COTTAGE GROVE – Cottage Grove public works director Faye Stewart introduced the proposal of a self-serve RV dump station and water fill station to the city council last week.
“For several years, I’ve aspired to create a fill station for drinking water. I was looking to do this in the industrial park, most likely along the wide streets, so that we’d be able to accommodate folks,” Stewart said.
He explained that the only place to purchase water for folks wanting to fill their swimming pools or when their well is failing is at the City Shop, which requires a lot of staff time to accommodate requests. Water is only available at the City Shop during operating hours, generally Monday through Friday, 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.
What started as an idea for a self-serve fill station turned into a project to meet community needs.
“Then we suddenly have the RV dump station that there’s a need for in our community, and so I focused a little bit harder, and I proposed to the city manager and the finance director that we look at purchasing the odd-shaped parcel, number 600 in the industrial park, and create a fill station and a dump station there,” he said.
Access is even more restricted at the wastewater treatment facility for RV dumps, which is open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. and weekends from noon to 2 p.m.
“Those hours are really not great for folks that are traveling and getting back from their vacations or their camping trips, so I wanted to throw this out there,” Stewart said.
Recently, the only public RV dump station became unavailable. The City reopened the RV dump station at the Cottage Grove Water Reclamation Facility, 1800 N. Douglas Avenue, to meet community demand for this service. City staff have been looking for a location in town with good access that can be open 24 hours for self-service RV grey and black water dumping. Staff is also interested in creating a self-serve potable water fill station accessible 24 hours a day.
“We won’t have to man this site with a person to operate it; folks can operate it 24 hours a day, self-serve, so it could accommodate people’s needs better than at the present time,” Stewart said.
Lot 600 in the Cottage Grove Industrial Park along Carnegie Way is City-owned, and staff believe it would be a good site for the station. The lot could also accommodate a future yard-debris dumpsite and a storage facility for emergency-response equipment. The proposed site would be nestled between Highway 99 South and Carnegie Way.
Stewart said that during his tenure, this “very odd-shaped” piece of land has received four offers, but for some reason, no one has fully committed.
“This piece of property is available, and looks like it would do a really nice job meeting the needs of what we’re trying to accomplish here,” he said.
Stewart pointed out the wide streets to accommodate RVs and about 10,000 square feet to the east of the property that could be hard-surfaced. He mentioned community conversations about the desire to have a place to put yard waste and grass clippings, and said that place could eventually be at this facility. Councilor Darrel Wilson suggested partnering with Lane Forest Products, as he considers them the most likely to agree.
“I think that would be a great asset to the community, as opposed to what we have now, which is really not much of anything for that type of accommodation,” Wilson said.
Council president Greg Ervin was on board with the idea.
“It’s a resounding yes, and thank you for hearing all the requests over the years. I’m thinking ‘Cottage Grove Pump and Dump’ comes to mind,” Ervin said, already suggesting a name for the site.
Councilor Christine Hyink asked how soon the project can be done. Stewart said he could engage the operation with the engineering firm as soon as the next day and start putting together a site plan.
City councilor Randell Lammerman asked about the price tag for this project and whether that money has been accounted for in the City’s current budget.
Stewart said a self-serve water distribution facility can be purchased for anywhere between $25,000 to $40,000, depending on the brand, and the same goes for wastewater. He said planning requirements for the construction site will need to be met, such as installing hard surfaces, for which he does not have a current price. The project would not qualify for building capacity, but rather reserve funds.
“Once we get the project design and bid, the council’s going to have the opportunity to approve the awarding of the bid and committing the resources to make it happen,” Stewart said.
