LEWISTON – Downtown Lewiston’s infrastructure, the underground utilities that the community depends on, has served the City of Lewiston and its residents for almost 90 years. Repairs and updates are desperately needed to the sewer and water lines.
According to the newly launched website, Pipe Up Lewiston, two-thirds of Lewiston’s sewage flows through downtown and was built for a population half the current size. The sewer system is at 70% capacity and increasingly prone to cracks and leaks, a failure of this system could result in sewage backups across Lewiston, especially in The Orchards.
Years of patching the existing water main have left it unreliable and beyond repair. The outdated system limits downtown property owners from refurbishing their buildings since they can not access the necessary water pressure to meet modern fire suppression standards.
High-speed Internet wasn’t around 90 years ago, but in today’s society, it is a necessity for doing business. The Port of Lewiston has been working to bring fiber optic internet to the city. The cost of digging has been a hurdle in accomplishing this, but with the streets already being opened for improvements, significant costs could be saved and will deliver high-speed internet to residents and businesses.
The City of Lewiston was awarded Federal ARPA funds that must be used by 2027 or they will be forfeited. By replacing water, sewer, and stormwater systems, and laying fiber optic cable at once, it minimizes costs and disruption. Delaying these projects will lead to repeated construction, increased expenses, and the risk of infrastructure failure.
In Idaho, cities are required by law to get voter approval before issuing a bond, even when no tax increase is needed. A bond is a financing tool that allows the City of Lewiston to fund large projects upfront and pay them off over time, similar to a mortgage.
Lewiston residents must authorize the city to use the existing funds to complete these essential infrastructure upgrades. This is done with a bond that will appear on the ballot in May. By voting YES, residents would authorize the city to use existing funds without raising taxes, to complete these essential infrastructure upgrades in the most cost-effective way possible.
To learn more, visit https://yesforpipes.org.