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Everett staff outline $150M Port Gardner storage plan and conveyance work to cut CSOs by 95%
Summary
Public Works and the city engineer briefed the council on the Port Gardner Storage Facility program, describing a $150 million facility, roughly $117 million in conveyance projects, required easements, a state-agreed compliance deadline of Dec. 31, 2027, and modeled CSO reductions from ~20 million to just over 1 million gallons annually.
City public works staff on March 18 presented a detailed briefing on the Port Gardner Storage Facility (PGSF) program and related conveyance projects intended to dramatically reduce combined sewer overflows (CSOs) into Port Gardner Bay.
Director Ryan Sass said the PGSF is the first major project of a state-mandated program to reduce CSOs and noted that the city purchased the former Kimberly-Clark site to reuse existing industrial structures for storage rather than building an entirely new plant. City Engineer Tom Hood described the program’s scope, including a currently estimated $150 million total project cost for the storage facility and approximately $117 million for two conveyance projects that will install large-diameter pipelines (up to 48 inches) to move flows to the storage site.
Hood told council that hydraulic modeling indicates the city needs roughly 3 million gallons of storage capacity to meet Ecology’s agreed-order requirements but that the old KC site provides about 7 million gallons, offering additional margin. With the PGSF facilities and the conveyance work in place, modeling predicts an annual CSO volume reduction from about 20 million gallons to just over 1 million gallons (approximately a 95% reduction).
Council members asked about the compliance deadline, project funding and penalties. Staff confirmed an agreed-order compliance date with the Washington State Department of Ecology of Dec. 31, 2027, and noted potential penalties for noncompliance that were cited during discussion as $10,000 per day. Funding was described as primarily ratepayer-funded through the city’s sewer capital construction fund and existing utility bond proceeds (the presentation referenced roughly $80 million in bond proceeds), with additional grants expected from Ecology and other sources to be tracked and applied as secured.
Project logistics staff highlighted that the conveyance alignment will require a crossing of BNSF tracks near 24th Street and license and construction easements from the Port of Everett for staging and to reduce traffic impacts on West Marine View Drive during construction; the city said it has already secured BNSF easement rights and is negotiating with the port.
Why it matters: The project responds to a 2015 agreed order with the Department of Ecology limiting CSOs into surface waters. The scale, multi-year construction timeline and reliance on utility funding raise fiscal and construction-management issues for Everett residents and businesses near the waterfront.
What’s next: Council received the presentation as part of the first reading of Council Bill 2603-14, creating a special improvement project for PSGF and West Marine View Drive conveyance projects; staff said the third and final reading is scheduled for April 1, 2026, and additional ordinance and contract actions will follow for consultant agreements, license agreements with the Port of Everett and construction bids.
