RSSSewer district back in business
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YAKIMA, Wasdh. -- After being without a board of commissioners since last spring, the Cowiche Sewer District has two commissioners back on board.
That leaves the board short one commissioner, which could lead to deadlock if Joe Trepanier and Stacey Sanchez disagree on how to vote. The county auditor's office certified the election last week.
Trepanier resigned from the commission last spring, along with the other two members, Lisa Wood and Chuck Simmons.
Trepanier said he left because he was tired of boosting rates for Cowiche customers in order to support requirements from the state Department of Ecology, which regulates the sewer plant's operation.
He said he returned at the suggestion of several sewer district customers he spoke to.
Sanchez previously served on the board. She did not return a message left at the Highland School District, where she works, and her number is unlisted.
It's unclear when the two might hold their first meeting.
The Cowiche Sewer District owns the sewage plant, which serves the Tieton and Cowiche areas, including the local packing plants.
The $4 million plant opened in 2002, with oversight by the sewer commission.
Two years later, a long and acrimonious legal battle began when two of the three sewer district commissioners resigned.
Tieton assumed control, Cowiche stopped paying its portion of the bills and Tieton deferred making some needed repairs. An arbitrator gave control of the plant back to Cowiche, and in 2008 and ordered it to fund Tieton for overdue payments.
To help offset costs, the Cowiche Sewer District has gradually increased monthly base rates in Cowiche from $35 to $57 today for residential users. This is substantially higher than the $44.29 monthly fee charged in nearby Tieton. Roughly 350 customers in Tieton and 120 in Cowiche have been using the plant.
After the second time without a full commission since 2004, the board's near-term future could again be rocky.
Joe Schons, the sewer plant operator who was hired in 2008, has raised a variety of concerns about decisions made by the previous board, particularly Trepanier.
He said he's concerned that Trepanier will push to terminate his contract, which pays him about $80,000 to run the plant and provide a backup operator, among other tasks. It's set to expire in May 2010.
"We'll just have to wait and see," Trepanier said in a recent interview.
Last spring, Trepanier walked out of a board meeting where the contract was under discussion. He said he didn't want to approve it, while the others did.
Schons and Trepanier disagree over the source of the problem.
Schons says Trepanier has played a role in a variety of bad decisions involving the district -- lagging on raising rates to support necessary maintenance, for example.
Trepanier said the other two commissioners did not seem interested in the topic, so he tabled discussion.
Schons has passed on his concerns to the state Auditor's Office.
Auditor's spokeswoman Mindy Chambers said staff is still reviewing the complaints and deciding whether and when to investigate. The district's next regular audit wouldn't typically occur until late summer of fall of 2010, though auditors could decide to address the complaints sooner.
Trepanier counters that Schons should focus on running the plant. He said he couldn't offer more specifics about Schon's conduct until he was in office again and had a chance to review more information.
Schons said that response is typical of Trepanier. He said the plant has been running more smoothly without a board.
* Mark Morey can be reached at 509-577-7671 or mmorey@yakimaherald.com.
There should be a story about what happened to Mr. Schons. It seems he wasn't doing much operating of this plant! Actions speak louder than words.
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