Utility fixes could cost Bellevue homeowner $216 more

Published 9:01 pm Thursday, November 27, 2008

Bellevue residents are facing a potential utility-rate hike that would cost around $216 more per year by 2010 for typical customers.

The additional money is needed to pay for rising water and wastewater costs, federal and state mandates, and replacement of aging infrastructure, according to the city.

Bellevue’s Utility Department pitched the increase to match its proposed 2009-2010 operating and 2009-2015 capital budgets, which call for $44 million in new capital investments over the next six years and 15 new staff positions.

The Bellevue City Council is expected to make a decision on the matter in early December.

The proposed operating budget for utilities has grown to $204 million from $163 million in 2007-2008. Utilities officials attribute the increase to rising wholesale costs for purchases of water from Cascade Water Alliance and sewage treatment from King County/METRO.

“These costs are outside of our control,” said Anne Weigle, director of resource management for the Bellevue Utilities Department.

The proposed capital budget for 2009-2010 has jumped to $31 million from $17 million during the previous one-year cycle.

The utilities department maintains 1,600 miles of infrastructure that includes pipes, water reservoirs and pump stations.

Half of the $3 billion in infrastructure is now past mid-life, and failures are increasing, according to the city.

Proof of the system’s age came in the form of a water main break in Bellevue’s Somerset Woods neighborhood Nov. 17.

The incident sent 569,000 gallons of water pouring down area streets and caused ripples along the pavement on 147th Avenue Southeast. At least six inches of sediment also settled on the road.

“It’s happened before,” said Somerset Woods resident Betty Horodel. “I think the pipelines are just getting too old.”

That’s exactly the problem, according to Weigle.

“Water mains installed in the 1950s and 1960s in neighborhoods such as Somerset and Lake Hills are failing at a much higher rate than other water mains,” she said.

The city has proposed tripling its rate of water-main replacement as part of a plan for updating the utilities system.

Bellevue’s sewage infrastructure presents another set of concerns.

There are currently over 500 known problems in the wastewater system that are in need of repair, Weigle said. The complications include root intrusions, cracked or corroded pipes, and blockages throughout the city.

The city has proposed replacing 1,150 feet of sewer line off the shores of Meydenbauer Beach Park, and also plans to begin assessing 19 miles of in-lake sewer pipe to determine its remaining life.

The culvert under Coal Creek Parkway is additionally slated for replacement under the city’s intended program for infrastructure renewal.

Capital investments proposed by the utilities department would create additional sewage capacity for the downtown and Wilburton areas, as well as more water storage and supply to accommodate downtown growth.

Joshua Adam Hicks can be reached at jhicks@cmg-northwest2.go-vip.net/bellevuereporter or 425-453-4193.