Everson Nooksack News May 2016 by Lynden Tribune

Everson-Nooksack News

Lynden Tribune | Wednesday, May 25, 2016

Upgrading the sewage treatment plant A lot of work will be done through the summer; new system to be operational in 2017 By Elisa Claassen for the Lynden Tribune

EVERSON — Work started already in January on a $4.2 million, 395-day upgrade of the wastewater treatment plant shared with Nooksack. Everson Public Works Director Dave Schoonover and long-time department employee Rick Holt said the system will change from extended aeration to be a complete-mix activated sludge plant by this time in 2017. The plant, located adjacent to Riverside Park, was originally built in 1972. Another upgrade occurred in 1988. Schoonover said he is excited about the eco-friendly aspect of the upgrade to recycle effluent water and be able to reuse it for in-plant service water and thereby cut down on using potable water. With long-term solutions in mind, a sewer plan was created in 2011 by Lyndenbased Reichhardt & Ebe Engineering in conjunction with Stantec Consulting Corporation. Since the plant was considered See Building on C2 The heavy equipment is on site to do the upgrading of Everson’s wastewater treatment plant. (Elisa Claassen/Lynden Tribune)

NV schools construction to start in June Sequence is elementary, middle and high, all completed in 2017 EVERSON — This is an update of the Nooksack Valley School District’s building construction schedule from Superintendent Mark Johnson last week. These projects are a result of voters’ 69 percent passage of a bond issue of nearly $28 million in February 2015. 1. At Nooksack Elementary School four new

classrooms will be built and an existing playshed will be enlarged and partially enclosed. A needed conditional-use permit has been received and the district is going out to bid on the project this month. Construction will start in June and be completed by December. 2. A new 500-student Nooksack Valley Middle School will be built. “Plans are about 90 percent complete and we plan to go out to bid by the third week in May,” Johnson said. “Bids will be opened and a contract awarded by the third week in June.” Construction should start in July and be complet-

ed by August 2017. 3. Multiple projects are slated for the high school, including rebuilding its 1954 sections. The Career and Technical Education area will be renovated, a new fitness center built, and art and science classrooms renovated. “The plans are about 75 percent complete. The bid process will start in late June and a contract would be awarded in July. Construction is scheduled to start in August, with completion set for the fall of 2017,” Johnson said.

Lynden Tribune | Wednesday, May 25, 2016

EVERSON-NOOKSACK NEWS

Building: Good to 2036 Continued from C1 to be at 85 percent capacity recently, the new changes should extend capacity out to year 2036. A contract dated January 2015 was prepared by BHC Consultants of Seattle with Wilson Engineering & Surveying, ZEngineers, Larry Steele & Associates Inc., GeoTest Services Inc., FSi consulting engineers and Capital Architects Inc. Sealed bids were received Feb. 25, 2015 for a new influent metering manhole, replacement of the influent pump station, and replacement of the existing rotor aeration system with a jet aeration system. According to their website, BHC has completed two distinct but coordinated general sewer plans for the cities of Everson and Nooksack. The Everson wastewater treatment plant receives raw sewage from both cities whose combined population is approximately 3,800. Mill Creek-based McClure & Sons is working with the city’s staff to keep current operations going during construction. A new building will add an on-site

Everson Public Works director Dave Schoonover, recent hire Mike Donohoe and department veteran Rick Holt will all contribute to the upgrade project. (Elisa Claassen/Lynden Tribune)

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Lynden Tribune | Wednesday, May 25, 2016

EVERSON-NOOKSACK NEWS office with workspace and a new lab. The existing lab space will be converted into a processing building for sludge. Everson City Clerk/Treasurer Jennifer Bell said funding for the Everson wastewater treatment plant upgrade comes from several sources. The City of Nooksack is responsible for onethird of the project cost. Everson has secured funding through a Whatcom County EDI grant, loan funds and city reserves for the remaining portion. The City of Everson’s portion is being paid with a loan from the Department of Ecology and city reserves. Design of the project was paid for through a Public Works Trust Fund loan and city reserves from both Everson and Nooksack. The plans by BHC Consultants include determining system flow characteristics and flow projections, evaluation of wastewater treatment alternatives, hydraulic modeling, capital improvement planning, analyzing wastewater reuse, and analyzing financial information to determine funding requirements.

New director on board for Everson Public Works David Schoonover, a 1988 Nooksack Valley High School graduate, was named the City of Everson’s new public works director in August 2015. He had worked for Intalco for 19½ years. He started as a yardman, moved into production services as a heavy equipment operator, and then spent most of his career in management with safety oversight.

Mike Donohoe has been hired as treatment plant operator as well as general utilities and maintenance person for the city. Donohoe was initially hired in July 2015 as a temporary employee. He became a permanent employee on Jan. 16, 2016. He has completed his level 2 certification for wastewater treatment. Donohoe, with a construction background, previously interned at the city of Anacortes wastewater treatment facility.

Lincoln St.-Kirsch Dr. project The Lincoln Street and Kirsch Drive improvement projects will include widening and adding sidewalks, bike lanes and gutters. Funding will be from Surface Transportation Program-Rural funds. Schoonover said the city met recently with a right-of-way specialist to start the engineering and acquisition process before construction can start. Phase one of Lincoln is from Everson Road and Lincoln to South Washington Street. Phase two will start at South Washington and put a new road through a commercial zone to Blair. Kirsch Drive, which runs from Main Street alongside WECU and the Everson Library, will also see changes. A map is not available yet. Costs are estimated at around $1.5 to $1.8 million for Lincoln Street and $1 million for Kirsch. While the Mission Road upgrade of a few years ago took 90 days to complete, 500-foot Kirsch Drive is a 60- to 70-day project, Schoonover said. Everson continues to work with Reichhardt & Ebe, the firm handling all city streets and parks projects. Schoonover said the new roadway, running parallel to Main Street (State Route 544), will offer a bypass route. “It will change the look of the downtown,” he said. State Transportation Improvement Board and other STP-R money will fund.

No timetable yet on ballfields development for Everson Everson Mayor John Perry said the former 28acre Evergreen Golf Course site on Main Street will become additional community ballfields eventually. The course, closed in 2004, at first was considered for single-family residential development. The city then purchased the property two years ago for $360,000 using Conservation Futures and other county funding. No time has been set for the project. It is projected that Nooksack Valley schools’ soccer, football and baseball teams will be able to use the site. Another portion could be set aside for downtown Everson stormwater drainage. Nooksack Valley High School student Jarrin Olenslager will be working on a trail on the city property as his senior class project.

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Lynden Tribune | Wednesday, May 25, 2016

EVERSON-NOOKSACK NEWS

Hawks Landing subdivision in early stages An eventual 69 lots are planned in south Everson with Sable access By Elisa Claassen for the Lynden Tribune

EVERSON — South Everson residents have seen a swath of trees disappear and a construction road appear in the past few months near the LaGloria Market on Everson-Goshen Road. What isn’t visible from the road is work progressing on the Hawks Landing subdivision. Phase one involves 19 lots for rambler-style homes in the $270,000 to $290,000 price range. Another 17 homes will be built in phase two on a 2017 proposed timetable. Eventually, 69 single-family homes will be built on 21 acres through all the phases of development, with an entrance via Sable Drive and not Everson-Goshen Road. As of May 16,utility services had been extended to the site and Cashmere Lane in existing Sable Terrace had been extended and paved in Hawks Landing with adjacent sidewalks and curbing. A “rain garden” approach is being used on-site for storm water drainage to be more eco-friendly, said developer Mike Brevik, noting that this approach is already being used in Bellingham and Ferndale developments. “We’re the first one here (to use rain gardens),” he said. Brevik, owner of Everson-based Summit View Construction, purchased the property in January 2015 from Wilshire Development Company. He renamed what had been Wilshire Plat to Hawks Landing. The subdivision had been in planning for a long time through several owners. After original approval by the Everson City Council, the economy’s downturn left it in

A new paved street and sidewalks are created for the Hawks Landing subdivision in south Everson. (Elisa Claassen/Lynden Tribune)

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Lynden Tribune | Wednesday, May 25, 2016

EVERSON-NOOKSACK NEWS

Everson adds two police officers to growing force Contract with Nooksack carried to 2020 with 3% annual increases By Elisa Claassen for the Lynden Tribune

EVERSON — Police Chief Dan MacPhee announces two new hires for the city police department, bringing the force to six fulltime plus two reserve officers. Eric Brown, who had been a reserve officer, moved to fulltime status in October 2015. He completed training in April at the Criminal Justice Training Center in Burien. He is now finishing his on-the-job field training. Prior, Brown worked as a computer programmer in the county. Derrick Charlton, a lateral hire in March 2016, comes with four years’ experience with the Nooksack Tribal Police after 10 years in the U.S. Air Force. • The City of Nooksack has renewed its contract with Everson for law enforcement coverage for another five years at a cost of $822,911, according to Everson City Clerk/Treasurer Jennifer Bell. The $155,000 fee for 2016 — a $10,000 increase over 2015 — increases 3 percent annually to $174,451 in 2020. • Chief MacPhee reminds citizens of Everson and Nooksack to visit the city’s website at http://www.ci.everson.wa.us/policedepartment.html. Officer Matthew Thompson, the department’s community policing liaison, is available to groups, schools and businesses for crime prevention talks. His contact is through the website. • Due to an increase in property crimes this spring, MacPhee encourages resi-

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Lynden Tribune | Wednesday, May 25, 2016

EVERSON-NOOKSACK NEWS

The power of Pure Peonies

Peonies are in full spring bloom at the Pure Peonies farm of Jim Wright and Renel Anderson at 2949 E. Badger Road, Everson, with a display garden area near the road. With 175 varieties, Pure Peonies supplies florists across the United States and Canada from now into July. (Elisa Claassen/Lynden Tribune)

EVERSON-NOOKSACK NEWS

Lynden Tribune | Wednesday, May 25, 2016

Everson prepping for return of Ski to Sea Race Race returns to normalcy after last year's weather-related changes By Tim Newcomb tim@lyndentribune.com

EVERSON — Riverside Park becomes a hub of activity starting on Saturday, as racers in the Ski to Sea Race on Sunday, May 29, prepare for the big day of action. And the day starts a little earlier this year than in the past. After years of changes — from high Nooksack River water cancelling the canoe leg to a lack of snow in 2015 cancelling the ski legs — the race returns to its traditional format, with seven legs taking launch at the Mt. Baker Ski Area. That start, though, comes earlier than

in the past, with an opening blast at 7:30 a.m., the same as in 2015 after a slew of snow-related changes. Race organizers wanted to have kayaks off Bellingham Bay — the final leg of the race — earlier in the evening, so kept the start time moved forward for the eight-person race. With a 7:30 a.m. start, the upper Mount Baker Highway will close at 7:15 a.m. Following the cross country ski leg, the downhill ski or snowboard leg and the eight-mile downhill run, the 42-mile road bike leg brings competitors into Everson. The transition spot at Riverside Park allows teams to switch from their road bike leg to the two-person canoe, which launches in the park, sending teams down the river to Hovander Park in Ferndale. Expect to see plenty of activity in Riverside Park on Saturday, May 28, as the local Boy Scouts offer to move canoes into place and guard them overnight as a fundraiser.

Hawks: Formerly logged Continued from C4 limbo. The property, logged about 13 years ago, was covered with brush to the 600foot buffer with the Singer Pit of Granite Construction Company at 6956 EversonGoshen Rd. on one side and a wooded area containing 2- to 3-acre residential plots in the Everson Urban Growth Area. Brevik previously worked on subdivisions in the city of Nooksack off West Third Street including Westview Place, Avalon Park and the Plat of Gill. Upon completion of those, he was looking for a new project, he said. In Jan. 25, 2015 City Council discus-

sion with Brevik, conditions at the time were 1.2 street trees per lot, $15,000 worth of improvements to Sable Park, utilities right-of-way, and changes in stormwater facilities. It was noted that mineral resources, in the form of the Singer Pit, were within 660 feet of the new plat as well as light industrial zoning for Granite Construction there. Brevik will work directly on improving Sable Park versus paying the city the $15,000 to do so. Granite Construction Company has operated the Singer Pit since the 1970s, and gravel mining has gone on in the area since at least the early 1960s, according to city records.

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Lynden Tribune | Wednesday, May 25, 2016

EVERSON-NOOKSACK NEWS