actual cost of water, called the volume charge, won't increase from the current $1.03 per cubic foot, but the base charge will increase.

Anacortes water would still be lower than other water service here. Skagit PUD charges $35.24 for that same 'average' user who draws 700 cubic feet of water per month. Stanwood charges $21.47; Port Townsend $24.62; Port Angeles $41.31; Bellingham $30.46. These are residential rates; commercial users would also pay higher rates.