City Council approves KOA sewer connection

The KOA campground has been seeking annexation to the city, mainly so they could connect to the city utilities, water and sewer. While the annexation is still progressing, the KOA came to the city requesting an early connection to the city system.
“KOA has sent us a letter requesting a connection. We know they are going to be connecting in the future with annexation. Anything outside the city limits has to go through a process to receive a connection, for sewer specifically,” said City Development Manager Nathan Pate, at the April 10 study session. “What we know is their system is old and may not be functioning properly now. As part of that transition to connection to our system...a lift station is being built now as well as the conveyance lines. To swap over from a septic system, which is basically old and failing, to our system takes a little bit of effort.”
KOA is currently in the process of adding all the infrastructure to accommodate the city connection, Pate said. At present, their septic system is failing.
“As a public need, this is a health issue, where we don’t want the sewer to continue to enter the river at all, basically contaminating downstream,” Pate said. “Moving a contamination source anytime is a positive thing for the city to do. Their system is basically failing. Before us will be the resolution where the council can make the decision...we have a process in our Leavenworth code which allows these emergency connections.”
This is not a super emergency, Pate said, but the city does not want them to continue to contaminate the river, causing a human health hazard.
“The problem is the drain fields are in close proximity to the river and it is failing or at least we suspect it is failing. If you talk to the folks at River Bend Drive about the smells you encounter in the summer time is a good indication,” said City Administrator Joel Walinski.
The folks on River Bend are on possibly on failing septic systems, Council Margaret Neighbors said, so they can’t squeal too much.
The KOA is building lines and a lift station, Councilman Elmer Larsen said, so it makes sense to have them connect to the system right away. Pate said the city will install a meter so they can monitor what is being put into the city system.
KOA is paying for the lift station, Walinski said. They have had a conversation with the neighboring property owner, Mr. Linn, about sharing the cost. Councilwoman Carolyn Wilson asked how they were able to get a permit to build drain fields so close to the river.
“This was in the ‘60s. I think that is all you have to say,” Farivar said in response to Wilson.
Councilman Jason Lundgren said he totally agrees with hooking KOA up to the city, feeling it makes sense on so many levels.
“But I also feel you are parsing this out from so many other things. If the city wanted to ask the KOA to do something to accommodate us or River Bend, this is point of leverage,” Lundgren said. “Because I’m new and don’t have the history, I’m not going to say that forever. I just feel like River Bend situation is unresolved and I don’t see a resolution in front of us. By accommodating the KOA, we lose some point of negotiation at the table. That’s my only caution. I don’t want to slow them down.”
Lundgren said this issue cannot be completely separate with River Bend access issue. Walinski said they have considered that.
“One of the issues we’ve had is the KOA and River Bend Drive are in the county. If you were going to make a requirement that, for example, you close your old access off River Bend Drive and we’ll give you sewer access. Say they went ahead and closed it, then they opened it back up...I’m not sure how you would enforce that,” Walinski said.
Back in 2013, when the KOA came to the city asking to be annexed, the council asked the KOA to build a new road for the entrance and also water and sewer lines to connect with city utilities.
The second thing was the KOA had to be in compliance with their county conditional use permit. Walinski said it was not a surprise KOA came to the city wanting to connect early.
“We knew they were going to build out. We knew at some point in time when the project was done, they would want to connect to city sewer system,” Walinskis aid. “Because of the public health issue, they’ve made a request because it makes it easier for them to do the construction and also takes this public health issue off their plate.”
Farivar said the city has known from the get-go the KOA wanted to annex to resolve their sewer issues.
“Because of a change in ownership, it took from 2013 to now for their septic systems to be more critical. In the best of all worlds, that annexation would have been completed a couple years ago. I think it just got out of sequence with the annexation. The expectation their septic would fail has always been a concern,” Farivar said. “We did not choose those compliance issues. What we said was, RVPA (River Bend Park Association) knows you’re not in compliance with the county. We have to have verification from the county you are now in compliance before we will consider it.”
At the city council meeting later that night, some language was added to resolution, in deference to the Councilman Lundgren’s concerns.
“The completion of the sewer and lift station will conclude another step to eventual annexation of the KOA property and revision of the access to KOA property to eliminate the transit of RVs on River Bend Drive,” the new language read.
Farivar said that has always been the city’s intention, despite what may have heard otherwise. Councilman Elmer Larsen pressed for emergency access to KOA from River Bend,
“The second piece of the city’s position, since 2013, the emergency access, service access for city services may need that access. That determination has yet been made,” Walinski said.
The council voted unanimously to allow KOA to connect to city utilities.
Leavenworth KOA General Manager Danielle Akey said the KOA is very excited the council is in agreement that this needed to happen to continue their process toward annexation. She said all their drain fields would be eliminated.
“We’ll go through the due process and make sure everything is handled properly and eliminated. We’ll get rid of all our septic systems, tanks and all that. We’ll just be on city sewer, which is exciting. Whenever an RV Park can get on city sewer, that’s where we want to be,” Akey said.
Ian Dunn can be reached at 548-5286 or editor@leavenworthecho.com.