Cowlitz County public works details road, stormwater and outreach plans ahead of fee review

Susan Eugenis, Cowlitz County engineer, told the Board of Commissioners in an afternoon briefing that public works will bring several near‑term items for board action and is updating policies to reduce recurring conflicts with utility installers.

Eugenis said staff expect two road‑vacation resolutions for Todaf Road and Oswalt Lane and are finalizing a franchise agreement with Comcast. She reviewed four right‑of‑way permit types — notification permits for utility work, utility work permits for pavement cuts, driveway approach permits (which she corrected in the meeting to say there is no fee) and a new no‑cost preapproval permit for private roads intended to avoid costly redesign after building‑planning approvals.

The engineer said the county will modernize its 2001 utility accommodation policy to clarify locating responsibilities, backfill standards and jacking/boring versus open cut practices after finding repeated conflicts with fiber installers. "We've cut in the past month, we have cut two fiber lines during construction that were not located," Eugenis said, adding other counties report similar problems.

Eugenis outlined the county's stormwater priorities, including work to produce a new Stormwater Management Action Plan (SMAP) after Ecology deemed the county's previous submission insufficient. She said the county will roll SMAP priorities into a stormwater management program for existing development and will pursue retrofit projects in priority watersheds.

To meet permit requirements, Eugenis said the county must implement a street‑sweeping program focused on high‑traffic, industrial and commercial priority areas. "At a minimum, sweep once between July and September and two additional times per year in those areas," she said, and noted vacuum‑type sweepers are required so material is collected rather than blown into storm drains.

Eugenis also described digital upgrades: public works is evaluating construction‑management software for electronic inspection forms and e‑ticketing and is integrating a GIS‑based asset system called Gizmo to publish right‑of‑way data, bridge load restrictions and live mapping during storms.

Why this matters: the new stormwater compliance and street‑sweeping requirements will affect operating costs and service levels; Eugenis said staff will propose fee changes to the commissioners in advance of the fall budget process so the board can plan for any rate adjustments. She also said Ecology has opened a public comment period on a major rewrite of the bridge‑washing permit that could change how the county schedules and documents bridge inspections and cleaning.

The briefing included public‑engagement plans — student calendar and video contests and regionally coordinated outreach through a Cowlitz‑Longview‑Kelso consortium — and closed with a request that commissioners advise staff on whether public works should resume participation in certain regional collaborative meetings.

Eugenis asked commissioners for feedback on priorities and said staff will return with details on proposed rate changes and the draft Title 6 public works chapter required by WSDOT before the board takes any formal action.