Mayor's Corner Keeping the Water Turned On
Have you ever stopped to think about how amazing it is that we can turn on the faucet and get fresh, clean, and safe water? It's all thanks to the hard work and dedication of our Public Works Staff, who keep the water flowing daily.
It's also important to acknowledge that the public works department heavily relies on the community's support. In the case of Sherwood, the community voted in 2005 to use the Willamette River as a long-term water source. A water plant and pipeline were constructed to provide water to our community for the next 100 years. Ensuring we have a reliable water source. Thanks to forward-thinking leaders and a supportive community, we secured our water future and established maintenance, seismic readiness, and expansion funding mechanisms. This is a luxury that many communities across the country do not have, and they are scrambling to find funding to replace aging infrastructure.
Over the last year, our public works team, in partnership with the City of Wilsonville, has been working on the first substantial upgrade to the jointly owned treatment plant in Wilsonville, a project that will be completed this summer. This upgrade will increase our portion of the plant's capacity from 5 million to 6.7 million gallons a day. We also improve backup generators, increase resilience, and upgrade infrastructure to withstand potential natural disasters. This, in combination with our water rights of 20 million gallons a day and a pipeline that was sized from day one to support that volume, has significantly reduced the costs to bring this added capacity online for Sherwood. (This is not the same project that is happening on 124th Avenue; that is for the Willamette Water Supply Program and not part of Sherwood's water infrastructure)
We achieved our goals without increasing water rates or requiring additional property taxes from our citizens. We created a fund specifically for maintenance and capital water-related projects; the funding for this investment account is built up over time by taking a small portion of each month's water bill. This forward-thinking funding mechanism is not only funding the current project but will fund expansion projects into the future. Our next major upgrade of the treatment plant is currently programmed for 2035.
Let's take a moment to discuss our water rates. According to our charter, we have a policy of not increasing residential water rates by more than 2% per year. To assess our current water rates, I compared my September water bill with the same water consumption in neighboring cities and districts. Sherwood's water rates are similar to Wilsonville, but significantly less expensive than those of Beaverton, King City, Tigard, and the Tualatin Valley Water District. Those cities purchase significant amounts of their water from other providers and are subject to the rates they are charged. Since we own our infrastructure in partnership with Wilsonville, we have more control over our costs.
While we would all prefer to pay less for water, it's important to note that providing safe water to our community comes at a cost, and so far, the state and federal governments have yet to offer any assistance to Sherwood. Our rate-setting policy ensures we can provide safe water now and, in the future, approach our engineering and capital projects to maximize the value we receive from our tax dollars.
In conclusion, Sherwood's commitment to providing safe water is underscored by its proactive approach, community support, and innovative funding mechanism. With ongoing infrastructure upgrades and responsible rate-setting policies, we ensure the sustainability of our water services without overburdening our residents. The dedication of our Public Works staff, the support of our community, and the forward-thinking leaders over the last 20 years in Sherwood have collectively secured our water future for generations to come.
This article was also featured in the Sherwood Archer newsletter published by the city of Sherwood. Click here to go to the Sherwood Archer website.