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Council weighs sewer-rate fixes for pool, school district and Wenatchee River Institute
Summary
Staff recommended a resolution (not an immediate change to the rate-and-fee schedule) to address entities with high water but low sewer demand: the city pool, Cascade School District and Wenatchee River Institute. Council asked staff to prepare a standalone resolution that documents historical practice and criteria for future cases.
City staff told the Leavenworth City Council on Feb. 11 that three local institutions — the City Pool, Cascade School District and the Wenatchee River Institute — have historically been treated differently for sewer charges because their water use (notably irrigation) is not proportional to sewer discharge.
Public Works staff summarized options and recommended addressing the treatment in a formal resolution rather than immediately altering the rate-and-fee schedule. "It made sense to me to keep it within a rate and fee schedule or a resolution," staff said, and proposed a separate resolution that documents historical practice for the three agencies while leaving the standard rate structure intact for other commercial customers.
The practical drivers differ by site. Tracy Adeel, superintendent of Cascade School District, told the council that shifting the district’s irrigation off the building meter could mean a large increase in monthly fees—"almost $50,000 a year" in one scenario she raised if new 3‑inch meters and installation costs were imposed. Kenuchi Taran, executive director of the Wenatchee River Institute, described community gardens the institute operates and said charging full sewer rates on garden water could raise participant fees from about $55 per season to more than $200.
Staff outlined two general technical routes: install separate irrigation meters (which can be costly for large users and may require capital investment), or continue an exception documented in policy/resolution that adjusts billing months or applies an alternate calculation for historical accounts without separate irrigation meters. Staff said sewer metering is technically expensive and uncommon because most systems meter water and calculate sewer from water consumption; metering gravity sewer system‑wide would be costly.
Council members asked for a clear, standardized approach and for the staff to draft a resolution that preserves historical treatment for the three named entities while adding a clear procedural rule so future similar requests have transparent criteria. Staff said they will return with draft language for council consideration and include a reference to any adopted resolution in the next rate-and-fee schedule update so the historic exceptions are not lost over time.
