I would like to begin by extending a greeting to each and every Lakehaven customer.  A special thank you goes to those of you taking the time to read this Newsletter!  Your interest in the District is greatly appreciated.

Much is being discussed these days about the increasing costs of doing business in our energy-driven economy.  Skyrocketing energy costs will undoubtedly impact the way goods and services are priced to consumers.  The rising cost, coupled with the relative shortage, of electricity, a condition some experts believe will continue for the foreseeable future, is a significant threat to the stability of the economy.  Families are being forced to meet the difficult task of managing escalating energy costs within the constraints of their household budgets.  All the while, the financial markets are continuing to “take back” some of the considerable growth in personal wealth accumulated over the last decade.

I’m sure you are every bit as tired of the “doom and gloom” economic news as I am.  Against this dim backdrop, I am particularly happy to report to you that the Board of Commissioners has no plans at the present time to raise water and/or sewer rates before the end of next year.   For those dealing with the impact of rising utility bills on fixed incomes, a group which includes myself, this should come as particularly welcome news.

The last time the Board raised rates, which was during the second half of 1999, the water and sewer rates were established to cover necessary revenue requirements for a three year period concluding at the end of 2002.  This action was taken on the basis of our best estimate of projected expenses at the time.  Like most of you, we were not expecting the large increases in electricity costs.  Operating the water and sewer systems requires a considerable amount of electricity and we are beginning to see substantial increases in our power bill.

As a customer of Lakehaven, you are privileged to pay among the lowest water and sewer rates in this state.  We are extremely proud of this fact and our commitment to affordable water and sewer rates continues.  From your own experiences, however, you know that on a budget, the only way to meet the challenge of unanticipated expenses is to tighten up expenses in other areas.

We have already achieved some cost savings in energy expenditures.  This has been done primarily through a contract we recently executed with Puget Sound Energy which calls for the District to curtail electrical consumption at several facilities during peak energy demand periods.   Another area where we can cut back is capital improvements to the water and sewer systems.  In order to save money, non-essential capital projects may have to be deferred, or cancelled altogether.  Finally, increases in the costs of labor, an area of significant expense to the operation of the utility, have to be controlled. You may be aware from reports in the local newspapers that we are in a stalemate with the union representing more than half of our employees over labor costs.

Please write, call or, if possible, come to our meetings and let us know how we are doing!

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LEGISLATIVE UPDATE

The news in Olympia this session seems to focus as much on the big earthquake in February and the damage to the Capital Building as it does on new legislation.  Despite the chaos and distractions brought on by Mother Nature this session, we continue to work on legislation which will improve the District’s ability to deliver water and sewer service.

Water resource bills seem to be facing the same obstacles to passage they have encountered in past years and the outlook for new legislation this session to clear the way for the effective management of water is less than optimistic.  On a brighter note, we are hopeful that the bill we developed to allow public agencies to select engineering consultants on a two year, rather than a one year, basis, will be adopted and improve the efficiency of the process by which we retain professional engineers.  We think this will save money and help us maintain the high quality of professional services we demand from the engineers we hire to plan and design improvements to the water and sewer system.

We also are working with the Department of Ecology to create the rules by which the aquifer storage and recovery statute, which was adopted last session, will be implemented.  This, we hope, will lead to the completion of  the OASIS Project and the storage of a tremendous amount of water in the ground underneath the District.  We continue to pursue legislation in Washington D.C. to obtain federal funding of a portion of the cost of the OASIS Project.

We will continue to keep you updated as the legislative session progresses and please let us know your thoughts or questions on our legislative program.

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Excellence In Communications Award

Lakehaven Utility District was recently honored to receive first place from the Pacific Northwest Section of the American Water Works Association (PNWS-AWWA) for “Excellence in Communications”.  This award is given annually to water purveyors in the State of Washington for the purpose of recognizing exceptional efforts in communicating with ratepayers.

The award, given to Lakehaven for its Internet Home Page, was presented to Commissioner Dick Mayer, Secretary of the Board, at the PNWS-AWWA annual awards banquet held in Yakima, Washington, on May 3, 2001.  The website may be viewed at www.lakehaven.org.   

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Lakehaven Utility District will soon be mailing a copy of our “2000 Water Quality Report” to all water account customers.  The development and mailing of this report is a Federal requirement called the “Consumer Confidence Report” rule and was created by Congress and the Environmental Protection Agency under the 1996 reauthorization of the Safe Drinking Water Act.  By July 1, 2001, all water utilities throughout the United States must provide an annual report to their customers on the quality of their drinking water as monitored during the 2000 calendar year.  The reports are required each year and will help the public learn whether their drinking water meets state and federal health standards, and if not, why not.   The report details where the water comes from, what it contains, and the risks that water quality monitoring and testing are designed to prevent. The public is encouraged to visit Lakehaven Utility District’s web site at www.lakehaven.org, where the “1999 Water Quality Report” is currently available for review.

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2001 H₂0 Water Festival

Lakehaven Utility District sponsored 450 4^th, 5^th and 6^th grade students from Lake Grove, Mirror Lake, Lakeland, Nautilus, Brigadoon and Green Gable’s elementary schools to attend the second annual H₂0 Water Festival which was held at Highline Community College. There were 43 classroom presentations which included water issues such as water treatment, water pollution, groundwater, the water cycle, natural watersheds, sources of drinking water, main flushing and many other related topics.

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Employee Retirement

On April 1, 2001 Therese Donovan retired from the District after 17 years of Service in the Customer Service and Billing Department.  The Board of Commissioner’s and staff would like to extend best wishes to Therese and her family for a joyous and rewarding retirement.

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Water Conservation Activities

The District will participate in the events listed below.

City of Federal Way’s
Red White & Blue Festival
Wednesday July 4^th, 4:00 – 10:15 p.m.
Celebration Park  
Fireworks following

Family Fest – A Celebration of Diversity
Saturday, August 25^th & Sunday August 26^th
Steel Lake Park
312^th & 24^th Ave S., 11:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m.

For more information call Melinda at 253-926-5426.

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The District has implemented a watering schedule calendar for the summer months to conserve our water supply.  This calendar is on a voluntary basis.  Please use the color associated with the last two digits of your house number and water only on the days with your color, not to exceed 1” weekly.  For best absorption, water between the hours of 9:00 p.m. and 10:00 a.m.

May

June

July

August

Your Board of Commissioners

Donald L. P. Miller - President

Tom Jovanovich - Vice President

Dick Mayer - Secretary

Beverly J. Tweddle - Commissioner

Ed Stewart -  Commissioner

Regular Board of Commissioners meetings are held at the Lakehaven Center at 31531 First Ave. S., Federal Way at 6 p.m.