CLE ELUM, Wash., Jan. 14, 2004 -- MountainStar Resort Development, LLC, (MountainStar) has awarded USFilter Operating Services, Inc. (USFilter), part of Veolia Water, a $14 million contract for the design, build and startup operation of a new 3.6 million-gallon-per-day (MGD) regional wastewater treatment plant located in Cle Elum, Wash.
The new plant will support the needs of the surrounding communities of Cle Elum, South Cle Elum and Roslyn, and MountainStar, a 6,000-acre resort community on the Cle Elum River in unincorporated Kittitas County.
During the two-year construction phase, USFilter will also provide interim operations and management services for the city's existing 1.5-MGD wastewater treatment plant. Upon facility completion, USFilter will transition the operation and management of the new and the existing wastewater treatment plants to the city of Cle Elum and its operator of choice. The city will continue providing services to the resort as well as to the other neighboring communities.
"Partnering with USFilter enables us to keep pace with the continued population growth in the area and the time-sensitive and essential wastewater services required for the development of the resort community," said Bill Hunt, managing director of MountainStar. "USFilter's alternative proposal was over $3 million less than the cost of the original request for proposal issued by the city of Cle Elum.
The significant savings coupled with the company's extensive design-build-operate experience and excellent environmental compliance record were key to their selection as our water partner."
USFilter will manage the work of Parametrix, which is the design engineering firm, and minority-owned RCI Construction Group, which will perform major portions of the construction. Both companies are Sumner, Wash.-based and have extensive experience in the design and construction of municipal water and wastewater treatment plants.
"Our team worked diligently to provide MountainStar and the three municipalities with an innovative and cost-effective solution that will save over $3 million and satisfy the requirements of the Washington State Department of Ecology," said Sean Haghighi, vice president of municipal business development for USFilter Operating Services. "Additionally, because the new facility will be built on one of the three existing lagoons, our challenge will be to operate the current facility with limited capacity during construction, while maintaining the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System compliance."
Design and construction of the plant began in October 2003, and completion, startup and testing are anticipated for October 2005.
MountainStar, Washington's four-season master-planned resort, will include a village with retail services, a hotel, conference facilities, a luxurious spa, time-share residences, custom home sites and up to three golf courses. The first golf course, by Arnold Palmer Design, is expected to open in 2004. Plans include a wide variety of sites for single-family homes, cottages, lofts and condominiums.
MountainStar is located in the center of an all-season recreation area, with golfing, hiking, biking, fishing, and horseback riding in the warmer months, and cross-country and downhill skiing, snowshoeing and snowmobiling in the winter. The resort design emphasizes the natural environment and preservation of open space and includes a 1,215-acre conservation easement corridor along the Cle Elum River.
MountainStar is a joint venture partnership between JELD-WEN inc., of Klamath Falls, Ore., and Los Angeles, Calif.-based Lowe Enterprises. Lowe manages or has developed or redeveloped some of North America's most exceptional properties, including Sunriver in Ore., and the Royal Palms Resort and Spa in Ariz. For more information about MountainStar, visit www.mountainstar.com.
USFilter Operating Services is North America's water company providing comprehensive water and wastewater and services to municipal and industrial customers. The company is part of Veolia Water, the No. 1 water company in the world serving more than 110 million customers. Veolia Water is part of Veolia Environment (Paris Bourse: VIE and NYSE:VE), the largest environmental services company in the world with more than 295,000 employees, including FCC, in about 100 countries and annual revenues of more than $31.5 billion. Visit the company's web sites at www.usfilter.com or www.veoliaenvironnement.com.
