Mattawa wastewater treatment facility nearing completion
CHERYL SCHWEIZER | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 1 day, 16 hours AGO
The Mattawa wastewater treatment facility before the current upgrade project. The facility is scheduled to be completed in the first quarter of 2026.
FILE PHOTO
Senior Reporter Cheryl Schweizer is a journalist with more than 30 years of experience serving small communities in the Pacific Northwest. She began her post-high-school education at Treasure Valley Community College and enerned her journalism degree at Oregon State University. After working for multiple publications, she has settled down at the Columbia Basin Herald and has been a staple of the newsroom for more than a decade. Schweizer’s dedication to her communities and profession has earned her the nickname “The Baroness of Bylines.” She covers a variety of beats including health, business and various municipalities. | December 9, 2025 3:58 PM
MATTAWA — After a lot of work, repairs, refurbishment and upgrades of Mattawa’s wastewater treatment facility are nearing completion. Mattawa Public Works Director Juan Ledezma said crews are in the process of learning the new systems.
“Staff has been receiving training as equipment is available, installed or comes online. There has been no tie-in yet, so basically no waste from the current system into the new system,” Ledezma told Mattawa City Council members Dec. 4.
The city received funding through the Washington Department of Ecology to upgrade the facility, a project that was supposed to be completed by the end of 2025. Jamin Ankney of Gray and Osborne, Yakima, said the contractor is behind schedule. The new completion date is the first quarter of 2026. -
Total project cost was estimated at about $5.9 million.
The building was severely damaged in a fire in early 2020, and repair work is projected to be finished by the end of 2025. Total repair cost is about $1.2 million.
Part of the upgrading project is the installation of a new lift station on Portage Avenue, connecting via new pipes to the new wastewater facility. That work is ongoing.
“The contractor there is installing anywhere from 200 to 300 feet of sewer main line a day,” Ledezma said. “They anticipated being at Portage and Eighth Street right before or during Christmas time. But no tie-in will happen till after the new year, just making sure that everything is flowing correctly.”
The lights are on around the new facility, he said, for added security. The new fence is a security feature, too.
“That fence is actually meant to discourage climbing,” he said. “It doesn’t allow you to get a good grip.”
Another Mattawa infrastructure project is even closer to completion. City officials used a combination of state funding and some of its own money to refurbish one of its wells, and that project has reached the final stage. The contractor has completed all the final items that needed work, known as a punch list. Ledezma said he’s impressed with the result.
“It’s one of the nicest (facilities),” he said, “Just the overall setup, you know, from the electrical room to the chlorine room, and it’s done per (updated) standards.”
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