Submitted by The Town of Friday Harbor

A major upgrade of the Town’s wastewater treatment plant will begin on or after Monday, August 25, 2025. Equipment staging on the adjacent property is expected to begin the week prior. Drivers and pedestrians should be prepared for construction traffic on both Tucker Avenue and Harbor Street during the project. Neighboring residents and businesses may be subject to construction noise between 7 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. The Town does not anticipate disruptions in sewer service or delays in obtaining new wastewater hookups during construction.

According to Town Wastewater Treatment Supervisor Joe Pasic, this comprehensive plant upgrade is required to meet future capacity requirements as well as current standards for redundancy and reliability. “These long-awaited improvements will result in reduced odor issues, higher efficiency, and more cost-effective pollutant removal and biosolid disposal,” said Pasic. The project will involve new basin construction, equipment upgrades, and multiple system improvements at an estimated cost of $11,350,000. Funding for the project is made possible through grants and loans from USDA Rural Development, the state Department of Ecology, and SaviBank. BOSS Construction, Inc., is scheduled to complete this project by March 30, 2027.

The Town upgraded the existing sequencing batch reactor system in 2004. An effluent filtration system was added in 2017, and the initial solids screening system or headworks were replaced in 2019. Questions regarding the current project should be directed to Town Public Works at 360-378-2154.