Sisters residents are raising questions about the cost, the need, and the environmental impacts of a proposed sewer system in the city. They will vote on whether to approve the $12,189,000 project in May.

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The city and its engineering firm, HGE, Inc., of Coos Bay, told residents at a Tuesday, January 20, workshop, that they have found a way to reduce the immediate cost impact on residents.

Dick Nored of HGE explained that the cost of laterals from sewer lines to houses and businesses has been "rolled" into the total cost of the project, which means that instead of laying out some $1,500 initially, payment for the laterals would be part of the $35-$40 monthly payment each "equivalent dwelling unit" makes to service the sewer loan.

That leaves a one-time connection fee of $1,000. Nored and Sisters Mayor Steve Wilson believe about 60 percent of Sisters residents will qualify under a grant for free hook-ups. That could also apply to rental properties if the owner is willing to fix the rent for three years.

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Even with reassurance about the cost impact, some area residents are concerned about what will be done with the effluent from a sewer system, which is supposed to treated and disposed of on Forest Service Section 9 at the southeast edge of Sisters.

That land would have to be leased or traded for from the Sisters Ranger District.

Activist Bill Boyer asked city officials, "Are you proposing to go forward with this with no Environmental Impact Study? There are so many uncertainties."

District Ranger Bill Anthony, who was in the audience at the workshop, acknowledged that the Forest Service would not invest "hundreds and hundreds of hours" in an environmental assessment unless the voters approve the sewer plan.

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But, Anthony said, "we won't be totally void of environmental information before you go to the voters in May."

He said the district will "have a good feel for the environmental and wildlife impacts" and "whether it's a good project."

Wilson said the city is seriously exploring the possibility of piping treated effluent to local cultivators in exchange for some of those cultivators' water rights, which could then go back into Squaw Creek. Other options include creating wildlife ponds, which have proven an attraction for birds in other parts of the state.

Some residents question the need for a sewer system.

County health officials argue that, with aging septic systems in many areas of Sisters, the town faces the prospect of septic failures on lots that aren't big enough to accommodate proper repairs.

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Roger Everett, Director of Public Health said, "As a public health agency, we've been trying to shoehorn systems in here for 20 years. You are inevitably heading toward some kind of environmental crisis. Either you stop growing, or, even more, what's existing becomes unpalatable."

But some residents don't see a looming crisis.

"When I talk to people in my neighborhood... a lot of people felt they can't afford it and their septic systems worked fine and they don't need it," Sisters resident Libby Bottero told The Nugget.

Bottero and her husband moved to Sisters in recent months after years of vacationing in the area. She said she has come to oppose a sewer, believing it is unneeded and will "detract from the small town feeling of Sisters."

Councilor Gordon Petrie also challenges the need for the sewer.

"What I say in all of this is 'show me the numbers' and they can't do it," Petrie told The Nugget.

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Petrie noted that studies have not shown a hint of ground water contamination. And Petrie argues that the county's records for septic failures in recent years within the city limits show 37 failures over a 46 month period. That, Petrie calculates, adds up to 9.6 failures per year or a rate of 2.13 percent per year, a rate he considers "very low."

Dick Nichol of the county Environmental Health Division sees more failures on the horizon with Sisters' older systems.

"If you've got a system that's 25 years old, you've pretty much got all the useful life you're going to get out of it," Nichol said.

And, Nichol noted, the county has allowed less-than-adequate "fixes" in the past, anticipating that Sisters would get a sewer.

"We'll have to look at inching up the requirements if it looks like on-site septic systems are going to be around for a while," he said.

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The city plans a continuing series of informational workshops leading up to the election in May. The next is set for February 2.

Mayor Wilson has vowed that voters will know exactly what they would pay for a system and what the system would look like before they vote.

Wilson ardently backs the sewer proposal, while council President Petrie has voiced opposition. Councilors Sheryl Whent and Kathy Pittman told The Nugget that they are strongly in favor of a sewer; Councilor Tim Clasen said he will not take a position until he has more information on costs and whether the city will be able to demand full systems development charges for the sewer from new development.