On Monday, August 25, 2025, a contractor for Lake Whatcom Water and Sewer District will begin demolition of the existing 1-million gallon welded-steel Division 7 reservoir constructed in 1970. The reservoir location is near Swallow Circle in Gate 2. The water reservoir demolition is part of the District’s larger, multi-year effort to replace the aging tank with two 237,900 gallon reservoirs, together totaling 475,800 gallons. The project provides seismic improvements and implements an earthquake early warning system (ShakeAlert®) to automatically isolate a portion of the volume from rapid depletion due to possible water main breaks following an earthquake. 

Demolition will proceed in accordance with a pending Whatcom County Demolition Permit and Northwest Clean Air Agency approved demolition permit #25-413, attached. Lead was detected in the tank’s paint and primer and the contractor is required to perform lead abatement and containment in accordance with the applicable laws, regulations, and codes of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), the Washington Industrial Safety and Health Act (WISHA) and any Federal, State, County or local requirements related to the demolition, handling, loading, transporting, recycling, and/or disposals of the materials related to this work. No asbestos was detected in the reservoir materials.

The demolition work is expected to take approximately 3 weeks and will be followed with site restoration. Please direct any project questions to Greg Nicoll, P.E., District Engineer for Lake Whatcom Water and Sewer District (360.734.9224, greg.nicoll@lwwsd.org).

Please note that the reservoir is not located on Sudden Valley property and Sudden Valley is not involved in this project.

UPDATE 8/14/25: The timeframe for the work has been changed from the week of 8/18 to sometime in September. The contractor will be proofing the conduit during the week of 8/18, which will not result in the trail’s closure.

Lake Whatcom Water & Sewer District has a project to pull fiber optic cable from the Ranch House lift station (4 Marigold) to Louise lift station (11 Larkspur). 

The estimated closure would be 8:00am-5:00pm for one day in September, with the possibility of extending to a second day.

LWW&SD will provide at least a 72 hour notice ahead of any closure request, and will provide onsite signage for the duration. Above is a map of the project location for clarification.

On August 6th & 7th, there will be special meetings between the Board of Directors and Finance Committee. The purpose of these meetings is to present the Capital and Operational Budgets for 2026 by Joel Heverling, Finance Director. The meetings will be held in the Community Center Multipurpose Room A at 7:00PM. Click here for the meeting agenda!

A new amenity has been installed at the Sudden Valley Marina. A life jacket (Personal Flotation Device or PFD) loaner kiosk, a joint effort of the Sudden Valley Safety Committee, WA State Parks, and Boy Scout Troop 4019 member Jack Anderson’s Eagle Scout Project is now installed.

The kiosk allows water craft users at the Marina to borrow a PFD, at no charge, for their outings on the water and then return them. Whatcom County waters, including Lake Whatcom, are classified as Cold Water; and State Law requires all boaters (including Stand Up Paddle Boarders) to have a PFD when on the water; and children under 13 must wear them. The Whatcom County Sheriff will cite those not having a PFD when on the lake. 

Cold Water Shock is the most dangerous consequence of sudden immersion and can incapacitate in seconds. Wearing a properly fitted PFD will keep you afloat, while not wearing it could, and does, result in drowning. Even though surface waters are deceptively warm at this time of year, cold water lurks below and easily is brought to the surface in choppy conditions. No one wants their family or friends to go through the trauma of losing someone when wearing the PFD is such an easy, and now free, bit of insurance.

Residents who own PFDs they no longer need are encouraged to donate them to the Recreation Department, where they will be inspected and added to the loaner program if still serviceable. 

Cascadia Daily News recently published an article about the Lake Louise water lily removal project and the volunteers making it happen. Check out the full article here!

To volunteer to help with the water lily removal project, join the Google group here!

A Town Hall meeting to discuss the Barn 6 proposal will be held on July 23, 2025 from 6:30PM – 8:30PM in the Dance Barn and on Zoom.

Learn about one of the architectural options presented to the Board of Directors which will use the existing footprint of Barn 6.

To attend via Zoom, click here!

As the 4th of July approaches, we would like to remind residents that the use of fireworks in Sudden Valley is strictly prohibited. Fireworks are dangerous both for the user and the surrounding homes and forests:

• Fireworks increase the risk of fire, disturb the peace of the neighborhood, and disrupt the activity of the animals that share our space
• Setting off fireworks causes many injuries each year

SVCA maintains a zero-tolerance policy regarding the use of fireworks. Security will enforce the No Fireworks Allowed policy and cite offenders on SVCA Rules & Regulations Section 1.4. The fine for violating this rule is $100. No warnings will be given.

To view the event, click here! The original event announcement is shown below.

Great news! MONDAY, JUNE 23, 6:30 to 8:00PM in the Dance Barn — A FREE workshop on Go-Bags, evacuation planning, the AlertSense warning system & neighborhood disaster readiness will be provided by speakers from the Bellingham and Whatcom County Emergency Management teams.

Prizes will be given out in a drawing for in-person attendees!

A Q&A session will be included! Sponsored by the SVCA Safety Committee. Click here to join the meeting!

Whatcom County Public Works will close roads in the Lake Whatcom area from June 24 to June 26 to perform routine road maintenance. Work will include mowing, tree trimming, guardrail repair, ditching, and catch basin maintenance. 

Roads will be closed to through traffic from 7:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. on the following days:

• Tuesday, June 24
  Lake Louise Road, from Austin Street to Lake Whatcom Boulevard
• Wednesday, June 25 & Thursday, June 26
   Lake Whatcom Boulevard, from Lake Louise Road to Cain Lake Road

Advance warning signs will be posted on-site to alert drivers to the closure periods. Please follow all posted signage and plan your alternate routes accordingly. 

This post was originally made on the Whatcom County website and is being posted here for further exposure. Please see the original announcement here: https://www.whatcomcounty.us/CivicAlerts.aspx?AID=4990

Note: These closures do not apply to emergency vehicles.