Tumwater Public Works Committee endorsed to its city council an agreement with Lacey to acquire Lacey’s water rights at the Brewery Wellfield for $2,400,461. The purchase includes transferring Lacey’s portion of the land and its share of assets on the site to Tumwater.
Brewery Wellfield, near Cleveland Avenue and Tumwater Valley Golf Course, has over 30 wells constructed between 1948 and 1982.
Once the water rights have been fully transferred, Tumwater will own an annual quantity of 761.18 acre-feet of water, which, according to a valuation conducted by WestWater Research, is estimated to supply water for around 3,200 homes.
The execution of the contract also transfers certain liabilities to Tumwater, such as the removal of an old one-million-gallon storage tank and associated infrastructure and the decommissioning of old wells. The costs to address these liabilities have been deducted from the purchase price.
Per discussions in previous meetings, Lacey is relinquishing its portion of the water rights on the site due to the cost of conveying the water to its system.
Since Olympia also holds a portion of the water rights in Brewery Wellfield, Tumwater will share the costs of the wellfield’s redevelopment with Olympia.
Dan Smith, Tumwater’s Water Resources Director, told the committee that once the contract with Lacey is approved, the next course of action is to develop a memorandum of understanding with Olympia to iron out the ownership and management of the property.
In terms of water rights, Olympia owns a third of the water rights, while Tumwater will have two-thirds once the transfer from Lacey has been completed.
According to the contract, Lacey will retain ownership of its assets until the “re-perfection of the water rights” or, in layman’s terms, once Tumwater and Olympia have established infrastructure to put the water to full beneficial use.
RH Engineering is set to design up to three wells for the property. Smith mentioned that they only plan to retain one of the existing wells on the site.
The director hopes that the new wells will be constructed from 2025 to 2026, once they have secured all the requirements.
With the contract endorsed by the committee, it will now be forwarded to the city council for approval.
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wildnature
I hope this water isn't being bought to go to the planned coco-cola plant at the airport.
Wednesday, August 28 Report this
Southsoundguy
Why can't those 3,200 homes own their own water rights?
Wednesday, August 28 Report this
PamelaJHanson
Well... If it is now, as it has been in the past, at least some of the Water/Sewer bill money goes elsewhere. So, there is no sufficient accrued balance to more fully cover the development of wells, etc. So, up goes the fees, rates and taxes! Congratulations Tumwater Residents!
Thursday, August 29 Report this