Parametrix under contract to site North County recycling/transfer station; 46‑month schedule and public outreach planned

Parametrix is under contract with Clark County to perform the North County recycling and transfer station siting study, and staff told the Solid Waste Advisory Commission May 1 that preliminary work is well under way.

Carl (Parametrix) said the contract was active, a kickoff meeting took place Feb. 26 and the team is currently several months into Phase 1. He described a preliminary schedule of 46 months and said the work is organized in multiple phases and tasks, with the project team using four‑week look‑ahead schedules to manage near‑term tasks.

Key planning assumptions and criteria: Parametrix outlined three guiding principles for the project: transfer stations are essential public facilities (a Clark County code definition), the design must use a long‑term planning horizon (Parametrix cited a 60‑year planning horizon), and facilities must be “good neighbors,” which drives siting and design choices. The firm expects to design a station sized for long‑term use rather than a short‑term interim facility.

Search area and site size: The firm has defined a search area bounded by the county line to the north, the Columbia River to the west, an eastern longitude roughly at 122°20′, and a southern boundary near State Route 502/NE 200/19th Street. Parametrix said an ideal fully developable site would be about 13 acres; the team established a 9‑acre bare minimum. The team is open to aggregating contiguous parcels to reach the required acreage.

Public involvement and regulatory steps: Parametrix said it has submitted draft data and facility programming documents to the county and that public outreach and a public involvement plan are in draft form. The county will form a siting review committee (SRC) of subject‑matter experts to review early deliverables; Parametrix expected the SRC to be established within a week or two of the meeting. The consultant cautioned that required environmental review (SEPA) and other permitting tasks — and the final site choice — will drive schedule length and complexity.

Other considerations discussed: rail access was raised; Parametrix said rail can be useful but is not a universal solution because effective rail use typically requires substantial siding capacity. Parametrix confirmed the county is funding the study and expects the facility to be publicly owned if developed. Potential sites will be scored against a long list of siting criteria and weightings; those documents will be shared with interested parties as the SRC review and outreach proceed.

What’s next: Parametrix will continue data collection, traffic work and siting criteria refinement, begin broad area site screening when the SRC is in place, and return to the commission with regular updates during the multi‑year study.

Quote: “This work is projected to extend almost 4 years. It's 46 months on the schedule,” Carl said, describing the schedule. “Transfer stations are essential public facilities…we take a very long term view.”