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DESCRIPTION OF WATER SYSTEM

SYSTEM BACKGROUND

In 1978, the Liberty Lake Sewer District presented a plan to the Department of Social and Health Services and the Spokane County Commissioners for providing safe and reliable water service for the planned Highlands and Homestead developments. This Comprehensive Water Plan was approved on March 12, 1979, authorizing the District to provide water service to these areas.

In October of 1978, the Liberty Lake area was included within the Boundaries of the Critical Water Supply Service Areas (CWSSA) recommended by the Spokane County Water Utility Coordination Committees and adopted by the Spokane County Commissioners. The CWSSA stated that the area needed to address water service reliability, drinking water quality, and overall coordinated planning. This made it apparent that it would benefit the entire Liberty Lake area if it were served by a single, publicly owned sewer and water system. In response to this objective, the District developed the 1980 addendum and 1981 revisions to the Comprehensive Water Plan. These reports addressed the CWSSA concerns and gave direction to the growth of the water service area.

Early in 1979 an agreement was reached between the Liberty Lake Sewer District and Consolidated Irrigation District. This agreement divided the land bounded by the Spokane River, the I-90 freeway, Henry Road, and the Idaho State line. The agreement provided that Consolidated would serve property west of Harvard Road between I-90 and the Spokane River, while the Sewer District would serve lands between I-90 and the river east of Harvard Road to the Idaho State line. In 1996, this agreement was amended. The Sewer District by agreement with the Consolidated Irrigation District, added the area east of Henry Road to Harvard Road between the river and 1-90 to its service area.

In the 1980 Comprehensive Plan, the future service area boundaries of Liberty Lake Sewer District and Consolidated Irrigation District overlapped along the west side of the District. The areas that were in dispute were resolved between the Districts in March, 1988.

The District's Comprehensive Water Plan was updated again in 1992 to reflect the growth that had occurred within the District. This plan included updated improvements to accommodate the growth that had occurred and the growth projected for the planning period. The updated Plan was submitted to the Department of Health and approved in 1992

GRAPHIC DESCRIPTION

Liberty Lake is located in the State of Washington near the Idaho border, on the east side of the Spokane Valley, approximately midway between the City of Spokane and the City of Coeur d'Alene, Idaho. Automobile access to the Liberty Lake area is primarily by Interstate 90 via the Liberty Lake-Otis Orchards interchange.

The Liberty Lake Sewer District water service area boundary includes the area surrounding the west side of the Lake and extends northward from Valleyway to the Spokane River. Recent industrial growth adjacent to the freeway has been paralleled by considerable suburban growth within the area.

TOPOGRAPHY AND GEOLOGICAL CONDITIONS

Liberty Lake Sewer District's water service area encompasses approximately 5,000 acres. It is made up basically of two separate soil and geologic conditions. The hills to the south, east, and west of the lake are composed of basalt and granite bedrock, and are overlaid with soil consisting of glacial outwash and decomposed rock. In many areas, the soils are shallow over bedrock, especially on the steeply inclined areas.

North of the lake is a plateau composed mostly of glacial outwash materials left during the last ice-age. These areas of predominately sand and gravel are quite thick with generally about 5 inches of topsoil.

Land that lies within the District boundary can be characterized as relatively flat valley floor from the lake north to the Spokane River. Lands east and west of the lake are steep and moderately timbered.

ORDINANCES AND BYLAWS

The Sewer District has adopted a number of ordinances and resolutions that stipulate the conditions of providing water service to existing customers and new customers requesting service.

EXISTING FACILITIES

Liberty Lake Sewer District owns five supply wells.

1. The "Kenney Well" was originally dug as an irrigation well and was reconditioned in October of 1980 for domestic use. It is 153 feet deep with a static water level approximately 124 feet below the surface. The pump in this well is a I 0-1/2-inch, 6 stage Johnston submersible pump with a capacity of over 1,700 gpm. It is accompanied by a 300 horsepower motor.
2. The "Frontier" or "Mission Well" was reconditioned for domestic use in March of 1980. It is 198 feet deep with a static water level approximately 136 feet below the surface. The pump in this well is the same size and make as the pump in the Kenney Well.
3. The "Valleyway Well" is presently not being used by the District. It is reserved for emergency use only. The District has recently made some improvements to the well house including installing a concrete floor and overhead door, and removing old electrical equipment.
4. The "Sprague Well " was refurbished and brought on line in 1992.
5. The "Schultz" well is 235 feet deep with a static water level approximately 191 feet below the surface. The pump in this well is a 5 stage Peerless submersible pump with a capacity of approximately 2,500 gpm. It is accompanied by a 350 horsepower motor. The pump was set at a depth of 208 feet.

WATER STORAGE

There are six water storage reservoirs within the District's boundary. Five of the reservoirs are owned by the District. Four of these reservoirs are presently providing storage for the contiguous water system.

DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM

There are approximately twenty seven and a half (27.5) miles of distribution piping in the system at present. This piping ranges in size from 2-inches to 18-inches in diameter. There is a variety of pipe material throughout the system.

SERVICES

The Liberty Lake Sewer District provides water service to three classes of customers: 

1. Commercial
2. Industrial
3. Residential

EXISTING SERVICE AREA

The Liberty Lake Sewer District presently serves water to all areas along the west side of Liberty Lake as well as the MeadowWood Developments (previously named Homestead) north of Sprague Avenue and east of Liberty Lake Road, and the development in the "Highlands" west of Liberty Lake Road.

Click to enlarge the LLSWD District Service Area Map

CONDITION OF SERVICE POLICIES

In order for a property to receive service from the Liberty Lake Sewer District, the following conditions must be met:

1. Property must be within the boundary of the Sewer District or the Board must approve a water service extension agreement.
2. Areas that are provided water under a water service extension agreement must be within the future service area of the District.
3. Property owner must pay water service capacity charges computed on an ERU basis.
4. Property owner must pay water service connection charges.
5. Plans for water system improvements must be provided and approved by the District's Engineer, Fire Department, Washington State Department of Health, and the District Manager.
6. Water system improvements must be constructed in accordance with District Standards and be accepted by the District Manager.

Complaints regarding water service are accepted at the District office by the Manager or a system operator. An incident report is completed and given to a system operator or maintenance personnel. A copy of the incident report is kept on file. Response to complaints vary dependent upon the severity of the condition that caused the complaint. Any complaints regarding service outages or water quality receive immediate response. Complaints regarding conditions of facilities receive responses in a timely manner. A system operator is dispatched to investigate the nature and severity of the problem. The customer that submitted the complaint is contacted in person, if possible. Once the nature and severity of the problem is well defined, the manager is notified and a plan of action is determined. The customer is again contacted and notified of the intended course of action. After corrective action has been taken, the customer is contacted a third time to verify that the condition has been resolved.