City of Shoreline moves forward with assumption of Ronald Wastewater District

Ronald Wastewater District Headquarters
Photo by Steven H. Robinson

The City of Shoreline has started the final process to complete the assumption of the Ronald Wastewater District.

The decision to move forward comes following a recent Washington State Supreme Court decision ruling against the District’s claim that the Point Wells area in Snohomish County was in its service area. The Shoreline City Council had delayed completing the assumption until the ruling was issued.

(See previous article)

The District’s Board of Commissioners will continue to work collaboratively with the City on completing the assumption. Over the next few weeks, City staff will put together a recommendation for the City Council on final steps for completing the assumption by April 30, 2021. 

The City entered into a service contract with the District in 2017 to operate the utility on behalf of the District. Since that time, the District’s Board of Commissioners has continued to approve the annual budget, set rates, and provide oversight for the utility’s capital improvements.

The assumption of the District will be a seamless transition for ratepayers, as the City has been collecting the utility payments and providing services for the utility for the past three years. Bills will come directly from the City following assumption. The City will continue to operate and maintain the wastewater utility.

The State Supreme Court’s ruling issued October 15 essentially says that the inclusion of Point Wells, which is outside King County’s geographic service area, without the involvement of Snohomish County, Olympic View Water and Sewer District, and the Town of Woodway is void because it exceeded King County Superior Court’s adjudicative authority. In other words, King County Superior Court couldn’t make a ruling on the transfer because it was outside of King County’s borders.