Lawrence Street Combined Sewer Separation Project (Harrison to Monroe)

Photo: Public Works Director Steve King fields questions from the community about Lawrence Street improvements.

Improving INFRASTRUCTURE & Repairing Streets

Project Overview

The Lawrence Street Combined Sewer Separation Project is a critical infrastructure initiative undertaken by the City of Port Townsend. The primary goal of this project is to eliminate hydraulic stress on the sanitary sewer system and the Monroe Street Lift Station caused by combined stormwater and sanitary sewer flows in the Lawrence Street sewer from Harrison Street to Monroe Street. This project is essential to improving the city's sewer and stormwater management systems, thereby enhancing public health and environmental quality.

Project Area

Why is the City prioritizing this project right now? 

Port Townsend’s aging combined sewer system was originally built to carry both rainwater (stormwater) and raw sewage in the same pipes, but during heavy rain, excess stormwater can overwhelm the system, leading to untreated sewage discharges into Port Townsend Bay. Lawrence Street, a primary thoroughfare in Uptown Port Townsend and one of the oldest streets in the City, has a combined sewer and stormwater line that drains to the Monroe Street Lift Station—a critical facility that handles a significant portion of the City’s peak wastewater flow. During storms, the increased inflow pushes the lift station to its limits, requiring all three pumps to operate at full capacity. The Monroe Street Lift Station currently operates about 16 percent over capacity during wet weather. Prolonged overloading accelerates wear on equipment and increases the risk of system failure, which can result in overflows, environmental contamination, and potential sewage backups into homes and businesses.

At the same time, the pavement on Lawrence Street is in poor condition and continues to deteriorate, creating safety and accessibility issues for pedestrians, bicyclists, and vehicles. Sidewalks and curb ramps along the corridor also need to be upgraded to meet current ADA accessibility standards. By tackling these problems together—separating stormwater from the sewer system, rehabilitating the sewer line, and rebuilding the street—the City can avoid repeated disruptions and make the most of available funding.

Coordinating this work now will eliminate over 1 million gallons from entering the sewer system each year. It will also improve the reliability of the Monroe Street Lift Station and help extend the life of key infrastructure. By acting now, the City can avoid more expensive upgrades to the lift station and lower risk of environmental impacts to Port Townsend Bay. With design work underway, funding opportunities aligned, and public support for addressing stormwater and road conditions, the Lawrence Street project presents a unique opportunity to deliver a high-impact investment that offers numerous benefits to the community.

Separating stormwater from the sewer system will alleviate pressure on the Monroe Street Lift Station, enhance system reliability, and reduce the likelihood of costly infrastructure failures.

Lawrence Street multimodal improvements are included in this project.

This project will also address accessibility issues by focusing on sidewalk and ramp improvements for ADA compliance. Any road work associated with the Lawrence Street sewer project will need to be monitored so that finished surfaces integrate with current sidewalk and ramp improvements along Lawrence from Harrison to Tyler. 

This project will: 

• Complete water, sewer, and stormwater utility upgrades 
• Reconstruct Lawrence Street, addressing both subgrade and pavement deterioration.
• Add bike facilities and some landscaping 
• Repair sidewalks, upgrade accessibility (ADA), and fill in sidewalk gaps
• Complete a fully accessible route from Monroe to Walker Street

Additional Information

These combined projects along Lawrence and Tyler Street improve accessibility, mobility, and safety for all users walking, biking, and rolling to their destinations in the Uptown & Downtown Business Districts.

The City Non-Motorized Plan identifies Lawrence Street as a top priority corridor for bicycle lanes and local ADA advocacy group Disability Awareness Starts Here (DASH) has identified Lawrence Street as a key route that needs sidewalk and ADA accessibility updates. The street surface is in extreme need of pavement repairs and constructing ADA ramps ahead of resurfacing stretches paving investments to repair more street over time. It is a priority to improve ADA, pedestrian, bicycle, transit, and driving connections with everything Lawrence connects from Monroe to Walker: from Chetzemoka Park and the Skate Park to the Public Library, Mountain View Pool and Golf Park. To comply with the Port Townsend GMA Comprehensive Plan, Non-Motorized Plan, Complete Street ordinance, and Greenhouse Gas emission reduction policy, the City is planning to reconstruct Lawrence Street for people of all ages and abilities. 

Project Budget

The majority of the project will be funded through low-interest loans from the Public Works Board (PWB) and Department of Ecology (DOE). To support competitive applications, the City will provide a 20% local match totaling approximately $1.16 million. This match will be distributed across the Water, Sewer, Stormwater, and Transportation Benefit District (TBD) funds, with the TBD contribution expected to be less than $400,000.

On August 4, 2025 City Council approved Resolution 25-024 authorizing the application for loan funding for final design and construction of the Lawrence Street Combined Sewer Separation Project in an amount not to exceed $4,500,000.

Council previously approved loan applications for a total of $4,500,000 for the Lawrence Street Combined Sewer Separation Project (AB25-077). An additional $500,000 will be requested from the Ecology CWSRF Loan program in order to add stormwater treatment to meet the requirements of the Ecology Stormwater Management Manual for Western Washington. This addition was suggested and highly encouraged by Ecology during discussions regarding the competitiveness of the loan application.

Project Schedule

All dates are approximate and subject to change, we will add more detail as it becomes available.

Project contact:
Michael Connelly, P.E., Project Manager
mconnelly@cityofpt.us