PORT OF ALLYN RECEIVES WATER RIGHTS
Port of Allyn Commissioners announced at their meeting of May 3 that Allyn will finally have enough water to serve commercial, residential and fireflow needs for the next 20 years. After many years of working to accomplish this they received a letter from the State Department of Ecology approving use of 300 acre feet of water per year. According to Executive Director Bonnie Knight, this is roughly equivalent to 1,000 residential hook ups.
Providing an adequate water system for Allyn has been a stated goal of the Port and the Allyn Community Association for many years. Without water Allyn could not develop as a town. In addition to meeting all of the regulations & environmental requirements, securing funding was even more difficult. Several times it seemed to be within reach only to be snatched away again. In 2008 construction of a 144,000 gallon water tank at the top of Wade Street, capable of serving 200 commercial and/or residential hook ups, and 7 new hydrants was complete and operational but adequate water rights to use the tank to full capacity were not available.
The addition of adequate fireflow is a tremendous step forward in terms of safety for Allyn and the new hydrants have been utilized in putting out two house fires already. The expanded system also meets standards for commercial structures which can bring down the cost for business to build here again. The Port will serve both commercial and residential customers outside of Lakeland Village community and within reach of the new tank.
From the time Judy Scott, Ben Meservey, and Linda Blackwell took office back in January of 2000, they shared a single minded determination to provide the infrastructure to support business and jobs in Allyn. Current Commissioners Jean Farmer and Randy Neatherlin continued the effort with Commission chair Judy Scott and it finally paid off.
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