OCN

Volunteers reporting on community issues in Monument, Palmer Lake, and the surrounding Tri-Lakes area

OCN > wwsd

wwsd

Woodmoor Water and Sanitation District, Nov. 11 – Board considers rate increase

By James Howald

At its November meeting, the Woodmoor Water and Sanitation District (WWSD) board opened two public hearings: the first on the proposed 2025 budget and the second on proposed rate increases. The board awarded a construction contract for a water storage tank near the Southern Water Treatment Facility and heard operational reports.

2025 budget and rates

Board President Brian Bush opened a public hearing on the proposed 2025 budget. The board voted to keep the hearing open until its next meeting on Dec. 16, at which time it will vote on the budget. The board meeting regularly scheduled for Dec. 12 will be delayed until Dec. 16 to accommodate the requirements for posting proposed rate increases.

District Manager Jessie Shaffer told the board that the budget before the board had very few changes from the version it considered at a budget workshop on Oct. 23. He said he had grouped rehabilitation and repair costs and maintenance costs together as the board had suggested. The budget assumes a 5% increase across the board on residential base fees and volumetric rates, Shaffer said. He estimated the increases would cost the typical residential customer an average of $4 per month. The average increase, which covers both water and sewer costs, would be less than $4 in the winter months when water usage decreases and more than $4 a month in the summer months when irrigation is at its highest rate.

Shaffer asked the board to consider increasing the base fee for supplemental water from its current rate of $29,000 per acre-foot to $34,500 per acre-foot. In most cases, requests for supplemental water come from developers whose projects will require more than the standard allotment of 0.5 acre-foot of water for each acre of land they wish to develop.

The board opened a second public hearing specifically on rates and also voted to keep it open until Dec. 16.

The board is required to publish rate increases 30 days in advance of the date those increases will take effect. The proposed “not-to-exceed” rates for 2025 are published in two attachments on WWSD’s web page and include the following increases for residential users:

  • The water base fee for a residence with a three-fourths-inch tap—the most common configuration in the district—will increase from $11.01 per month to $11.56.
  • For the first 6,000 gallons of water used in a month, the residential volume charge will increase from $6.98 per 1,000 gallons to $7.33.
  • For water usage between 6,001 and 25,000 gallons used in a month, the residential volume charge will increase from $11.27 per 1,000 gallons to $11.83.
  • For water usage over 25,000 gallons, the residential volume charge will increase from $18.39 per 1,000 gallons to $19.31.
  • The sewer base fee for a residence will increase from $35.69 to $37.47 per month.
  • The sewer volume charge will remain unchanged at no charge for the first 6,000 gallons of wastewater generated in a month and will increase from $4.65 to $4.88 per 1,000 gallons of wastewater above 6,000 gallons.
  • The Renewable Water Investment Fee will remain unchanged. It is currently $40 per month for residences with three-fourths-inch taps.

For new residential construction:

  • The water tap fee for a three-fourths-inch tap will take a big jump from $37,235 to $40,959.
  • The sewer tap fee will remain unchanged at $10,388 for the first 25 fixture units.

A complete list of all proposed water fees and charges can be found here: https://www.woodmoorwater.com/images/docs/Rate_Increases/2025/2025_Rate_Increase_Attachment_A.pdf.

A complete list of all proposed sewer fees and charges can be found here: https://www.woodmoorwater.com/images/docs/Rate_Increases/2025/2025_Rate_Increase_Attachment_B.pdf.

Water tank construction contract awarded

Richard Hood, a project manager with JVA Consulting Engineers Inc., gave the board an update on the plan to build a second water storage tank in the southern portion of the WWSD service area and asked the board to award a contract for its construction.

The new tank will provide redundancy so the existing tank can be taken offline and recoated, he said, and will be made of prestressed concrete so it will not require coating and will be cheaper to maintain over the long term than the existing steel tank. The new tank will require minor soil grading and site piping improvements. Hood said he expected substantial completion of the tank by August of 2025.

Hood recommended the construction contract be awarded to Preload, a company that specializes in prestressed concrete tanks. Hood said his company had worked with Preload on a water storage tank project in Pueblo that went well. He advised the board to accept Preload’s $2 million bid to construct the tank.

Board President Brian Bush asked if the bid included a contingency. Shaffer said the 2025 budget contained a $100,000 contingency for the project, and the board voted unanimously to accept Preload’s bid.

Operational reports

In his operational report, Operations Superintendent Dan LaFontaine addressed the question, asked by board Treasurer Roy Martinez at the October meeting, of how much the district spends on preventive maintenance. LaFontaine said the district has never tracked preventive maintenance spending directly but is developing an asset management system that will provide the data needed to track that spending. LaFontaine said he had worked with Office Manager Cory Lynch and they had estimated about 19% of the district’s $236,000 general water maintenance budget was spent on preventive maintenance. On the wastewater side, the percentage was higher, LaFontaine said, at about 53% of the district’s $89,000 general wastewater maintenance budget.

LaFontaine explained that sometimes doing preventive maintenance on a fixed schedule wastes money because equipment is replaced before it fails. He said the district focuses on redundancy instead, which saves money by allowing equipment to be fixed only when it fails.

In her engineer’s report, District Engineer Cydney Saelens told the board that contractors made significant progress on the water transmission line being built to convey water from Well 21, the district’s newest well, to the Central Water Treatment plant. She said the contractor had been given until Nov. 25, an additional five days, to complete the work.

**********

The next meeting is on Dec. 16 at 1 p.m. The December meeting was delayed to meet posting requirements. Meetings are usually held on the second Monday of each month at 1 p.m. at the district office at 1845 Woodmoor Drive. Please see www.woodmoorwater.com or call 719-488-2525 to verify meeting times and locations.

James Howald can be reached at jameshowald@ocn.me.

Other Woodmoor Water & Sanitation District articles

Woodmoor Water and Sanitation District, Oct. 14 – Board considers ways to fund Loop

By James Howald

At its October meeting, the Woodmoor Water and Sanitation District (WWSD) board discussed options for funding the district’s portion of the Loop water reuse project. WWSD is one of four water districts participating in the project to divert water from Fountain Creek and return it to customers in El Paso County. Cherokee Metropolitan District and Donala Water and Sanitation District are committed to the project; the Town of Monument is considering participation.

District Manager Jessie Shaffer delivered a draft budget for 2025 to the board, and a budget workshop and public hearing were scheduled. The board heard financial and operational reports. The meeting ended with an executive session, after which no actions were taken.

Financing options for the Loop prove complex

Andrew Rheem of Raftelis, the company that advises WWSD on rates and financial modeling, attended the meeting to help the board sort through the options for financing its portion of the Loop. Shaffer said he had asked Rheem to consider whether WWSD should seek its own financing or have the Loop issue revenue bonds on WWSD’s behalf, and to analyze sensitivities around using general obligation bonds, raising the district’s volumetric rates for water use and raising tap fees.

Rheem said funding for the Loop is a medium to long-term decision and not about rates in 2025. WWSD can use group financing, which is based on the credit worthiness of the weakest participating district, or can “go it alone.” He explained there are several potential funding sources: cash funding from reserves and tap fees and rates; grant funding; general obligation bonds, which require voter approval; and revenue-backed bonds that do not require voter approval but that raise rates. General obligation bonds tend to get lower interest rates than revenue-backed bonds. The district could decide to use a combination of these sources, Rheem said.

Shaffer suggested the board might use a sinking fund, essentially a savings account that would allow the outstanding debt on the Woodmoor Ranch to be paid off early, saving interest costs. Those savings could be used to finance the Loop. He said there are other options that might be worth considering.

Board President Brian Bush said the Loop could not be financed with rate increases alone; higher rates would motivate customers to conserve water. Weather conditions could affect funding from water rates, he said. Financial reserves should be used carefully, he argued, because the district has ageing infrastructure that is subject to catastrophic failure.

“General obligation bonds are on the table,” he said, but the district’s Renewable Water Infrastructure Fee (RWIF) made it less likely voters would approve any general obligation bonds. He recommended a two-year marketing campaign to educate voters. “We need a composite,” he said, which would include rate increases, tap fees, use of financial reserves and perhaps general obligation bonds.

Shaffer said the board had time to consider its options and volumetric rates could be kept low if the board decides to do so.

Rheem said repayment in 20 years is common for infrastructure debt but the board could consider a 30-year repayment schedule, which would result in lower payments over a longer time.

Director Dan Beley argued for raising tap fees to make new development fund the Loop as much as possible. Beley has made the same argument at previous meetings. Director Tom Roddham agreed with Beley’s position on tap fees. Shaffer pointed out that tap fee revenue can be high one year and low the next due to economic forces that affect new construction.

Bush raised the issue of savings that would result from the need for fewer capital projects when the Loop is completed. Board Treasurer Roy Martinez said the district’s funding for renewal and replacement would likely increase in the short term due to the age of the district’s infrastructure. Shaffer said once water was available through the Loop, spending on new wells would drop, perhaps to zero. Operations Supervisor Dan LaFontaine said WWSD was currently spending about $1 million per year on renewal and replacement, and he was working on a long-term renewal and replacement plan. LaFontaine said the corrosive soils in the district caused the saddles that connect pipelines to fail, leading to increased renewal and replacement costs.

Summarizing the discussion, Shaffer said he would continue to work with Rheem to develop funding options for the board to consider, general obligation bonds seemed less likely to be useful, static fees might be part of the solution, and volumetric rates should remain unchanged or perhaps be increased by 1% above the cost of living. Bush said he believed the RWIF would remain in place beyond its current expiration date of 2031, and it was likely WWSD would have to use some of its reserves to finance the Loop. General obligation bonds at some point in the future were on the table, he said.

Draft budget for 2025 delivered

Shaffer gave the board copies of the proposed budget for 2025. The board scheduled a workshop for Oct. 23 to discuss it and a public hearing to be opened at the board’s next meeting on Nov. 11. The public hearing will remain open until the board’s meeting in December.

Financial and operational reports

In his financial report, Martinez noted higher water service revenue due to a dry September. He said the meter replacement program was spending about $100,000 per month. The board voted unanimously to accept the financial report.

LaFontaine, in his operational report, said that he had purchased a clamp-on electromagnetic flow meter that he was using to test the district’s other meters to identify discrepancies in water measurements. He said he had confirmed that the meter at the Southern Water Treatment Plant was adding about 3.8% to the true amount it was processing. He also noted two line breaks, neither resulting in large water losses. All the district’s lift stations had been cleaned, he said, and he was seeing good results from the use of enzymes to prevent the accumulation of grease in lift stations.

In her engineering report, District Engineer Cydney Saelens said the transmission line for Well 22 had passed its first pressure test. Shaffer added that the pipeline was nearly half completed.

Shaffer said bids had been requested for the construction of a 650,000-gallon concrete water storage tank and he anticipated construction would begin in late spring or early summer of 2025.

Executive session

The meeting ended with an executive session to discuss negotiating positions regarding the district’s participation in the Loop water reuse project and discussions with Classic Homes. No action was taken following the executive session.

**********

The next meeting is on Nov. 11 at 1 p.m. Meetings are usually held on the second Monday of each month at 1 p.m. at the district office at 1845 Woodmoor Drive. Please see www.woodmoorwater.com or call 719-488-2525 to verify meeting times and locations.

James Howald can be reached at jameshowald@ocn.me.

Other Woodmoor Water and Sanitation District articles

Woodmoor Water and Sanitation District, Sept. 16 – Board hears financial and operational report

By James Howald

At its September meeting, the Woodmoor Water and Sanitation District (WWSD) board introduced its newly hired district engineer. It heard financial and operational reports from board Treasurer Roy Martinez, District Manager Jessie Shaffer, and Operations Superintendent Dan LaFontaine. The meeting ended with an executive session, after which no actions were taken.

Cydney Saelens joins staff

Shaffer introduced Cydney Saelens, who replaces Ariel Hacker as district engineer. Saelens graduated from Colorado State University in 2020 and spent four years at RICK, an engineering, planning and design firm where she did land development and drainage design.

Financial reports made user-friendly

Martinez told the board Office Manager Cory Lynch and Shaffer had worked with a consultant to redesign the district’s financial reports, making them easier to understand and closer to what the board members are used to seeing. He said additional changes would be made to the reports.

Martinez explained the balance sheet had been split into two pages, the first detailing assets and the second liabilities and stockholders’ equity. He said only minor changes had been made to the line items within those larger categories.

The statement of revenues had also been expanded into two pages, Martinez said, adding the excess water sale line item was renamed supplemental water service to make plain that water rights were not being sold.

The budget worksheet, published in board packets and used to track the district’s finances on a monthly basis, had also been updated, Martinez said.

Directors Tom Roddham and Bill Clewe said they liked the additional detail the new reports provided.

Operational reports

Clewe, who serves as the district’s liaison with the Joint Use Committee (JUC) that manages the waste treatment plant WWSD shares with the Towns of Palmer Lake and Monument, told the board he had reviewed the JUC’s 2025 budget, which will increase from $1.9 million in 2024 to $2.7 million. Clewe said increases to construction, operation, insurance and engineering costs all contributed to the larger budget. WWSD is responsible for about 29% of the cost of operating the treatment plant, he said, and the Towns of Palmer Lake and Monument were each responsible for 35%.

In his Manager’s Report, Shaffer told the board he was vetting different methods the district might use to finance its portion of the Loop water re-use project. He was discussing this with Andrew Rheem of Raftelis, the consulting firm that helps the district set rates for its water and sewer services. Shaffer said fee increases and General Obligation bonds were being considered. He noted a presentation by Magellan Consulting Group that he attended which focused on presenting requests for bonds to voters. Shaffer said he would present financing options to the board at its November meeting.

Shaffer reported progress on the effort to build a new 650,000-gallon concrete storage tank and said he expected construction to begin in 2025. There are only two manufacturers of concrete storage tanks in the United States, he said, so scheduling the construction was difficult.

LaFontaine reported one shear and two services failures for the previous month. He said he is continuing to examine the meters at the district’s treatment plants and replace or repair them as needed.

LaFontaine noted that a high level of manganese in the water delivered to customers prompted a return to 100% surface water from a blend of surface and ground water. The level of manganese did not represent a health risk to customers, he said.

Executive session

The meeting ended with an executive session to discuss negotiating positions regarding the district’s participation in the Loop water reuse project and discussions with Classic Homes. No action was taken following the executive session.

Correction

In last month’s article, Dan LaFontaine was incorrectly referred to as operations supervisor. His correct job title is operations superintendent.

**********

The next meeting has been moved to Oct. 14 at 1 p.m. Meetings are usually held on the second Monday of each month at 1 p.m. at the district office at 1845 Woodmoor Drive; the September meeting is delayed by a week. Please see www.woodmoorwater.com or call 719-488-2525 to verify meeting times and locations.

James Howald can be reached at jameshowald@ocn.me.

Other Woodmoor Water and Sanitation District articles

Woodmoor Water and Sanitation District, Aug. 12 – Board considers supplemental water for Waterside subdivision

By James Howald

In August, the Woodmoor Water and Sanitation District (WWSD) board met to review a request for supplemental water service from the developers of the Waterside subdivision. The board rescheduled its September meeting and heard operational reports. The meeting ended with an executive session, after which a vote was taken.

Developer requests supplemental water

District Manager Jessie Shaffer told the board that Lake Woodmoor Holdings LLC, the developers of the Waterside subdivision, had requested a supplemental water service agreement from the district.

According to materials provided in the meeting packet, the Waterside subdivision is a proposed 7.5-acre development at the intersection of Woodmoor Drive and Deer Creek Road, across from Lewis-Palmer Middle School. The developer plans to build four single-family homes and 40 multi-family homes on the property.

The Supplemental Water Service Agreement included in the packet explains that the developer is requesting a total of 12.2 acre-feet of water per year for the planned development. The default water service provided by WWSD is 0.5 acre-feet of water per acre of land, in this case, 3.76 acre-feet. The supplemental water service requested amounts to 8.42 acre-feet per year. 7.5 acre-feet per year will be provided at the Tier 2 price of $29,000 per acre-foot and 0.891 acre-feet will be provided at the Tier 3 price of $43,500 per acre-foot. The total cost of the supplemental water requested is $257,157 annually.

Shaffer said he wanted to discuss the request with the board in executive session and asked to have the request tabled until that discussion had taken place.

September meeting rescheduled

The board rescheduled its September meeting from Sept. 9 to Sept. 16 to allow board members to attend the Special District Association of Colorado conference.

Operational reports

  • Board President Brian Bush, on behalf of board Treasurer Roy Martinez, said water sales to date were less than the budgeted amount. Tap fees were higher than expected and interest income remains high due to high interest rates.
  • Cultivation of native grasses at the Woodmoor Ranch, required by the conversion of the ranch’s water rights from agricultural to municipal uses, is continuing. The revegetation effort is expected to be complete by 2025, according to Shaffer.
  • Operations Supervisor Dan LaFontaine told the board the effluent meter at the South Water Treatment Plant was inaccurate and he was working to find a company to test it.
  • Shaffer said that JVA Inc. was analyzing data from a sewer capacity study so that any capacity issues can be addressed.
  • Shaffer told the board that Cydney Saelens had accepted an offer to serve as the district engineer, replacing Ariel Hacker, who had accepted a job with a state agency.

Executive session

The meeting ended with an executive session to discuss negotiating positions regarding the district’s participation in the Loop water reuse project and discussions with Classic Homes. Following the executive session, the board voted to appoint Bush as the director responsible for representing the district in negotiations between member agencies of the Loop.

**********

The next meeting has been moved to Sept. 16 at 1 p.m. Meetings are usually held on the second Monday of each month at 1 p.m. at the district office at 1845 Woodmoor Drive; the September meeting is delayed by a week. Please see www.woodmoorwater.com or call 719-488-2525 to verify meeting times and locations.

James Howald can be reached at jameshowald@ocn.me.

Other Woodmoor Water and Sanitation District articles

Woodmoor Water and Sanitation District, July 15 – Contract for pipeline construction awarded

By James Howald

The Woodmoor Water and Sanitation District (WWSD) board met in July to consider awarding a contract for the construction of a pipeline to connect the district’s newest well to the Central Water Treatment Plant (CWTP). General Manager Jessie Shaffer gave the board a mid-year update on the district’s 2024 budget. The board updated its records retention schedule and heard an operational report from Shaffer. The meeting ended with an executive session, after which no action was taken.

Pipeline contract awarded

Shaffer told the board that eight bids were received from companies interested in building a pipeline to connect Well 22, recently drilled just south of County Line Road and east of I-25, with the CWTP, on Deer Creek Road adjacent to the Lewis-Palmer Middle School. The bids ranged from $498,000 to $1.2 million, with T-Bone Construction submitting the lowest bid. The pipeline will run in an easement just west of houses on Doewood Drive and east of the proposed Monument Ridge East development. Shaffer recommended the board authorize an additional $50,000 for change order contingencies. The board voted unanimously to award the contract to T-Bone Construction in the amount Shaffer suggested.

Mid-year budget update

Shaffer told the board that some of the funds budgeted for construction in the 2024 budget would be carried over to 2025 due to delays in the permitting process for the projects. He mentioned two projects that were delayed: the Well 22 pipeline and some of the improvements on Highway 105 required by El Paso County’s work to widen the highway. The Dawson aquifer well near the CWTP, on the other hand, was budgeted at $430, 000 but will cost $525,000, Shaffer said. Long lead times for electrical equipment have delayed the construction of lift stations until next year, requiring adjustments to the 2024 budget. Shaffer said price inflation and unexpected repairs to a backhoe also caused adjustments to the budget.

The board gave their approval for the budget changes as presented.

Record retention policy amended

The board voted unanimously in favor of Resolution 24-02, which establishes the schedule for record retention and destruction.

Manager’s report

In a brief manager’s report, Shaffer said district Engineer Ariel Hacker had resigned her position with the district and accepted a job with a state agency. He said he was interviewing candidates to replace Hacker.

Executive session

The meeting ended with an executive session to discuss the district’s participation in the Loop water reuse project, in particular, the recently drafted Member Agency Financing and Contribution Agreement. No votes were taken following the executive session.

**********

The next meeting is scheduled for Aug. 12 at 1 p.m. Meetings are usually held on the second Monday of each month at 1 p.m. at the district office at 1845 Woodmoor Drive; please see www.woodmoorwater.com or call 719-488-2525 to verify meeting times and locations.

James Howald can be reached at jameshowald@ocn.me.

Other Woodmoor Water and Sanitation District (WWSD) articles