Pe Ell Receives $900,000 Grant From State for Wastewater Improvements

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The City of Pe Ell has been awarded a $900,000 grant from the Washington State Department of Commerce for improvements to its wastewater treatment facility. 

Commerce awarded $10.8 million in Community Development Block Grants (CDBG) to assist 21 rural communities around the state with vital infrastructure projects.

Pe Ell Mayor Lonnie Willey said that they plan to use the grant to make some needed upgrades to the wastewater facility and purchase new pumps and supplies.

“We’re really pleased that we got the grant and we’re looking forward to updating our system. Over the years we’ve had several grants for road and waterline projects. It’s a good thing that helps these smaller communities that may not have the resources that bigger cities do,” said Willey. “These grants are a real benefit to towns like ours.”

Projects the grants will fund across the state include improvements to rural water, sewer, streets, fire protection systems and community facilities, as well as providing support for affordable housing and economic development.



There were 27 projects selected to receive funding in 21 rural cities out of 37 submitted grant applications requesting $18.5 million. 

“Partnering with local governments to create infrastructure is essential to our mission of strengthening communities, especially at this time when local funding is deeply challenged due to pandemic response,” Department of Commerce Director Lisa Brown said. 

The CDBG program receives funding annually from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to assist lower-income populations in rural areas. Since 1982 the CDBG program has awarded over $538 million in grants to go toward 1,550 community development projects.