Springs & feds reach water deal that is key to pipeline: Colorado Springs Utilities and the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation reached a tentative agreement Wednesday over long-term water contracts that will be needed for the Southern Delivery System pipeline.
After a 12-hour session Tuesday, the two sides returned to the bargaining table Wednesday morning and agreed on a price of $36 dollar per acre foot to store, convey and exchange water through the federally owned Pueblo Reservoir.
That means that SDS and its partners, which include Pueblo West, Fountain and Security, will pay about $70 million over a 38-year period, or approximately one-fifth of the bureau’s opening offer of roughly $350 million.
“The contracts are another significant milestone for the project,” said John Fredell, SDS project director and chief negotiator. “This ensures a reliable supply of water for our community well into the century.” Gazette, August 26, 2010

Homes sold for SDS to be recycled: Colorado Springs Utilities will donate materials from homes it is buying in Pueblo West to the Pueblo Habitat for Humanity. Pueblo Chieftain, July 19, 2010 PDF Document

Lower Ark reviews Fountain Creek progress: A partnership of agencies working on Fountain Creek could bring in as much as $6 million for projects in Pueblo and El Paso counties over the next two years.
“All this is stuff that is actually happening, not just a dream about what could happen,” said Jay Winner, general manager of the Lower Arkansas Valley Water Conservancy District.
There are eight active projects along Fountain Creek, partly as a result of a partnership started three years ago between the Lower Ark district and Colorado Springs Utilities, said consultant Kevin Shanks.
A Fountain Creek Corridor Master Plan is being developed as a result of an agreement that is funded by $150,000 annually from both the Lower Ark and Colorado Springs. The groups agreed to fund the Fountain Creek Watershed Flood Control and Greenway director’s salary, $100,000 per year this year and next as well. Pueblo Chieftain, June 17, 2010. PDF Document

Hundreds of SDS jobs on tap: Colorado Springs expects to spend $880 million in completing the first phase of the Southern Delivery System, including funding a $160 million payroll over seven years to include construction crews in El Paso and Pueblo counties. The water pipeline project will employ an average of 380 workers per year through 2016 with the peak hiring anticipated to come in 2014 with an estimated 700 jobs, according to Colorado Springs Utilities.“As you can imagine, once construction begins this year, a project of this scope and magnitude will have a significant impact on local economies,” said John Fredell, SDS project manager for Colorado Springs Utilities. Pueblo Chieftain, Feb. 5, 2010

Fountain Creek flows a moving target. Fountain Creek flows would be a moving target for Colorado Springs and its partners in the Southern Delivery System, according to information in an application to a Fountain Creek improvement district. The application was presented to the Fountain Creek Watershed Flood Control and Greenway District last month, along with promises from Colorado Springs Utilities officials that stormwater would be controlled despite the demise of the city’s stormwater enterprise. Pueblo Chieftain, Jan. 8, 2010. PDF Document.

Stormwater pledges giving to district: Colorado Springs officials gave strong assurances Friday that stormwater commitments made while obtaining permission to build the Southern Delivery System would be honored.  “Regarding our commitments on stormwater, there are legitimate concerns,” said Bruce McCormick, chief of water services for Colorado Springs Utilities. “It’s important to us and will continue to be important.”  Pueblo County Commissioner Jeff Chostner asked McCormick to explain the stormwater commitments to the Fountain Creek Watershed Flood Control and Greenway District board in light of last month’s vote on Doug Bruce’s Issue 300 and Colorado Springs City Council’s subsequent decision to phase out its stormwater enterprise over the next two years. Pueblo Chieftain, December 5, 2009. PDF Document.

Forget baby boomers, aging infrastructure real crisis: The average age of Colorado Springs’ reservoirs and dams is 83 years old; its raw water pipe system, treatment plants and collection mains are in their 30s; and hydrants and water distribution mains are in their 20s.  Because the city is not located on a major river, water infrastructure is a major issue for Colorado Springs Utilities, and the cost of maintaining and upgrading the system is substantial.  CSU has budgeted more than $246 million during 2010 to replace aging equipment, start the Southern Delivery System and build new infrastructure. Colorado Springs Business Journal, December 4, 2009. PDF Document.

Reclamation asked to begin SDS contract talks: Colorado Springs has asked the Bureau of Reclamation to begin negotiations for the Southern Delivery System contracts “as soon as possible.” “To maintain our current schedule to begin construction on the Pueblo Dam connection in early 2010, we have requested that Reclamation move forward with the contracting process as soon as possible,” said John Fredell, project director. Reclamation has yet to review the letter sent this week, so it has not set a timetable for negotiations, said Kara Lamb, Reclamation public information officer. The contract negotiations will provide an additional opportunity for public comment on SDS, a $1 billion-plus pipeline project on track to be completed by 2016. Pueblo Chieftain, December 2, 2009. PDF Document.

Let's not impecte progress of SDS: At least two members of City Council have suggested this isn’t the time to move forward with SDS, because of the budget. But water projects can’t simply be started and stopped at leisure. Forging through the regulatory quagmire that stood between the idea and the fruition of SDS has taken more than 10 years. The permits come with deadlines, and delays could kill the project. Water is more important than anything else City Hall provides.  When the system is complete, Colorado Springs will have a bounty of water — a sustainable advantage some other cities will not be able to match. We will have what companies must have, and what developers will need to produce houses for new employees. We will have the lifeblood of economic development — an abundance of fresh water available to all who are willing to buy it.  Do what you must to balance the budget, but don’t impede the long-term progress of SDS in order to resolve short-term budgetary concerns. Nothing is more important to our success than access to water we already own.Colorado Springs Gazette, November 23, 2009. PDF Document.

SDS work on Fountain Creek to begin next year. Colorado Springs plans to begin Fountain Creek improvements under the Southern Delivery System next year, despite the City Council’s plans to phase out a stormwater enterprise. The stormwater enterprise, which is expected to be phased out over eight years after Colorado Springs voters passed Doug Bruce’s Issue 300 last week, was linked to the Bureau of Reclamation’s environmental impact statement. “We need to read the language carefully,” Bruce McCormick, Colorado Springs water chief, said Friday. “While the enterprise is losing funding over time, SDS is still going to be funded according to the commitments in the EIS.” Pueblo Chieftain, November 14, 2009. PDF Document.

Springs says SDS promises remain in place. Colorado Springs is determined to live up to its promises for Fountain Creek made in order to gain permits for the Southern Delivery System despite a vote Tuesday that threatens to eliminate a key component - a four-year-old stormwater enterprise. While the effects of a ballot issue primarily aimed at the stormwater fee are still being debated, Colorado Springs City Council has clearly positioned protection of Fountain Creek at the heart of its $1.1 billion water project. Council says the fee is not in jeopardy. Pueblo Chieftain, November 5, 2009. PDF Document.

Fountain funding plan gets approval. Move clears the way for watershed exec's hiring. An administrator for a newly formed district on Fountain Creek could be hired by the end of the year. Pueblo County commissioners Tuesday approved applying Colorado Springs funds from the Fountain Creek Corridor Master Plan effort toward its conditions on a 1041 permit for the Southern Delivery System. “All three commissioners were in support of the proposal,” said Commissioner Jeff Chostner. Pueblo Chieftain, October 2, 2009. PDF Document.

Project gives fish way to go up a creek. The Arkansas darter and flathead chub will be protected under plan. A $282,000 project will help create a fish passage on Fountain Creek at a Colorado Springs Utilities diversion that will improve habitat for two threatened fish species. The project at Colorado Springs’ Clear Spring Ranch, located near Pikes Peak International Raceway, will benefit the Arkansas darter and flathead chub, which are listed as threatened or of concern under the Endangered Species Act. The fish passages are strategically placed rocks that provide the fish shelter as they make their way upstream, said Carol Baker, Fountain Creek watershed planning manager for Colorado Springs Utilities. “The project will identify for the first time fish performance curves for the Arkansas darter and flathead chub and will establish fish passage design criteria for plains fish species,” Baker said. Pueblo Chieftain, August 2, 2009. PDF Document.

Springs, Pueblo County drop lawsuit over pipeline permit. A three-and-a-half-year legal battle between Colorado Springs and Pueblo County quietly ended this week, when both sides agreed to drop a lawsuit over that county’s authority to require a permit for the Southern Delivery System water pipeline. Colorado Springs Utilities sued in November 2005, challenging the right of Pueblo County to require a 1041 land-use permit, named for the legislation that gives counties authority over multi-jurisdictional projects. At the time, there was opposition to the pipeline in Pueblo, and a permit seemed unlikely. The $1.4 billion pipeline is expected to deliver 10 million gallons a day from Pueblo Reservoir starting in 2016 and will eventually bring 78 million gallons a day to a new reservoir southeast of Colorado Springs. In April, Pueblo County issued the permit after Utilities agreed to spend $50 million improving Fountain Creek, $75 million upgrading its wastewater or water reuse systems and $6 million on dredging the creek in Pueblo and other mitigations. The Gazette, July 30, 2009. PDF Document.

Springs, county to settle lawsuit. Pueblo County has spent almost $440,000 fighting the case. Colorado Springs and Pueblo County have reached an agreement to dismiss a lawsuit over the county’s 1041 land-use regulations. The lawsuit was dismissed on Tuesday in Pueblo District Court. The action ends nearly four years of litigation, after Colorado Springs filed the lawsuit in 2005, centering on Southern Delivery System, a $1 billion-plus pipeline project that will affect Pueblo Dam, land in Pueblo West, Walker Ranches and numerous county roads. Pueblo Chieftain, July 30, 2009. PDF Document.

Colo. Springs, county drop lawsuit over pipeline. Colorado Springs and Pueblo County have ended a 3.5-year-old legal battle over a water pipeline. The city and county agreed Tuesday to drop a lawsuit over Pueblo County's authority to require a permit for the pipeline, planned to carry water from Pueblo Reservoir to Colorado Springs. AP story published by Denver Post, July 29, 2009. PDF Document.

Giant new pipe benefits all. Rate hikes are a solid investment. Colorado Springs voters have wisely declined recent tax hike proposals to pay for fuzzy, ill-defined, pie-in-the-sky promises of more public safety and “jobs”. It’s a good thing voters have said no, because doing do has left more money in their households and businesses to pay for something that’s not fuzzy wuzzy at all, and is absolutely vital to the economic success of Colorado Springs: Water. Colorado needs more water and it will get more water, but it will come at a hefty cost. The Colorado Springs City Council, serving as the Colorado Springs Utility Board, approved a plan Wednesday to build and finance the Southern Deliver System pipeline, which will deliver Arkansas River water the city owns and stores in Pueblo Reservoir. It’s more important than economic development incentives, the United States Olympic Committee Headquarters, and all marketing campaigns combined. It is tangible, real, and everyone will win. The massive project will cost nearly $1 billion in today’s dollars, and may result in more than a doubling of water rates by 2019. Today, the average monthly water bill is nearly $40, and the city predicts it will be $100 in 2019. More water isn’t optional. Colorado Springs must have it in order to prosper and grow. All other talk about economic development, attracting primary employers, and becoming more like Austin, Texas, (home of the city’s latest economic adviser) means nothing if we can’t meet our growing water demands. The Gazette, editorial, July 24, 2009. PDF Document.

NOREEN: No whining, please, on doubled water rates. You can never expect to pay your parents back for all they’ve done for you. The closest you can come is to live well and help provide for those who come after you. Some in Colorado Springs are bound to howl about their water rates doubling during the next 10 years, bound to complain that if the Southern Delivery System is needed to fuel new growth, the newcomers are the ones who should pay for it. Next time you hear someone whining like that, or before you raise that flimsy argument yourself, understand that this has all happened before. If you moved here after, say, 1975, (most who live here did) you benefited from two ambitious water projects that dramatically increased rates before you got here. The Blue River project took water from the river on the other side of Hoosier Pass. The Homestake project, which doubled residents’ water rates after 1965, gets its water from the Holy Cross Wilderness Area upstream of the Eagle River. On Wednesday, before City Council members gave the go-ahead for the SDS, Utilities Director Jerry Forte said the $1.4 billion project “will ensure water supply for many generations.” With apologies to Trekkies like former Councilwoman Margaret Radford, who put in some sweat equity on this, you might call it “SDS: The Next Generation.” When it comes to big-time infrastructure, one generation pays for the next. That’s the way it has to work. The Gazette, Barry Noreen column, July 23, 2009. PDF Document.

Springs Utilities goes with Pueblo for SDS. Colorado Springs Utilities chose Wednesday to move forward with its preferred alternative and construct the Southern Delivery System in Pueblo County, drawing water from the Pueblo Reservoir for its customers and partners. A “Highway 115 Alternative” had been considered as CSU’s second most viable option. Fremont County signed an intergovernmental agreement with the agency last year and received a deposit of $50,000 to cover the county’s costs during the permit process. The project could have meant an economic boon to the county. On Thursday, John Fredell, SDS project manager, said the county still was a fall-back alternative but, even more important, a new ally for Colorado Springs Utilities. “There are still a number of issues we’ve got to deal with,” Fredell said, including obtaining dozens of permits and licenses. “Until we have dirt turned and pipe going in the ground, we definitely want to maintain that opportunity” to keep Fremont County as a possible option. “The board’s decision is consistent with what we’ve said all along, that the preferred route is preferred for a number of reasons,” Fredell said. In a side-by-side comparison of nine items, the Pueblo County route was preferred in seven instances, while the other two were equal to both alternatives. Highway 115 implementation costs were expected to be well over $1 billion, while the Pueblo Reservoir option should save CSU almost $200 million. The reservoir pipeline route also will be shorter than the highway alternative. Fremont County District 1 Commissioner Mike Stiehl, who studies water issues in Colorado, was reached Thursday morning at a water workshop in Crested Butte. He said the decision was not a surprise. “I still think there are a bunch of positive things that have come from this,” Stiehl said, “no matter how it turns out. The benefits to our economy were primarily potential employment, but that is still there no matter where they come out. Pueblo is pretty darned close, and people can commute.” Canon City Daily Record, July 24, 2009. PDF Document.

Pipeline destined for Pueblo County. Colorado Springs City Council nails down the route of SDS from Pueblo Dam. Southern Delivery System will be built through Pueblo County, but its completion date has been pushed back four years to 2016. Colorado Springs water rates are expected to double during that time as well to pay for the projected cost of $880 million for the pipeline from Pueblo Dam to a new water treatment plant. The costs do not include construction of two reservoirs on Williams Creek … The route decision takes a Fremont County option out of the picture, at least for now, and the cost reflects updated engineering cost estimates. The timing of the project was delayed because Colorado Springs now thinks it won’t need the project until 2017. It also allows water rates to increase more gradually ... Vice Mayor Larry Small touted the benefits to Fountain Creek Colorado Springs will pay for as mitigation to Pueblo County. “The residents of the East Side of Pueblo rightfully deserve relief from flooding,” Small said. Pueblo Chieftain, July 23, 2009. PDF Document.

City approves Southern Delivery System. By an 8-1 vote on Wednesday afternoon, the City Council, acting as the Utilities Board, approved the construction of the long-planned southern delivery system to bring water from Pueblo Reservoir to Colorado Springs, Fountain, and Pueblo West. The first phase of the project, with an estimated cost of $880 million, was previously scheduled for completion during 2012. That date has been pushed back to 2016, driven by economic conditions and reduced consumption. Construction of phase one will begin early next year and will be completed during 2016, the first year that water from the project will be available to Colorado Springs users. The remainder of the project, which will include the construction of the Williams Creek and upper Williams Creek reservoirs, will not be completed until 2025. Colorado Springs Business Journal, July 23, 2009. PDF Document.

Pipeline may meet regional water needs. Colorado Springs looking at supplying other users in El Paso County. Before it’s even built, the Southern Delivery System pipeline is being looked at as a way to move water to other parts of El Paso County. “If Colorado Springs Utilities doesn’t become the regional water supplier, someone else will step in and do it,” said Tony Elia, chairman of the Utilities Policy Advisory Council. Elia was giving a report from UPAC’s meeting earlier this month, where the concept was discussed in general. His comments resonated during the discussion about SDS by Colorado Springs City Council Wednesday, although nothing was decided. Mayor Lionel Rivera said participation by other water providers could be a way to move up the timetable for the project and help pay some of the costs. “One water supplier could deliver water more efficiently,” Rivera said. “But I’m more concerned about our ratepayers.” Later, Rivera was more direct about the benefits of becoming a regional supplier: “Willing partners could move the construction up earlier.” Pueblo Chieftain, July 23, 2009. PDF Document.

City Council approves SDS plan that doubles water rates over next decade. Colorado Springs residents will pay dearly over the next decade for the water officials say is needed for the city’s future. Sitting as the Utilities Board, the City Council on Wednesday approved a plan for financing and building the Southern Delivery System water pipeline, which includes a doubling of water rates between 2010 and 2019 ... “The rates will double over the next nine years as we go forward in getting this project done, but it’s something that needs to be done for the future of our community,” said Mayor Lionel Rivera … “It’s not going to be easy over the next few years with rate increases, but it’s a period of investment we require in order to have the long-term benefits this kind of project will bring about,” said Councilwoman Jan Martin. “I am actually placing this vote for the future generations of the city of Colorado Springs.” The Gazette, July 23, 2009. PDF Document.

Southern Delivery System goes forward. An historic vote means the Southern Delivery System will be built. The final vote by the utility board was eight to one in favor of SDS. Now they must convince ratepayers it is the right call. Because customers will shoulder the bulk of the $880 million dollar price-tag. The utility board was told the pipeline's cost had changed as had the construction schedule. Originally SDS was to be built faster and cost considerably more. But CSU proposed lengthening the construction schedule to spread out the cost, and removing reservoir construction from the initial plan to lower the price-tag. The new time-line means water bills will go up between 10% and 12% each year starting next year through 2017 - roughly doubling. There was talk at the meeting that part of that cost could be borne by new water partners in parts of the county currently relying on wells and groundwater. Colorado Springs Utilities must have the pipeline operational before 2017 to meet projected demand and comply with permits. Construction of the 62 mile pipeline will begin in 2010. Water will run through the pipeline by early 2016. KOAA, July 22, 2009. PDF Document.

Smoother sailing for once-contentious project. When it was up for federal approval, Colorado Springs Utilities’ proposed water pipeline from Pueblo Reservoir drew more than 400 comments for and against the project. Times. have changed. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is considering the last major permit for the Southern Delivery System, under Section 404 of the Clean Water Act, because pipeline construction will impact 14.2 acres of streams and wetlands. The public comment period ended Friday and 13 people and organizations – 12 against, one in favor – submitted comments, a possible sign that people see the once-controversial project as a foregone conclusion, since the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation and Pueblo County have both approved it. The Gazette, June 23, 2009. PDF Document.

Army Corps of Engineers begins new SDS evaluation. Colorado Springs Utilities has filed with the Army Corps of Engineers for a permit to build the Southern Delivery System in watersheds controlled by the federal government. The Corps will accept comments on SDS through June 4, according to information posted on its Web site last week. Pueblo Chieftain, May 17, 2009. PDF Document

Agency accepting comments on SDS. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is taking public comments on a permit request by Colorado Springs Utilities to build the $1.1 billion Southern Delivery System pipeline. The Gazette, May 16, 2009. PDF Document

Springs could benefit from Southern Delivery System lake. A plan to drown 760 acres of prairie southeast of Colorado Springs with Arkansas River water, part of the Southern Delivery System pipeline, could give the city its first large boating reservoir close to home. Upper Williams Creek Reservoir will be the largest, in surface area, owned by Colorado Springs. Boaters, anglers, swimmers, hikers and picnickers may all be able to use it, in a region that has always been challenged for aquatic recreation. The Gazette, May 8, 2009.

Sailing the Springs could happen soon. We have a mountain, let’s get a big lake to go with it. As part of the Southern Delivery System, a new water storage reservoir is in the plans. Projections are that by 2018 there will be a 760-acre reservoir 14 miles southeast of town. This lake would be more than 10 times the size of Prospect Lake in Memorial Park. The Upper Williams Creek Reservoir, as proposed, will also serve as a warm-water fishery and could be stocked with bass and walleye. Colorado Springs Business Journal, May 8, 2009.

Utilities' Bostrom pushes, drags SDS project to success. Gary Bostrom has been shouted down at public meetings. He has been accused of wanting to drown towns in the mountains and dry up towns on the plains. He has seen his ideas ravaged by a crusading newspaper. "I've been called a few names," Bostrom acknowledged. It's an occupational hazard when you're the chief water planner for Colorado Springs Utilities, a job that has taken him all over the state, as the city has looked for water to supply a burgeoning population and ways to bring the water it owns here. The name-calling days appear to be over. After 20 years of planning, including eight years of negotiations and legal wrangling with Pueblo, Utilities on received a permit on April 21 from Pueblo County to build the Southern Delivery System, a $1.1 billion pipeline from Pueblo Reservoir meant to quench Colorado Springs' thirst through 2046. It was the last major hurdle for the project, and afterward, officials from Pueblo County and Colorado Springs smiled, shook hands and posed for photos, a détente that would have been unimaginable just a few years ago. For the 52-year-old Bostrom, it was the payoff of a career-spanning effort. The Gazette, April 30, 2009.

Utilities secures key permit for Southern Delivery System. After five months of hearings, and more than a decade of planning, Colorado Springs Utilities has the permit it needs to build a $1.1 billion water pipeline from Pueblo Reservoir. Pueblo County commissioners voted 3-0 today to issue a 1041 land-use permit, named for the legislation that gives counties authority over multi-jurisdictional projects, for the Southern Delivery System. The permit requires Utilities to begin construction within three years. The Gazette, April 21, 2009.

Pueblo County approves SDS permit. Action comes after years of talks. After six years of sometimes bitter disagreements, Pueblo County commissioners approved and signed a permit Tuesday morning for Colorado Springs to build its Southern Delivery System water pipeline from the Pueblo Dam north. After the formalities of reviewing and adopting the agreement, the commissioners and officials from Colorado Springs Utilities and the Pueblo Board of Water Works gathered for a photograph to commemorate the agreement. Pueblo Chieftain, April 22, 2009.

Time to break down the boundaries. “The Pikes Peak region.” Has a nice ring to it, doesn’t it? … The great explorer John Wesley Powell, who led the first expedition down the Colorado River and through the Grand Canyon during the summer of 1869, believed that the West should be organized on the basis of watersheds and drainages, not upon arbitrary political subdivisions. It was then, and is now, good advice - although universally ignored. Politicians love to establish boundaries, whether they make any sense or not … All of us have a shared interest in the health of the built and natural environment, in clean streams, healthy forests and in a strong regional economy. Those interests intersect and overlap with those of the residents of adjacent regions, whether living in the high plains to the east, the Arkansas River Valley to the south or the middle Front Range to the north. By looking not at ideology, but geography, we can build collaborative relationships with our neighbors. The long process that will culminate in the construction of Southern Delivery System from Pueblo Reservoir to Colorado Springs is a perfect example of such collaboration. Leaders in El Paso and Pueblo counties were able to work together in the interests of the entire region, and didn’t merely pursue the parochial interests of their constituents. They managed to end the “War between the Cities.” They silenced the angry voices in both cities that had framed the issue in win-lose terms. Colorado Springs Business Journal, April 17, 2009.

Projects like SDS rise and fall on environmental impact studies. Imagine a “Great Race” which takes 25 years, goes to Pueblo and back, costs the participants $17 million, and at the finish rewards the winners with 3,000 pages of, at least to a layperson, incomprehensible bureaucratese. That, said Colorado Springs Utilities spokeswoman Janet Rummel, is “an apt metaphor” for the long ordeal surrounding the preparation, submission, modification and eventual approval of the Environmental Impact Statement for the Southern Delivery System. SDS is a regional water delivery project designed to serve the water needs of Colorado Springs, Fountain, Security and the Pueblo West Metropolitan District through 2046. The project area extends from a pipeline at Pueblo Reservoir to Colorado Springs. Last month, the Bureau of Reclamation signed a “record of decision” approving the final EIS for SDS. This was the culmination of a planning process that formally began during 2003. But, CSU’s Keith Riley, who led the project’s financial team, said the project was conceived well before then. “We began considering the pipeline alternative in the early to mid-1980s, when we were also looking at building a dam on the main stem of the Arkansas near Elephant Rock,” he said. “SDS was part of the 1996 water resources plan that council approved, but if you look at its beginnings, we’ve been working on it for 25 years.” Colorado Springs Business Journal, April 16, 2009.

By an 8-1 vote, the Colorado Springs City Council on Tuesday ushered in a new era of good feelings between the city and Pueblo. The Council approved the conditions set by Pueblo County to build the $1.1 billion Southern Delivery System water pipeline from Pueblo Reservoir. Officials from both communities then shook hands and spoke of a new spirit of cooperation, where there was once litigation and mistrust, over water issues. The pipeline, in the planning for more than a decade, will bring 78 million gallons a day to the Springs, enough to meet anticipated demand through 2046. There are numerous state and federal approvals still needed, but Pueblo County was considered the largest hurdle. Approval there once seemed so elusive that Colorado Springs Utilities advanced a backup plan to build the pipeline from Fremont County. Pueblo commissioners will vote April 21 to issue a 1041 land-use permit, named for the legislation that gives counties authority over multi-jurisdictional projects. The Gazette, April 15, 2009.

Colorado Springs City Council cleared the way Tuesday for the Southern Delivery System to be built from Pueblo Dam by approving Pueblo County’s terms and conditions for the $1.1 billion pipeline project. Now, Colorado Springs Utilities will spend the next few months evaluating the expense and scheduling of the Pueblo County route versus a fallback option in Fremont County to determine where the pipeline will go. Pueblo County commissioners are expected to give final approval to the 1041 permit next Tuesday. Fremont County commissioners approved permits in February and continue to meet with Colorado Springs Utilities about the possibility of that route. “We need to choose the route before the end of the year,” Mayor Lionel Rivera said. “We’re working on the alignment through El Paso County, so we have to know where we’re coming in.” Pueblo Chieftain, April 15, 2009.

There is apparently no outrage in Colorado Springs concerning the $125 million string Pueblo County has attached to the approval to build a water pipeline from Pueblo Reservoir. The Colorado Springs City Council held a hearing Thursday night on that county's conditions for approving the $1.1 billion Southern Delivery System, a partnership with Fountain, Security and Pueblo West. It would bring 78 million gallons of water a day to two new reservoirs east of Security. Colorado Springs owns the rights. About 90 people showed up. Of 11 who spoke, all but three praised the conditions, and several touted the pipeline as an economic - and even recreational - benefit for the reservoir on Upper Williams Creek. The Gazette, April 10, 2009.

Across the street from Colorado Springs City Hall Thursday people lined up for a cage fight. Next door, a church was having a Maundy Thursday service. It was tough to find a parking space. Inside City Hall, nothing so violent or holy was happening, as Colorado Springs City Council reviewed Pueblo County’s conditions for a Southern Delivery System at a public hearing. The permit would be a “green light” to build a pipeline from Pueblo Dam to meet needs up north, Colorado Springs Utilities Chief Executive Officer Jerry Forte told Council. “Your approval would be a green light to come from Pueblo Dam. . . . Coming from the reservoir is like having a giant bucket of water,” Forte said. “It’s the least expensive place for us to build, operate and maintain the pipeline.” Forte asked council to approve the conditions, which he said are acceptable to Utilities. Pueblo Chieftain, April 10, 2009.

Like a duck to water, city always looking for more. When Gen. William Palmer laid out a new town in the shadow of Pikes Peak in 1871, he probably never imagined it would grow to nearly 380,000 residents, the second-largest city in the state. If he had, he might have built it somewhere else. Colorado Springs averages just 17.4 inches of precipitation a year - less than half that in Palmer's native Philadelphia. The city has no Delaware River, like Palmer's hometown; or a South Platte River, like Denver; or an Arkansas River, like Pueblo. To keep up with population growth, Colorado Springs has extended straws in practically every direction, from the high peaks of the Sawatch Mountains to the arid southeastern plains, a water system spread out across hundreds of miles. The Southern Delivery System may be the last straw. The exact route of the $1.1 billion pipeline - from either Pueblo Reservoir or the Arkansas River in Fremont County - is undecided, but it seems likely the Department of Public Utilities will begin construction this year. It will bring 78 million gallons of water a day to a new reservoir east of Colorado Springs, which officials say will provide enough to meet demand here through 2046. It will be the most expensive project Utilities has ever done. Even the economic slowdown - and the impact it could have on population projections for Colorado Springs - won't slow the pipeline. — The Gazette, April 4, 2009.
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The future economic development of Colorado Springs, El Paso County and Pueblo County took another giant leap forward Wednesday, as Pueblo County commissioners gave the green light for the Southern Delivery System, a $1.1 billion pipeline that will carry Arkansas River water to Colorado Springs ... The Southern Delivery System might be one of the largest, most ambitious, most innovative, and most realistic economic development projects in the United States. It will provide what businesses and employees must have to live and succeed and provide for future generations: water, and plenty of it. No community can possibly grow without enough H2O. Compared to water, all other basic needs of businesses and employees are relatively easy to come by. The Gazette, editorial, March 12, 2009.

Pueblo County issued a number of conditions this morning that must be met before it issues permits for the Southern Delivery System that will pipe water into Colorado Springs to support future growth. The conditions come after months of negotiations between Springs and Pueblo officials. "At our initial glance, it looks as if they could be workable," Colorado Springs Utilities spokeswoman Janet Rummel said. "There were no surprises, but ultimately this is a decision for the City Council to make." Rummel said once Colorado Springs knows exactly what is involved in both the preferred alternative from Pueblo Reservoir and the Highway 115 alternative, via a direct river intake in Fremont County, then officials would be able to evaluate them side by side, and Council could then choose the best alternative. Colorado Springs Business Journal Daily Updates, March 11, 2009.

In a week of being granted a special review use permit for the Southern Delivery System, with conditions, Colorado Springs Utilities has already started working to meet its commitments to the City of Florence. Florence Citizen, March 5, 2009.

Of the nearly $500 million allocated to Colorado transportation projects by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, otherwise known as “the stimulus,” about $42 million will be allocated to El Paso County. The money will pay for two projects: an intersection at Woodmen Avenue and Academy Boulevard, and a bridge on Highway 24 near Falcon. The projects will create jobs and enhance the regional transportation network, but their impact is negligible compared to the Southern Delivery System. SDS will, if built as planned, bring water from the Arkansas River to Colorado Springs via a massive pipeline. The estimated capital cost dwarfs the Colorado transportation stimulus program — and its economic impact will be heavily concentrated in the Pikes Peak region. The project’s capital cost will be, according to the final environmental impact statement prepared by the Bureau of Reclamation, between $1.09 billion and $1.21 billion. Construction spending on Phase 1 will be between $500 million and $554 million. The potential economic impacts would not be confined to Colorado Springs or El Paso County. If the preferred alternative from Pueblo Reservoir is constructed, Pueblo workers and businesses also stand to benefit. But if it’s constructed from a diversion point above Pueblo Reservoir, and follows the Highway 115 alignment through Fremont County, most of those benefits would flow to Canon City and Fremont County. Colorado Springs Business Journal, February 27, 2009.

Things are happening on Fountain Creek. And they’re good for a change. Presentations this week at the Lower Arkansas Valley Water Conservancy District monthly meeting and at the Pueblo City Council work session have underscored increased efforts to improve the creek which links Pueblo and El Paso County and has an impact on water quality in the Arkansas River downstream of Pueblo. On Wednesday, the Lower Ark board heard presentations from Corridor Master Plan consultant Kevin Shanks and the Colorado State University-Pueblo team studying water quality on Fountain Creek. “What are we going to do to improve Fountain Creek? We’re going to emulate nature wherever possible. It’s that simple,” Shanks said. He said about 60 percent of Fountain Creek already is in excellent shape, but the rest needs work. Clear Springs Ranch is on the list of possible projects under the stimulus bill and is listed among commitments to Pueblo County if the Southern Delivery System is built from Pueblo Dam. Pueblo Chieftain, February 19, 2009.

The backup plan for the Southern Delivery System is on the path to approval after Fremont County commissioners on Tuesday supported a water pipeline from the Arkansas River. "After a year of briefings, volumes of information from the applicants, public comments for and against it, information from this public meeting and knowing the size of the project has adverse issues and everything that has been submitted, I am in support of the application," said Commissioner Larry Lasha after a four-hour hearing before an audience of at least 125 that packed the commissioners' meeting room. The board, however, did not vote on Colorado Springs Utilities' permit application. Commissioners decided to wait two weeks to hammer out conditions under which they could approve the plan. The Gazette, February 11, 2009.

With more than $60 million in just construction labor at stake, the Fremont County Commissioners will decide the future of the Southern Delivery System during a public hearing Tuesday. The capital cost for the SDS facilities that would be built in Fremont County is estimated to approach more than $230 million. Overall, the Highway 115 route of the SDS project has an estimated capital cost of $1.2 billion, with more than $600 million spent in construction during Phase 1 between later this year and 2012. “This would be a real win-win situation,” SDS project manager John Fredell said late Friday afternoon, “at a time when we need that kind of thing in terms of a boost for construction projects like this to boost economic growth.” The Final Environmental Impact Statement estimated the required construction workforce project-wide during Phase 1 would average 927 people during the same timeframe, with a peak workforce of 1,193 people. Fifty to 75 percent of the labor force would come from the local region. Canon City Daily Record, February 9, 2009.

Colorado Springs, Security and Fountain are evaluating two alternatives for delivering water to our communities. A pipeline from Pueblo Reservoir is our preferred option because it takes the most direct route. Yet, a pipeline partially in Fremont County remains another viable option. With this second option, project participants would draw water they own from the north bank of the Arkansas River at Colo. 115 near Florence. An underground pipeline and three pump stations would be built in Fremont County to transport water to Penrose and then along Colo. 115 to our communities in El Paso County. To stay on schedule, we have started the permitting process required by Fremont County while doing the same in Pueblo County. I assure you that we’re taking significant steps to ensure Fremont County benefits from the project. Guest editorial by Colorado Springs Mayor Lionel Rivera. Canon City Daily Record, February 9, 2009.

Several area residents took the opportunity to learn more about the Southern Delivery System and its possible impact on Eastern Fremont County during an open house forum Jan. 29 at the Florence Municipal Center. Florence Citizen, February 5, 2009.

Recreationists and wildlife fanatics could find improved facilities and habitats at the Florence River Park if Colorado Springs Utilities decides to go forward with the Fremont County Southern Delivery System alternative. Florence Citizen, February 5, 2009

Expanded wetlands, new amenities and revitalized native vegetation could reinvigorate the Florence River Park if the Southern Delivery System is built in Fremont County. Representatives of Colorado Springs Utilities conducted a media tour Thursday afternoon at the park to explain revitalization plans and possibilities. “We will make improvements to the park,” said Bruce Spiller, SDS Program Manager. “Every place we work, we leave it equal to or better than we find it. This park is going to work in concert with this diversion.” Canon City Daily Record, January 30, 2009.

Believing its chance of success in Pueblo is only 50 percent, Colorado Springs Utilities is wholeheartedly pursuing its alternative choice of Fremont County to build the mammoth $1.1 billion Southern Delivery System. About a dozen CSU team members hosted a community open house Thursday evening at the Florence Municipal Building to explain the project and answer citizens’ questions. Those employees manned various stations to explain the project using poster-sized artist renderings, maps and drawings. Canon City Daily Record, January 30, 2009.

The Southern Delivery System (SDS) is critically important to Colorado Springs because our very future depends on it. With it we will maintain our quality of life and a healthy economy. It's also a very large construction project that will provide hundreds of millions of dollars in construction contracts, jobs and procurement of goods and services for the counties in which it is located, including El Paso County … Without SDS, we will eventually run short of water, resulting in severe and potentially permanent water restrictions that would make it impossible to maintain our quality of life and economy. We have both a legal and a moral obligation to provide the water required to meet our communities' needs. SDS is the most cost-effective and environmentally responsible way to do that. Guest Editorial by Colorado Springs Mayor Lionel Rivera. Colorado Springs Gazette, December 14, 2008.

Dec. 9 of this year may be remembered as one of the most significant dates in the long history of our city. On that day, a public hearing will be held before the Pueblo County Board of Commissioners, who will decide whether to approve the 1041 permit process, and allow the Southern Delivery System to be constructed from Pueblo Reservoir. The potential impacts of SDS have been exhaustively analyzed by the city-financed Environmental Impact Statement. After multiple modifications, including replacing the proposed Jimmy Camp Creek reservoir with an impoundment on Upper Williams Creek, no significant environmental impacts are expected from the construction of the project. There will, however, be significant other effects — and most of them should be positive for both Pueblo and Colorado Springs. Colorado Springs Business Journal. November 14, 2008.

DENVER - Some January day in the future, you might be sitting in your living room, drinking coffee made from bottled water and looking across the sand dunes in the front yard. You’ll glance at the headlines and notice that the Colorado economy is finally bouncing back from the triple whammy of a poor ski season last year, failed crops in most parts of the state and the loss from forest fires the previous summer. Oh yeah, and the heat wave that started Christmas Day will be about to end as high temperatures return to the temperate 60s. Still no snow in the mountains, though. Then, you’ll wonder, “How did this happen?” Pueblo Chieftain, October 12, 2008. (Web Master’s Note: Drought protection is one of the needs served by the SDS.)

When it comes to spills, Colorado Springs Utilities has been cleaning up its act. Colorado Springs’ Utilities last major raw sewage spill happened nearly three years ago. In 2007, the city-owned utility spilled around 1,000 gallons of sewage; it treats about 40 million gallons a day. Colorado Springs Independent, October 9, 2008.

Colorado Springs Utilities and the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation have scrapped a plan for the proposed Jimmy Camp Creek Reservoir east of Colorado Springs in favor of a less-controversial man-made lake six miles south as part of the Southern Delivery System water pipeline. The Gazette, October 6, 2008.

Participants in the Southern Delivery System are planning a series of meetings to explain the impacts of the project on areas within Pueblo County. The meetings relate to Pueblo County’s evaluation of the project under 1974’s HB1041, which allows cities or counties to regulate projects of statewide interest, said John Fredell, SDS project director. Pueblo Chieftain, October 4, 2008.

The Southwest, plagued with drought as its population booms, is within decades of massive water shortages - made worse by crumbling pipelines and dams, according to two documentaries airing this week on public television. Rocky Mountain News, October 1, 2008. (Editor’s note: Drought protection is one of the reasons for the Southern Delivery System.)

CANON CITY – Fremont County officials on Thursday received an application for a special review use permit from Colorado Springs for its Southern Delivery System. Pueblo Chieftain, September 13, 2008.

TRINIDAD – The City of Pueblo wants to find out if a streamside collection system would be a realistic alternative to dredging the sediment-clogged channel of Fountain Creek. Pueblo Chieftain, September 11, 2008.

FOUNTAIN - For nearly two years, elected officials, environmentalists, farmers and water suppliers from El Paso and Pueblo counties - who have a long history of divergent interests - have been gathering monthly to talk about Fountain Creek. No fist fights have broken out, and the Fountain Creek Vision Task Force is ready to present its plan for solving flooding, erosion and water quality problems on the creek between Colorado Springs and Pueblo. The group, which formed in October 2006, reviewed its first draft Friday. Although the recommendations are many, the chief mantra of the plan is cooperation. The task force proposes an agreement between the two counties to form the Fountain Creek Watershed District, a state-authorized board to manage the creek and its flood plain. The Gazette, September 5, 2008

U.S. Sen. Ken Salazar had high praise for the Fountain Creek Vision Task Force and voiced his support for Colorado Springs’ stormwater enterprise Thursday. “I think it is a testament to these communities working together,” Salazar said, referring to the diverse membership of the task force. “People are working together, and I find that the most positive thing the group has accomplished. I have all the confidence in the world that if you continue the way you have, you will be successful.” Two years ago, Salazar launched what he called the Fountain Creek Crown Jewel Project. Thursday he checked in with the task force, which has been the driving force toward that goal. “We’ve turned our backs on our rivers for too many years,” Salazar said. Salazar applauded the task force for moving toward a model adopted on the Urban Drainage District and the Greenway Foundation that turned an open sewer into an amenity for Denver and its suburbs after the 1965 flood. What’s happening now on Fountain Creek parallels that effort, Salazar said. The task force is taking steps toward a two-county authority and a Fountain Creek Foundation formed earlier this year. Pueblo Chieftain, September 5, 2008.

Fountain Creek just needs to work on its curves. That's one of the recommendations of the Fountain Creek Master Plan, nearly half completed. Wednesday, Carol Baker, watershed planning manager for Colorado Springs Utilities, gave the city's Utilities Board an update on the plan. "It's curvy. When the water goes through a curvy path it slows down," said Baker, showing a photo of a healthy stretch of the creek. "When it slows down, there's less erosion that goes on. There's less contamination." The problem is that only a third of the 44-mile stretch between Colorado Springs and Pueblo is what planners consider "healthy." The master plan is a joint project between Colorado Springs Utilities and the Lower Arkansas Valley Water Conservancy District, which are splitting the $600,000 cost. The Gazette, August 21, 2008.

FLORENCE — It’s full steam ahead. That was the plan for Colorado Springs Utilities, who will begin the permitting process in two to three weeks to complete the Colorado Delivery System project. Colorado Springs is seeking the rights to use the water from the Lester-Attebery conversion near the Arkansas River at Florence for Colorado Springs. And at the same time, the company will continue to pursue the preferred alternative, which is to build it from the Pueblo Reservoir to Colorado Springs. This was part of Colorado Springs Utilities employees project director John Fredell and program manager Dan Higgins’ presentation Monday at the Florence City Council. Canon City Daily Record, August 19, 2008.

FOUNTAIN - A committee is moving closer to forming an authority to spearhead physical improvements to Fountain Creek. The funding committee of the Fountain Creek Vision Task Force met Friday to hash out details of how the proposed authority could be formed, agreeing to a timetable that could lead to state legislation next year to create an authority. Final approval of the plan must be made by a consensus committee, which will meet Sept. 5. If the authority is created, it would still require a vote by El Paso and Pueblo counties to participate in and fund it. Pueblo Chieftain, August 16, 2008.

Fixing Fountain Creek doesn’t necessarily mean straightening it out. In fact, by adding a few bends here and there, some marshy areas and a string of detention ponds, it would be less prone to minor flooding, say those who are crafting an improvement plan for the creek. “A lot of the things we’re showing are not hard and fast,” Carol Baker of Colorado Springs Utilities told Pueblo City Council on Monday. “Our goal is to educate the landowners in the best methods to prevent erosion. We want to give the landowners a place to look for help and the funds to do it.” Baker and Jay Winner, general manager of the Lower Arkansas Valley Water Conservancy District, presented a progress report on a Fountain Creek Master Plan to council. The plan is 10 months into a two-year, $600,000 program to improve Fountain Creek. Pueblo Chieftain, July 31, 2008.

A request by U.S. Rep. Mark Udall to delay the environmental impact statement for the Southern Delivery System has sparked an angry response from some Colorado Springs business leaders and politicians. The group wrote Udall last week to express “strong opposition” to Udall’s June 26 letter to the Bureau of Reclamation, requesting a delay in the EIS because of the potential for a lawsuit over the document. Udall also cited comments by Bob Rawlings, publisher of The Pueblo Chieftain, and “others like them” as his support for seeking a delay. Pueblo Chieftain, July 9, 2008.

Never mind that five years of extensive study and community discourse have run their course. Never mind that the official public comment period has come and gone. Never mind that the Southern Delivery System, needed for the future water supply of Colorado Springs, has been studied and debated to a point of exhaustion. Forget all that, because U.S. Rep. Mark Udall is running for election to the United States Senate. What may be good for his campaign, it appears, holds more weight with the congressman than what's good for the economic welfare of Colorado. The Southern Delivery System is a reasonable plan for Colorado Springs to obtain water it owns in Pueblo Reservoir. Don't be fooled by the reservoir's name: Colorado Springs is the majority owner of water stored behind the dam, and the city pays for 70 percent of the reservoir's debt. The water is rightfully ours, but a political mover and shaker in Pueblo has made full-time sport of finding ways to deprive our city of what it owns. Editorial, The Gazette, July 8, 2008. PDF Document.

In evaluating the draft EIS, we find a great deal of salient information about the various alternatives available to Colorado Springs and its partners for developing the water rights that they own on the Arkansas River, and for supplying the cities with the water necessary to support regional population growth through the middle of this century. Two facts seem inescapable. First, the population of El Paso County, as predicted by the state demographer, is forecast to grow from 605,000 during 2010 to 935,000 by 2035 — an increase of more than 50 percent. It’s clear that even with accelerated residential water conservation, as well as more efficient use of water by businesses, Colorado Springs and its partners will require additional water. Secondly, it’s clear that the best, fairest and most environmentally sensitive way of providing additional water is through the construction of the so-called “preferred option,” a pipeline to be constructed by Colorado Springs Utilities from Pueblo Reservoir to Colorado Springs. Editorial, Colorado Springs Business Journal, June 13, 2008. PDF Document (13K)

SDS: Fremont County Won’t Pay – Colorado Springs Utilities is exploring the possibility of building the Southern Delivery System pipeline through Fremont County. From the beginning, we’ve approached SDS with a commitment to ourselves and others that we will minimize the impact of SDS on the environment and those who are affected by the project. Based on questions we’ve heard from residents of Fremont County, I want to reiterate and put in writing for all to see four commitments related to SDS that reflect what we’ve communicated in face-to-face discussions. Guest editorial by John Fredell, SDS Project Director for Colorado Springs Utilities. Canon City Daily Record, June 11, 2008.

Colorado Springs has been rated as the best place to live in the United States by Money magazine and among the top 25 cities for business by Forbes. Access to a dependable supply of water is critical to ensure that it stays that way. We need the Southern Delivery System to provide water for our future. Our ability to do business and continue our quality of life depends on it. Guest Editorial by Stephannie Finley, president of the Governmental Affairs Division of the Greater Colorado Springs Chamber of Commerce, Colorado Springs Business Journal, April 18, 2008.

The mayor of Colorado Springs said connecting a pipeline to Pueblo Dam is the best regional solution for the Southern Delivery System because it would serve Pueblo West and contracts could provide revenue to help build the Arkansas Valley Conduit. “Coming from the dam gives the best quality of water for all users and is the lowest cost option for the customers over the long term,” Colorado Springs Mayor Lionel Rivera said Wednesday at an open house hosted by the Bureau of Reclamation to explain the draft environmental impact statement for SDS. Pueblo Chieftain, April 10, 2008

Fremont County has agreed to ground rules for consideration of Colorado Springs' $1 billion Southern Delivery System being built through its land. That's key to giving the city an option if Pueblo County blocks the city from drawing water from Pueblo Reservoir, the city's preferred alternative. The Gazette, April 10, 2008

Chances are “significant” the final choice for the massive Southern Delivery System water project will run through Fremont County. On Tuesday, the Fremont County Commissioners entered into a contract of cooperation with Colorado Springs Utilities. The six-page Intergovernmental Agreement provides for a $50,000 initial deposit to the county to pay for permit applications, expert reviews, consultants and other costs associated with the project. (Fremont) County attorney Brenda Jackson said the IGA is an understanding for the entities to cooperate throughout the application process. Canon City Daily Record, April 10, 2008

Mayor Rivera: SDS needed to meet city’s future needs – Forty years ago, the citizens of Colorado Springs agreed to invest in the Homestake Project, a pipeline that supplies a major share of the water we use today. A big decision. And a big investment. Fortunately for us, they said yes. The city we love and enjoy today wouldn’t exist if they had said no to that investment in their future. Now, it’s our turn to invest in our future — and the future of our children and grandchildren — by building the Southern Delivery System. Guest editorial, by Mayor Rivera The Gazette, March 29.

Pueblo Chieftain publisher Robert Rawlings seems to despise Colorado Springs. To spite our city, he appears willing to forgo the best interests of his own. The Gazette, March 27, 2008.