Oak Harbor council may pick favored design for sewer plant

Members of the Oak Harbor City Council may soon decide how the new sewage treatment plant will look.

By Jessie Stensland • August 28, 2015 7:26 pm
An artist’s drawing of “Concept B” for the architectural design of the sewage treatment plant is the option preferred by residents who offered their opinion
An artist’s drawing of “Concept B” for the architectural design of the sewage treatment plant is the option preferred by residents who offered their opinion

Members of the Oak Harbor City Council may soon decide how the new sewage treatment plant will look.

After an exhaustive effort to gauge public opinion, city officials are poised to adopt an architectural theme for the buildings that will make up the plant, which is being built behind the Whidbey Island Bank building on Pioneer Way.

The issue is on the agenda for the Sept. 1 meeting.

People who participated in intense charrettes, two open house events and an online open house overwhelmingly chose “concept B,” a style that officials describe as modern and indicative of the Northwest. Of the 144 people who participated in the online survey, 78 percent of them felt that concept B was the best fit the for Windjammer Park location, according to the city’s summary.

City Engineer Joe Stowell presented the architectural concept during

a council workshop Wednesday afternoon. He explained that the design of the large-scale project is currently at 60 percent and setting the aesthetic theme allows the architect to move forward to the 90-percent design.

“Knowing what the architecture is plays directly into the schedule,” he said.

Stowell noted that the council has yet to decide whether the project will include “a community room” or how biosolids will be handled.

Stowell said his goal is to have updated cost estimates for the project by the end of the month; he said he hopes to have a workshop to discuss it. He said the costs for the community room and options for biosolids handling will be broken out so council members can see how the elements affect the cost.

In addition, the staff will be able to discuss funding options and how the project may affect sewage rates for residents.

Councilman Rick Almberg said he’s talked to people in the community about the architectural concepts, and he found that their comments reflect what the city gathered. He said many felt that Concept A was “too institutional.”

“We must not ever forget that we have a contract with the community that there shall be no net loss to that park,” he added. “We can have a net gain but we can’t have a net loss.”