About Kelso, WA
City at Large
Parks
Streets/Drainage
Traffic
Water/Sewer
Number of City Employees - 87.5 fte
Tax Rate Information
Past Mayors

ABOUT KELSO, WA

Kelso is the county seat of Cowlitz County. It is located in southwestern Washington on Interstate 5 at the confluence of the Cowlitz, Coweeman and Columbia Rivers. Kelso is 48 miles north of Portland, 125 miles south of Seattle, and 80 miles east of the Pacific Ocean.

There are 12,000 residents in Kelso and 85,000 people in Cowlitz County. The secondary market area for Kelso businesses includes approximately 20,000 residents of adjacent counties (Wahkiakum and south Lewis Counties in Washington, and Columbia County in Oregon). More people in Kelso work in direct production services and fewer work in management and technical areas than is the state norm.

The business and tourist travelers on Interstate 5 and the tourists traveling to the ocean on State Route 4 provide an additional market for Kelso businesses. The average traffic volume on I-5 in Kelso during 2003 was 42,733 cars per day. The retail sales volume within the Kelso community was $240 million 400 thousand during 2003.

Kelso is very accessible with a freeway (I-5) through the east portion of the city, an Amtrak station in downtown, Burlington Northern freight service, a municipal airport in South Kelso, and navigable water access via the Columbia River. In addition to I- 5, Kelso is located at the junction of State Highways 4, 411, 432 and 433.

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CITY AT LARGE

• Total Square Miles – 7
• Population – 12,000
• Direct Freeway Access
• 1 – 45.15 acre Mall
• 1 – Library
• 1 – Train Station
• 1 – Golf Course
• 1 – Airport
• 1 – Water Treatment Plant which can produce 3.6 million gallons of water per day

THREE RIVERS

• Columbia
• Cowlitz
• Coweeman

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PARKS

• 8 Parks Totaling 50 acres with 4 playgrounds
• 1 – Spray Park
• 6 miles of Bicycle and/or Multi-use paths

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STREETS AND DRAINAGE

• 64 miles of Asphalt Streets
• Approximately 75 miles of Sidewalks
• 10 miles of improved alleys 2 miles of unimproved Alleys
• Stormwater – 1200 catch basins, 500 manholes, 55 miles of pipe

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TRAFFIC

• Over 2,000 street signs
• Over 300 cross walks
• Over 300 street lamps

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WATER AND SEWER

• 73 miles of water pipe
• 7 Water Pump Stations
• 8 Reservoirs
• 605 Fire Hydrants
• 1400 Valves and 4 Pressure Zones
• 52 miles of Sewer Main
• 11 Sewer Pump Stations
• 374 Manholes
• 4660 Water Service Connections
• 3954 Sewer Service Connections
• Water avg. Annual Daily Demand – 2.248 MGD
• DOH Capacity Rating – 3.6

WATER SERVES 3 WATER DISTRICTS

• Williams Finney
• Davis Terrace
• Cowlitz Gardens

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NUMBER OF CITY EMPLOYEES - 87.5 FTE

• Police – 32.5 fte
• Finance – 8 fte
• Public Works – 32 fte 
• Library – 7 fte
• Community Development – 4 fte
• Administration – 4 fte

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TAX RATE INFORMATION

Retail Sales Tax is 1.4%. With state retail sales tax, the total sales tax collected is 7.9%

Business and Occupation tax is 0.001/0.002%, retail/service respectively per $1,000 gross receipts.

Total Real Property is $13.30 per $1,000 assessed valuation, payable in 2009.

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PAST MAYORS

The following are the past Mayors of Kelso, beginning in 1890 before the city was incorporated:

The city of Kelso reincorporated in 1894. The first city council meeting under reincorporation was held in February 1894.

January 4, 1968 was the last meeting conducted under the Mayor-Council form of government.  March 4, 1968 was the first meeting under the new Council-Manager form of government for Kelso.

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For more information please Contact our office.