Update - Regional Wastewater Treatment

We've sat at the table for years discussing wastewater. Over the last 18 months or so, I have explained Milwaukie's position on a regional solution to Clackamas County's regional solution. Our first priority is to come up with a regional approach that would be cost-effective, safe, and forward thinking. Our second goal was to come to an agreement regarding the removal of the Kellogg Treatment plant from our riverfront.

Our riverfront is the County's front door to economic revival. It will obviously benefit Milwaukie, but when a City flourishes, all cities in the region benefit. Imagine a waterfront where visitors can spend time enjoying their families along the Willamette.

In the meetings, especially the recent ones attended by representatives from Gladstone, Oregon City, Happy Valley, Damascus, West Linn, CCSD, and the County, we have talked about sending the majority of the regional wastewater to the Tri-Cities plant in Oregon City. It's a delicate balancing of understanding the concerns and needs of each jurisdiction while representing the needs of Milwaukie.

We have contributed more than our share of funding to supporting a regional approach that included having a treatment plant along our riverfront. We have been cooperative with trying to appease the concerns of some members of the former CAC who would rather see Milwaukie get stuck with all wastewater treatment. We have been forthright about making sure Milwaukie citizens are not stuck with the debt without understanding and working toward equality.

This has been a long-term problem that could have been settled years ago, without the added expense of more meetings, more studies, more dollars, if Clackamas County had approved the so-called Clearwater proposal that would have eliminated Kellogg. However, there are still folks who would like to put the costs of removing the plant solely on the backs of Milwaukie residents. That's not a solution.