City of Hines ready to start winding down Water Improvement Project

HINES– (Release provided by the City of Hines) The City of Hines is ready to start winding down its Water Improvement Project. This project has been a work lasting over six years.

It started in 2015 when the City, responding to the State of Oregon’s requirement that each municipality must have a Water System Master Plan completed every 20 years, hired Anderson Perry to create a Water System Master Plan (WSMP). The purpose of a Water System Master Plan (WSMP) is to analyze the existing system and discover what areas need repaired or updated, and to ensure that the City was collecting proper revenue to sustain future operations.

The WSMP was based upon an estimated sustained 20-year population of 1,700 and was completed in spring of 2017. There were several things the WSMP revealed. First, the supply system was evaluated. The WSMP showed that the City’s three permanent wells were capable of producing 1,800 gallons per minute if the wells were operated 18 hours per day. This capacity met the City’s peak daily flow demands. However, it was found that water levels could not be monitored and that the pumps at each well needed repaired and updated with new electrical controls to monitor water levels in each well.

Also, the well houses needed improvements to protect the pumps and electronics from the weather, along with security fencing.

Second, the WSMP studied the City’s storage needs. At the time, the City had two operating storage reservoirs – the 250,000-gallon elevated reservoir (the old water tower) and the 600,000-gallon bolted steel reservoir (the south tank up on Hines Logging Rd.). Combined, these two reservoirs offered 850,000 gallons of storage capacity, which was 550,000 gallons short of the anticipated 1.4 million gallons needed. In addition to this deficit, the Old Water Tower was at the end of its useful life.

Third, the distribution system – how water is delivered to each home and business – was analyzed. It was discovered that in general, the City’s distribution piping system was in relatively good condition, although several areas could not provide adequate fire flows. Undersized, dead-end, and old distribution system piping within the City lead to low fire flow capacity and issues with water circulation in these areas. All of these things needed to be repaired to bring the distribution and fire line systems up to code.

As a result of the WSMP’s findings, the City of Hines decided to complete a major water system improvements project to address the deficiencies mentioned above. The improvements project was estimated at a cost of $7.2 million.

From 2017 through 2019, the focus turned to project financing and implementation – how The WSMP was going to be put in place and how it was going to be funded. On June 27, 2017, the City attended a One Stop Meeting where several funding package options were evaluated. The City chose to pursue a Safe Drinking Water Revolving Loan Fund (SDWRLF) loan and grant. The City obtained a loan for

$6,449,000 with an annual interest rate of 1% on a 30-year term, and a grant for $750,000. It was estimated that the debt service cost each year to repay the loan would be $250,000.

During this time, a water rate study was conducted. This study showed that the City needed to raise the base water rate for a basic residential meter from $48 per billing cycle ($24/mo.), to $91.84 per billing cycle ($45.92/mo.) and increase the usage rate from $0.004 per cubic foot to a graduated tier system in order to generate the revenue to pay for normal operation and maintenance costs and pay the estimated $250,000/yr. payment. Incidentally, at the time of the study there were 651 residential accounts and 45 commercial accounts, which has only increased a by a few accounts since then.

Knowing that rates needed to be raised eventually, in December of 2017 the Council voted to raise rates gradually instead of surprising residents with an almost 100% increase all at once. Starting in January of 2018, residential rates increased about $4 each billing cycle until the final base rate of $91.84 was reached in October of 2019.

During this same period from 2017 through early 2020, Anderson Perry worked with the City to create designs for all the improvements. Survey crews showed up to map out all the locations where new waterlines would be installed, environmental effects of the project were analyzed, and archeological crews inventoried the project area to assess what adverse effects could occur to cultural resource sites because of the project. All this information was combined to create a clearly defined plan for a contractor to follow.

By March of 2020, we were ready to request bids and hire a contractor. Warrington Construction of Ontario won the bidding process and was hired to begin construction. They wasted no time, and by May of 2020 they had mobilized equipment, secured materials and were ready to work. Warrington took very little time install 80% of the new water lines before winter of 2020 set in.

A couple of other interesting notes to this story would be appropriate to make here. Although not part of the initial Master Plan, at about the time construction started in the Spring of 2020, the meter reading system failed. The City’s ability to measure water usage at each meter had become outdated and was no longer reliable. After discussion with the lender, the engineers at Anderson Perry, a change- order was agreed to, and the City added the installation of new meters and a new meter reading system with new financial software to the project. So, as waterlines were being installed, new water meters were able to be installed at the same time. Also, a new antenna was installed just behind the west side of the fire hall. This antenna can connect to approximately 97% of all the new water meters. The antennae will be able to collect usage information every 15 minutes, providing very accurate and up to date data for billing purposes. Also, the new water meters will measure units of usage in gallons instead of cubic feet. Hopefully, seeing usage measured in gallons on their water bill will help residents see of how much water they use during a billing cycle.

In spring of 2021, construction for the new water tank began. This planned 800,000-gallon tank would solve the storage deficit, bringing the storage capability up to the WSMP requirement of 1.4 million gallons. Also, electricians and electrical automation crews began work which would update the pumps at each well. Their work will now allow the Public Works department to run the entire water system on an updated computer-controlled network and allow them to measure well water levels.

The new tank now is complete. It was filled with water, flushed several times, and analyzed to ensure structural integrity. After this process the water was also tested to make sure there were no contaminates. Once all requirements were met, the new tank was ready to for service. So, on September 13, 2021, the Old Hines Water Tower was disconnected from the water system and officially retired from service. Since that day, residents have been using water from the new tank.

We are now looking at the winding-up stages of the project. A few waterlines – about 10% of the total distribution improvements – were added to the project in the following areas: between South Roanokeand South Saginaw from Byrd to Barnes; along West Pettibone; along N. Saginaw in two separate spots; and a fire line for a new fire hydrant on N. Peter French. These water lines along with installing water meters in these areas will finalize the distribution portion of the project.

Due to these changes in approach during the project, one archaeological site in the above areas will not be able to be avoided. We are working through a consultation process as required by federal and state law with the Oregon State Historic Preservation Office, the Burns Paiute Tribe and several other entities who were invited to determine what mitigation measures we can carry out to offset adverse effects to the site. This process has consisted of bi-monthly meetings to brainstorm potential options such as public outreach and education, future cultural resource management plans, cultural monitoring of the construction, and other measures, and typically takes six months or more to complete as multiple parties need to weigh in and sign the final agreement. We are close to signing the document that will finalize the mitigation measures and allow construction to proceed within the area of the cultural resources.

Along with finishing the installation of waterlines, we are also now completing planned upgrades and repairs to well #3 (the Jones well). Well #3 is on schedule to be done by November. Also, the installation and testing of the software for meter reading is on schedule to be completed by the end of the year.

This has been a huge undertaking for all members of the community of Hines. Thank you to Anderson Perry, Warrington Construction and sub-contractors. Thank you to the Burns Paiute Tribe. Thank you to City Staff, especially the Hines Public Works Crew. And most of all, thank you to residents of Hines for your input, your help, and your patience as we worked through this process.

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