The City of Centralia Public Works Department will submit an application for the approximately $15 million Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (DWSRF) Loan for the Seminary Hill water system improvement project, thanks to city council approval Tuesday.
Potentially 49% of the loan, or about $7.350 million, could be forgiven, depending on if the city qualifies for forgiveness.
The water system improvement project includes a new pump station on Duffy Street, approximately four miles of a 10-inch water main from Duffy Street to Little Hanaford Road, and a 680,000-gallon standpipe reservoir at 2353 Seminary Hill Road. This project is listed in the 2022 approved Water System Plan and tentatively scheduled to begin during the 2026 construction season.
In preparation for this loan application and project, the water department has completed the necessary property purchase, a 75% engineered design, State Environmental Policy Act documentation, and house demolition.
The Seminary Hill project will provide for future development by eliminating the Seminary Hill water share certificate system (moratorium), adequate firefighting capability and four deficiencies listed in the Water System Plan. The project eligibility for the DWSRF construction loan is based on the health risks associated with the design of the current system. The project will also provide the necessary water to serve the future housing development on the former location of the Armory Hills Golf Course, called Woodland Glen.
The estimated total project cost is $18 million, with the remaining $3 million coming from the Woodland Glen development’s proportionate share of the new pump station and water department capital reserves.
This amount of available funding and forgiveness for disadvantaged communities will likely no longer be available after 2025. The deadline for the application is Nov. 30.
Andy Oien, Centralia public works director, told the councilors Tuesday that the loan is competitive and that Centralia will be competing against other water districts and water suppliers.
Chris Stone, city water operations manager, added that the water system improvement project addresses a number of deficiencies in the water system plan, including asbestos cement pipe, fire flow inadequacy, backflow health risks, and the inability for growth or development in the pressure zone. If the loan is secured, it would return to the city council for approval, and the city would then see funds in the fall of 2026.
If the city does not secure the loan, Stone said the alternative would be for the developer to build its own pump station that the city would have to maintain.
“Immediately, my thought goes back to the original plan for the Woodland Glen development, and that was for the developer to build their own pump station that we have to maintain. So now we’re maintaining an additional pump station,” Stone said of the scenario if the loan is not secured. “We’re not solving any of our problems, and it’s status quo. We just continue to make repairs on a system that’s monopolizing our time right now.”
