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KITTITAS COUNTY <br />DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC WORKS <br />PUBLIC WORKS — BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS <br />STUDY SESSION STAFF REPORT <br />STUDY SESSION DATE: August 14, 2023 <br />TOPIC: Water Availability for Ski Tur and Starwater <br />Developments. <br />ACTION REQUESTED: Informational <br />LEAD STAFF: <br />Arden Thomas <br />RECOMMENDATION: <br />Informational. <br />BRIEFING SUMMARY: <br />• The Ski Tur and Starwater communities are two adjacent recreational <br />subdivisions located at Snoqualmie Pass, within the Gold Creek Valley and <br />outside the Snoqualmie Pass Utility District. <br />• The Yakama Nation requested that the State Departments of Health and Ecology <br />reassess the number of approved water system connections for the Ski Tur Valley <br />and Starwatcr communities. <br />• Starwater did not develop its Group A system and is currently a Group B System <br />with six (6) connections. There are approximately 49 building sites within the <br />platted Starwater development that have not been constructed. This land is in <br />common ownership. Additional groundwater use needs to meet legal and physical <br />water availability requirements. <br />• The Department of Health has shared that it will notify the Ski Tur Valley <br />community that due to the unavailability of water in Gold Creek, the junior nature <br />of the surface water right for the Ski Tur Valley system, and the risk of <br />impairment claim, the number of approved connections will be reduced from 65 <br />to the 40 existing connections. This determination will impact 25 undeveloped <br />lots. <br />* Initial conversations with the Snoqualmie Pass Utility District indicates that the <br />utility is open to exploring options to provide water to the Ski Tur Valley and <br />Starwater communities. <br />BACKGROUND: <br />The Ski Tur Valley and Starwater communities are two adjacent recreational subdivisions <br />located at Snoqualmie Pass, within the Gold Creek Valley and outside the Snoqualmie <br />Pass Utility District. Gold Creek annually dewaters, and the Yakama Nation requested <br />that the State Departments of Health and Ecology reassess the number of approved water <br />Page I of 4 <br />PUBLIC WORKS BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS WORK SESSION STAFF REPORT <br />