Drafter
Clerk 09/08/2026
Title
AN ORDINANCE to temporarily suspend the operations of Drainage District 5 & 5A in accordance with state law so as to authorize the executive to execute on behalf of the Drainage District agreements necessary for the repair, maintenance, and operation of Drainage District 5 & 5A infrastructure located within the boundaries of Drainage District 5 in council district nine; and declaring an emergency.
Body
STATEMENT OF FACTS:
1. Drainage District 5 ("District") was formed in 1916. However, over the past century, territory within the District that used to be located in unincorporated King County has been absorbed by the city of Enumclaw. Prior to 2026, of the approximate 1,300 acres that made up the District's service area, over sixty percent were located in Enumclaw.
2. Enumclaw maintains and operates a stormwater utility within its incorporated city limits.
3. At least since 2024, the then District’s three member board ("board") began exploring how to reconfigure the District to carve out the properties located in Enumclaw from those in unincorporated King County.
4. The three board members all resided within the city limits.
5. By way of a May 1, 2025, notice, the board notified all parcel owners within the District of the board’s proposed action to adjust the District’s boundaries so that its service area with the city limits and a limited strip of adjacent unincorporated properties ("withdrawn area"), together with District capital facilities located within the withdrawn area, would be transferred to Enumclaw. The notice invited the public to give comment at a public hearing held on June 9, 2025. The District received no comments against the proposed action.
6. On May 27, 2025, the Enumclaw City Council passed Resolution No. 1843, expressing Enumclaw's support of the board's proposed action to withdraw the identified territory and Enumclaw's agreement to incorporate the District's capital facilities into its syst...
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