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Port Orchard staff report progress, constraints on Foster pilot and Clifton intertie; Well 7 flow drops prompt monitoring
Summary
Staff told the Utilities Committee they have made progress with tribal talks on the Foster pilot but face potential impasses requiring mayoral engagement and Ecology involvement; Clifton intertie design is at 30% with a goal of shovel-ready fall 2026; Well 7 has fallen from ~700 gpm to 250'300 gpm and will be monitored by contractor TerraPhase.
At the March 10 meeting, Public Works Director Dennis Ryan updated the Utilities Committee on three water-supply matters: the Foster pilot negotiations with tribes, progress on the Clifton intertie design, and recent flow declines at Well 7.
On the Foster pilot, Ryan said staff met with both tribes and "made some good progress" but had reached a possible impasse over certain tribal requests. He said the next step is to engage the mayor and to pursue side agreements where possible to avoid a tribal appeal to the Washington Department of Ecology; if side agreements are not feasible, staff would file the draft mitigation plan with Ecology for a ruling.
Ryan also said staff has begun negotiating a memorandum of understanding with Westsound and is pursuing augmentation tied to Salmonberry Creek on Mile Hill to secure water rights for roughly the next 30 years.
On the Clifton intertie (item 4), Ryan said the project has completed 30% design. Concert Engineering will prepare a scope to finish the design to 100% so the project can be shovel-ready for fall 2026; staff'stated goal is to pursue funding and break ground in spring'summer 2027. Committee members asked whether Foster pilot actions were required before the intertie; Ryan said they were not.
Staff reported on the status of wells: Well 11 is constructed but constrained by water-right limits, while Wells 12 and 13 are not yet built; Well 11 can serve an interim, narrow intertie as the city proceeds.
Ryan described recent problems at Well 7, the artesian well at the City Hall complex, where pumping capacity has dropped. Staff used a camera inspection and arranged for TerraPhase to perform round-the-clock monitoring. Operations and Utility Manager Jeff Hagelin said the daily readings show production has fallen to roughly "250 to 300 gallons a minute" from earlier readings closer to 700 gpm. Hagelin said the contractor recommends about three weeks of continuous monitoring before staff begins detailed diagnostics; he confirmed the monitoring is covered by existing budgeted services for source monitoring.
Committee members requested follow-up updates; Ryan and Hagelin said they would analyze the monitoring data and report back to the committee and council as needed.
