A10
EASTERN OREGON
East Oregonian
Tuesday, May 10, 2022
UNION COUNTY
Fairgrounds sewer project faces hurdles at the city level
By DAVIS CARBAUGH
The Observer
LA GRANDE — A major sewer
line project that would connect
running water and sewage to the
Union County Fairgrounds is up
for debate.
The project, which has been a
priority for past fairgrounds oper-
ators for decades, seeks to provide
functioning permanent restrooms
and running water for the multitude
of events and regular usage at the La
Grande facility. Despite momentum
in gaining the necessary funding for
the plans, ownership and liability
questions at the city level are caus-
ing a roadblock in the proposals.
“We have a fair board that has
made this a very high priority,”
Union County Fair Board member
Deb Cornford said.
Prolonged eff orts
The Union County Fair Board
has advocated for the sewer proj-
ect since the early 2000s, analyz-
ing the infrastructure needed to
complete the project. Anderson
Perry & Associates in La Grande
fi rst conducted pre-design reports
in 2001, periodically doing so in
2007, 2011 and in 2021. The over-
all project would cost roughly $2.1
million, broken up into two phases
— an initial $1.52 million has
currently been allocated to the fi rst
phase of the project through state
funding and fundraising eff orts.
The line would traverse from the
fairgrounds, attach to the Second
Street bridge and connect to the
city’s system.
The steps following the poten-
tial construction of the pipeline
and lift station are causing a hurdle
in connecting to the city of La
Grande’s system — determining
ownership and liability, as well as
potential repair costs, in the years
to come has become an obstacle in
negotiations.
“That’s the big question, who
owns that portion,” La Grande
Public Works Director Kyle
Carpenter said.
Advocates of the project, as well
as members of the Union County
Fair Board, spoke in turn during the
public comment section of the La
Grande City Council meeting on
Wednesday, May 4, to describe their
Eastern Oregon Beer Festival/Contributed Photo
Attendees at the 2021 Eastern Oregon Beer Festival wait in line to use por-
table toilets Aug. 14, 2021, at the Union County Fairgrounds, La Grande.
perception of how the connected
sewer system would lead to a posi-
tive eff ect on the use of the fair-
grounds. The project would connect
the fairgrounds to the La Grande
water system to allow for running
water and functional restrooms
— as it stands, the fairgrounds
currently rents portable restrooms
for events to compensate for the
lack of facilities. The location hosts
year-round events and serves as an
emergency location for the county.
Fair Manager Kathy Gover-
Shaw spoke at the meeting, stat-
ing the year-round impacts of the
fairgrounds and its value to local
tourism. She stated that while the
facilities host a slew of annual gath-
erings, the lack of running water
and functioning restrooms is limit-
ing the board’s ability to host larger
festivals and events.
“By improving our wastewater
system, we would be able to accom-
modate much larger, multi-day
events and bring even more people
into our area,” Gover-Shaw said at
the meeting.
Gover-Shaw also referred to the
fairgrounds’ usage as an emergency
response area, as well as an asset for
camping and outdoor recreation in
association with its close proximity
to Mount Emily Recreation Area.
Board member Amy Horn pointed
out the current restroom situation is
not handicap accessible, deterring
certain attendees during events and
limiting the scope of events that can
be hosted.
“Events that go on in La Grande
should be as inclusive as possible,”
Horn said. “We shouldn’t be limit-
ing who can attend something just
because we don’t have restroom
facilities.”
Fair board members speaking at
the regular session provided numer-
ous reasonings for why they see the
project as a boon to the local area.
“This space has so much poten-
tial to off er our vibrant community,”
board member Melinda Beck-
er-Bisenius said. “Through this
project we will see an increase in
tourism, which will result in fi nan-
cial gains for the local economy.
Growing our facility with this proj-
ect will increase the opportunity for
events, family gatherings and future
growth.”
Ownership, liability factors
create complications
La Grande city offi cials were
participatory in the planning
process meetings, but finan-
cial liability is a deterring factor.
Responsibility for potential debt,
maintenance costs and ongoing fees
all play a role in the city’s involve-
ment in connecting the line.
The proposed sewer line would
cross over the Grande Ronde River
and Interstate 84 via the Second
Street bridge, connecting to the
current line at the corner of Lake
Avenue and Second Street. Despite
the high-volume usage of the fair-
grounds and its event capacity, the
facility is still treated as a single
customer since it would be the only
location attached to the new line.
Carpenter noted during the council
session that, despite the clear social
importance of the project, the city
must examine the maintenance
costs and ongoing fees.
“The requests that are part of
this sewerage system are going to
be analyzed in the same manner that
I would analyze any other account
that came to the city,” Carpen-
ter said at the meeting. “From my
public works director seat, my job
is not to measure the social impor-
tance of a project, it’s to make
sure that your water and sewerage
systems stay economically viable
and that the decisions and recom-
mendations I make to (the city) are
based on that analysis alone.”
The construction, ownership and
management of a new lift station
associated with the fairgrounds’
sewer line is another discussion
item currently up in the air. Carpen-
ter stated that a potential clog during
a large-scale event could cause seri-
ous setbacks and fi nancial burdens.
The city currently owns and oper-
ates seven lift stations, with the 26th
Street station serving roughly half
the city.
“The sticking point with the lift
station is who is going to own and
operate it, and who would maintain
it,” La Grande City Manager Robert
Strope said at the meeting. “That
would be an ongoing commitment
to keep it current.”
Strope said the project is not
as simple as just running the line,
noting that ongoing discussions
need to be held to determine the
specifics of the city’s role and
spending in the project.
Councilors in attendance voiced
support for the proposal, but agreed
that a work session is necessary to
iron out the details of the city’s
involvement and the ownership and
liability of the sewer line.
Time is of the essence
Another element of the waste-
water project is the Second
Street bridge, which is currently
under construction by ODOT.
Union County Commissioner
Matt Scarfo, who serves as liai-
son to the fairgrounds, stated that
$1,520,000 is currently in place for
the sewer project and is enough
to cover phase one, according to
Anderson Perry’s analysis. The
Union County Fairgrounds received
$1 million from this year’s short
session and $270,000 from last
year’s regular session.
The county also allocated up
to $250,000 in funding through
the American Rescue Plan Act to
construct the sewer line during
ODOT’s work on the Second Street
bridge, which would avoid clos-
ing the roadway again at a later
date. Scarfo noted that installing
the pipeline may not necessarily
cost the full $250,000, but that the
county allocated that amount in
order to have enough to cover the
project — the total estimated cost
is yet to be determined.
The best case scenario would be
to complete phase one of the sewer
project while the bridge construc-
tion is underway, and before the
Union County Fair takes over the
fairgrounds this summer. But the
details of the sewer project must
fi rst be worked out.
Strope emphasized that ques-
tions still remain in terms of the
overall project funding. Phase
two of the proposal involves the
construction of new restroom facili-
ties after the sewer line is connected
to the city’s system. A total project
cost of approximately $2.7 million
would likely require loans, which
Strope identifi ed as another moving
part in the process — the unknown
of potential borrowing without a
guarantee of DEQ loan forgive-
ness could prove costly to the city,
if involved.
La Grande Mayor Steve Clem-
ents, along with the council,
favored a work session in the near
future to continue the discussion
of the sewer line with the fair
board members. The water and
sewer project tops the list of the
fair board’s goals — a variety of
future plans for upgrading the fair-
grounds’ facilities rely on running
water and an up-to-par permanent
restroom system. The fair board is
currently continuing its fundrais-
ing eff orts to fund the full project.
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