Clallam PUD’s new headquarters is set to open next week in Carlsborg.
The main office opens on Tuesday, Nov. 24, at 104 Hooker Road, with the Sequim customer service building at 502 S. Still Road and Port Angeles headquarters at 2431 E. U.S. Highway 101, closing at 2:30 p.m. Friday, Nov. 20.
“We are excited about the new efficiencies this will bring to the PUD and the one stop shopping opportunities for our customers,” said PUD General Manager Doug Nass.
The new facility is part of a $10.65 million construction and renovation project at nearly 43,000 square feet including the main office, engineering addition and mezzanine substation shop.
Construction began in October 2014 as part of a long-term facilities plan from 2007 which included buying the former Costco site in 2008, PUD officials report.
“We are optimistic about the future in Clallam County and with aging facilities, we decided to take steps to make certain we were in a position to provide our customers the efficiencies and productivity they deserve,” said Will Purser, president of the PUD board of commissioners.
“It became obvious that this was the right time to address our infrastructure needs. Favorable interest rates, decreased commodity prices and competitive construction costs reaffirmed our decision.”
Mike Howe, PUD communications and government relations manager, said customers can use the new headquarters for “anything a customer might need related to electricity.”
With the switch in facilities, the PUD offices in Port Angeles, Sequim and Carlsborg will close on Monday, Nov. 23, to finalize the move. The main office will continue regular hours from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. weekdays.
A public grand opening event is tentatively set for Saturday, Dec. 12.
The PUD continues to offer services online and pay-by-phone options by visiting www.clallampud.net or calling 888-402-0663.
The PUD also will open payment centers in Sequim and Port Angeles on Nov. 24 at Co-Op Farm & Garden, 216 E. Washington St., and inside Country Aire Natural Foods, 200 W. First St. in Port Angeles. They’ll be open from 8 a.m.-5:30 p.m. and close for lunch from 12:30-1:30 p.m. for lunch.
More on the move
About 120 PUD employees will work in the Carlsborg area with about 100 of those in the main office.
The PUD rents the Sequim customer service building and officials plan to list the Port Angeles building for sale but no timetable has been set, Howe said.
To pay for the construction projects and other infrastructure needs, the utility district sold $14.225 million worth of bonds on Oct. 14, 2014.
Howe said rates to utility district customers are determined on the basis of recovery of costs and the costs attributed to the debt service for debt incurred primarily to construct the new buildings represent an average of about 1 percent of total costs for each of the next 20 years.
A customer who uses 1,200 kWh a month will see an increase of 95 cents per month on his/her bill, PUD officials estimate.
They also reported that the cost of bringing the Port Angeles customer office up to code and expanding to allow customer service for electric, water and sewer would have cost the same as a new building or moving to the new headquarters on property they already own in Carlsborg.
For the project, Lawhead Architects P.S. from Bellevue served as architect and Neeley Construction & Cabinet Company from Puyallup served as the primary contractor while bringing in several local subcontractors on-site throughout the projects.
For more information about the PUD, call 452-9771 or visit www.clallampud.net.
