The next board meeting will be held at 5 PM on Thursday, December 12, 2024, at the Fort Ward Community Hall, 9705 NE Evergreen Ave., Bainbridge Island, WA  98110.  This meeting will also be accessible via Zoom (link provided below).

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We are pleased to announce that Kitsap County (Fort Ward) Sewer District7 will contract with Kitsap Public Utility District (KPUD), beginning July 1, to handle billing and management support for the Sewer District. This opportunity arose with the retirement of our previous contractor in April, and it will bring efficiencies as KPUD already serves and bills for water utility service in the Fort Ward neighborhood.

You can still send or drop off your bill at the Sewer District office at the Fort Ward
Community Hall at 9705 NE Evergreen Ave. With the exception of our phone, which is now 360-779-7656, our contact information will remain the same; email manager@kitsapsewer.org for billing or service questions or see http://www.kitsapsewer.org for general information. You are always welcome and invited to the public monthly meetings of the Sewer District Board of Commissioners at Fort Ward Community Hall. Meeting times, agendas, and Zoom links are available on our website.

The only difference you will see is that the KPUD team will answer phones and emails and respond to any billing or service questions. Our current contractor, Water and Wastewater Management Services, LLC, will remain the operator of our treatment plant.

We’re grateful for the opportunity to partner with KPUD, leveraging their resources and expertise for the benefit of Sewer District customers and the Fort Ward community. We look forward to continued excellence in providing effective, cost-effective wastewater treatment at our award-winning plant, serving households and protecting the waters of Rich Passage and Puget Sound. Please reach out with any questions.

The next board meeting will be held at 7 PM on Thursday, June 13 at the Fort Ward Community Hall, 9705 NE Evergreen Ave., Bainbridge Island, WA  98110.  This meeting will also be accessible via Zoom as follows:

Agenda:

1. Call to order
2. Acceptance or modification of Agenda
3. Public comment: Limit three minutes per person
4. Approval of meeting minutes: Vote
5. Financial report
6. Approval of vouchers: Vote
7. Manager report
8. Treatment plant report
9. Old Business
   • KPUD contract update
10. New Business
11. Adjourn

TO JOIN MEETING BY ZOOM:

click here to join the meeting

[or dial by phone at +1 253 215 8782]
Meeting ID: 886 1218 8563
Passcode: 534426

A Special Meeting of the KCSD7 Board of Commissioners will be held at 12:30pm, Friday, May 31 at the district office at 9705 NE Evergreen Avenue. The purpose is Transition Issues.

Zoom information below:

click here to join the meeting

Meeting ID: 860 9067 1377
Passcode: 611498

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Meeting ID: 860 9067 1377
Passcode: 611498

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May 16 at 5pm: Joint Special Meeting of the Kitsap County Sewer District #7 Board and Kitsap Public Utility District Board. Purpose is to discuss inter-agency cooperation topics. The agenda includes a tour of the KCSD7 Wastewater Treatment Plant 5pm. Following the tour, the meeting will be continued at the Fort Ward Community Hall. These are the details:

5pm: Tour of KCSD7 Wastewater Treatment Plant at 2901 Fort Ward Hill Road. Zoom option unavailable. Public welcome. Note: The tour will be out-of-doors. No open-toed shoes. We suggest jeans-type pants and weather-appropriate shirts or jackets. If possible (not required), please call KCSD7 district office at 206.669.5723 or email manager@kitsapsewer.org to let us know you will attend.

6pm: Tour of KCSD7 district office at 9705 NE Evergreen Avenue. Zoom option unavailable.

6:30 pm Meeting Agenda (To join remotely, please see Zoom information below).

1. Call to order
2. Acceptance or modification of Agenda
3. Public comment: Limit three minutes per person
4. Discussion of inter-agency cooperation topics
5. Adjourn

TO JOIN MEETING BY ZOOM:

click here to join the meeting

[or dial by phone at +1 253 215 8782]
Meeting ID: 886 1218 8563
Passcode: 534426

May 16 at 3:45pm: Board Meeting. Location: Fort Ward Community Hall, 9705 NE Evergreen Ave. To join remotely, please see Zoom information below. NO ZOOM AVAILABLE DUE TO POWER OUTAGE

Agenda:

1. Call to order
2. Acceptance or modification of Agenda
3. Public comment: Limit three minutes per person
4. Approval of meeting minutes: Vote
5. Financial report
6. Approval of vouchers: Vote
7. Manager report
8. Treatment plant report
9. Old Business
10. New Business
11. Adjourn

TO JOIN MEETING BY ZOOM:

click here to join the meeting

[or dial by phone at +1 253 215 8782]
Meeting ID: 886 1218 8563
Passcode: 534426

New City Tax: Why your Sewer Bill is Going Up

Your monthly bill has gone up – that’s because the Bainbridge City Council voted on November 22 to impose a 6% utility tax on the sewer district. The city didn’t tell us that they passed the tax – we only found out by reading the newspaper. This new tax is apparently intended for the city’s general fund.

For years, the city has collected this tax from water and sewer customers on the city’s system in Winslow. Some city councilmembers told us that they believe it’s fairer to levy the tax on all water and sewer customers island wide. But they didn’t do that. Instead, they voted to only tax the Fort Ward sewer system, the KPUD water system and other government and for profit systems. This means that about three-fourths of the island’s population is still exempt from the tax.

Since we didn’t receive official notice from the city about this tax until after Christmas, we have been scrambling to work out the details, which is why your sewer bill is later than normal.

Your bill is going up about 3%, even though the city tax is 6% on sewer district revenues. That’s because the city says the revenue we receive from them for providing treatment for about 290 connections outside the district is exempt from the tax. (The city already collects the tax from those customers.) But our contract with the city requires us to charge the same rate for customers, whether they are inside or outside the district. So we are spreading the burden across all of our customers, including about 290 connections for homes outside the district.

We commissioners believe that sewer service is not a luxury item – it is a basic, essential service. That’s why we do our best to keep your bills low; in fact, your monthly sewer rates are about half what the city charges its customers.

If you would like to comment on this new tax imposed by the city, you can reach your city councilmembers via email at council@bainbridgewa.gov.