General Information
The City of Arlington, Washington ("City") is seeking to purchase water rights in the Stillaguamish and Quilceda Basins to meet the increasing demand for water due to a growing population.

The City's primary sources of water are the Haller wellfield, located at the confluence of the North Fork and South Fork Stillaguamish River, and the Airport wellfield, located adjacent to the Arlington airport. The City is evaluating alternatives for acquiring additional water supplies to meet anticipated future demand. The current population of 17,000 is expected to increase to 30,000 by the year 2025. The City is acting now to assure that it has the water to provide to the customers when they need it, especially during peak summer periods.

The City is seeking to acquire valid water rights to ensure reliable water supplies for projected growth. In addition to water right acquisitions, the City is also evaluating other supply options such as wholesale water supply agreements from a local PUD and new water right applications in combination with surface water mitigation. The City has contracted with WestWater Research to assist in acquiring water rights.

What Type of Water Right is the City Interested in Purchasing?
The City is interested in any water right located in the general vicinity of Arlington, Washington. This includes groundwater rights located near the airport and Haller wellfield and surface water rights that originate in the Stillaguamish River, its tributary streams, or Portage or Quilceda Creeks. Additional research will determine if a water right can satisfy the City's needs. Some of these include:

1. The water right must have been used at least once in the last five years.
2. No period of five consecutive years has occurred on the property without water use since the water right was issued.
3. The water right must be within the Stillaguamish or Quilceda Creek subbasins for a surface water right. For groundwater rights, the water right's place of use must be shown to have a hydraulic connection to an adjacent body of water.

How Much Will the City Pay Water Right Holders?
The City will consider all offers and has not established a fixed price. The price will be based on fair market value. Values will be established during negotiations between the water right holder and the City. Because there is no established market for water rights in the area, price will be based on a number of factors including benefits the water provides to the City, quantity of water available for sale, and age (priority) of the water right. WestWater Research maintains a comprehensive database of water right transactions in the state and will be able to assist landowners in determining the value and quantity of water they have to sell.

Interested Parties
The City would like to hear from anyone who holds a water right near Arlington, WA interested in learning more about a possible sale of their water right to the City. Please contact Ryland Moore, transaction manager for WestWater Research, at 360-695-5233 for more information or to schedule an informational meeting.

The City is making WestWater staff available to interested parties, at no expense, to research and gather water rights information and documents. Some of the basic information that WestWater staff will need from the landowner can be found on our Landowner Checklist. This information will allow WestWater Research to better help landowners determine how much water they have available to sell.