Triview Metropolitan District, July 18 – Northern Delivery System complete; land annexation approved

Northern Delivery System update
Buena Vista land annexation
Higby Road update
Water Utilities update
Legislative update
Financial report
Policy and procedures manual updates
Executive session

By Natalie Barszcz

At the Triview Metropolitan District (TMD) meeting on July 18, the board heard about the Northern Delivery System (NDS) pipeline project completion and the anticipated delivery date of water to the residents, approved a land annexation to the Town of Buena Vista, received an update on the Higby Road pipeline installation, and heard the district had hired a replacement for the retired water utilities superintendent. The board held an executive session to discuss water and land acquisitions, and potential development incentives and intergovernmental agreements.

Directors Amanda Carlton and Jason Gross attended via Zoom.

Treasurer/Secretary James Barnhart was excused.

Northern Delivery System update

Background: The NDS is a six-mile pipeline that will bring the district’s renewable water to Triview and Forest Lakes customers. The district will transition from dependence on nonrenewable Denver Basin groundwater to the district’s acquired water rights. Colorado Springs Utilities (CSU) will convey, treat, and deliver the district’s water via the CSU water tank off Highway 83 (opposite Old Northgate Road). The district constructed a booster pump house containing three pumps near the tank, with the combined capability of moving 4,500 gallons per minute of treated water to the district’s C plant in Sanctuary Pointe. The district’s Denver Basin wells will remain available to provide water on high-demand days and during periods of extreme drought.

District Manager James McGrady said the NDS is about 98% complete and the district is expected to begin pumping water to its customers on July 30. The district has about $536,000 left to pay on the NDS and has paid about $21.744 million so far. Some small items popped up during the construction and design phase that totaled about $400,000, and the district added segment D, an additional 1,000-foot waterline on the west side of I-25, and the overlay of the access road off Highway 83 to the pump station, pushing the project about $1 million over the original budget, but it was not unusual due to the size of the project. The final cost will be about $22.274 million, he said.

Assistant Manager Steve Sheffield said the NDS pump station filled the lines with water, then staff “let it cook” with chlorine overnight and conducted a flush then a bacteriological (Bacti) test and pressure tested the system. The results “came back good and it is all good news.” The utility crews also completed a chlorine injection pump skid at C plant in anticipation of the NDS pump station startup. The potential for additional dosing of chlorine at C plant will be available if necessary. The water quality from Colorado Springs Utilities will need to be determined, he said.

Buena Vista land annexation

McGrady said the district purchased the 293.96-acre Chicago Ranch in Chaffee County and across the road from the Buena Vista rodeo grounds in late 2020 to construct recharge ponds for the district to control water rights associated with the Arkansas Valley Irrigation Canal Co.’s Ditch and change the water rights to municipal uses for the district’s purposes. The annexation process that includes a land annexation plan, plat, and request for a zone change has been submitted to the town of Buena Vista. The masterplan for the project has been approved by the Buena Vista Town Council, and the annexation public hearing meeting is scheduled for Aug. 13. The process has taken three years, and after the public hearing the district anticipates building the recharge ponds next spring. The district will begin diverting water from Cottonwood Creek in Chaffee County, he said.

Land Use Attorney Caitlin Quander of Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck LLP said the July 9 meeting application was substantially complete, and the property also requires zoning into the town and annexing. The annexation allows for the creation of public recreation trails and the district’s use of water rights on the property. It is a two-stage process and a “win-win” for the Buena Vista community, said Quander.

Gross asked if any risks to the district could occur with the annexation.

Vice President Anthony Sexton said the district will not receive any compensation for giving Buena Vista the land.

McGrady said the district paid about $35 per acre, which is all that the land is worth because of the moratorium against development in Buena Vista. The town’s goal was to develop the land as open space as it joins the Rodeo Grounds. The Town Council could not figure out how to get the land into the town and obtain the water rights. The district agreed to give up the property that is about 100 miles from Monument. Any accidents on the property would be the town’s responsibility. The annexation has the complete “buy in” from the Buena Vista Town Council, the users, and residents.

The district will contribute 1,040 hours of in-kind contributions or fund $38,000 annually for maintenance of the property for 10 years and provide $100,000 toward the initial infrastructure of a parking lot and a couple of trails. The district’s park and open space crews would spend a few days building trails for public use and access to the ponds. The total cost is about $600,000 without the design fees, McGrady said.

Quander said the town is the processor for the annexation, and the district has avoided a lengthy 1041 process with the county. She requested the board approve Resolution 2024-06 ratifying the annexation of the district-owned property known as Chicago Ranch into the Town of Buena Vista and Resolution 2024-07, which conveys the same property to the town.

Gross said it is a great example of two small communities working together.

McGrady said it is an unusual example, as most big cities along the Front Range muscle into small communities, but the district has earned the trust of the Buena Vista residents.

The board approved both resolutions in a 4-0 vote.

Higby Road update

McGrady said the district began construction of a 12-inch pipeline from Higby Road to create a loop from the east side of the district with a 16-inch pipeline under I-25 to the west side near the Conexus area. The pipeline will be extended south and tie in near Woodmen Valley Chapel north, where another 16-inch pipe exists under I-25, to create a two-source flow of water. The Higby Road pipeline is about two-thirds complete, and crews are expected to reach Bowstring Road by late July.

The next steps will be finishing the storm water drainage, installing the waterline, and relocating the power lines underground. All utilities will need to be installed before the district goes to bid for the widening project. The road will be patched until the widening project begins. A bond could be issued to pay for the widening project in 2025 for Sub-District A that is rapidly being developed south of Higby Road, he said.

Water Utilities update

Sheffield said he interviewed three candidates for the Water Utilities superintendent position vacated by Shawn Sexton upon retirement. Gary Potter, a former employee of Woodmoor Water and Sanitation District who is returning to the area after running a small district in Baca County, was selected and will begin on Aug. 12.

McGrady said the position has been increased to include water accounting experience besides treatment facility operator, and the job title includes raw water collection experience and treatment manager. Potter is also experienced to maximize the water exchanges the district will be making frequently, he said.

Sheffield also said:

The district had the highest record of water pumped in June, producing about 48.230 million gallons. It is a big jump from June 2023, which was a high rain month. The district anticipates July will also be high. He is comfortable with the 7% increase in pumped water considering the amount of new construction in the district.
A joint meeting at the Upper Monument Creek Regional Waste Water Treatment Facility (UMCRWWTF) with Executive Director/Manager Bill Burks of Tri-Lakes Wastewater Treatment Facility and the UMCRWWTF staff resulted in a decision to hire a third-party calibration of the flumes and meters to discover the influent versus effluent for the district, Forest Lake Metropolitan District, and Donala Water and Sanitation District. See wp.ocn.me/v24n7tmd/.
A valve on Leather Chaps Drive near Bear Creek Elementary School had been directly buried without protection at the time of installation and the bonnet bolts were completely corroded. A new gate valve was installed and properly wrapped to prevent corrosion. For some reason, the valves in the area around the school were not inspected correctly when installed and many are beginning to corrode.
The Utility Department crews worked with the Public Works Department crews to repair the 2-inch irrigation line on Jackson Creek Parkway near the Taekwondo Center. The Vactor 900 truck also assisted, as crews repaired the defective copper line flare fitting in the irrigation system.
The Dish Network cell tower placement on the C plant water tank is mostly completed. District crews supervised the installation of the equipment on the building. The project will be up and running soon after some “right of way” issues are resolved. The district will receive $1,800 per month from Dish Network to use the tank.

Parks and open space update

Superintendent Matt Rayno said the following:

The Swing Park Trail (Gleneagle Drive) had serious erosion last spring and repairs are almost complete.
The completion of the St. Lawrence Trail that began in spring with installation of 39 steps will be completed down to Glenegale Drive in early September.

Legislative update

Sheffield said that at a water education class he attended recently, a presentation given by the state senator who wrote the resolution about artificial turf installation revealed that the artificial turf replacement ban applies only to non-functional areas such as decorative medians and landscaping, so the Sanctuary Pointe Park sports field would not be restricted because it is a functional area. See wp.ocn.me/v24n7tmd/.

Financial report

McGrady said the district sold a lot of water in June and also in July and has sold over 50 taps to major builders in the Jackson Creek area. The district will likely exceed the estimated taps for 2024 now that Toll Brothers is building in Jackson Creek North with Traylon and Richmond Homes. The district is on target for an unexpected, good year. The district closed the gap on sales tax, receiving a combined total of $300,347 in June, but the discussion regarding sales tax will continue in executive session, he said.

The board approved the checks over $5,000 and accepted the June financial report as presented 4-0.

Note: The district budgeted $1.650 million in combined sales tax for 2024. As of May 31, the district had received $599,390.

Policy and procedures manual updates

McGrady said the staff had been working on the 2024 revisions to the district’s personnel policy and procedures manual for about a year, after being first put together 10 years ago. Since that time a lot of regulations and policies have changed, and Michelle Ferguson of Ireland Stapleton Pryor Pascoe PC Law Firm was hired to implement the changes. Some district staff have been employees for over 10 years, and the district needed to ensure the policies were in compliance with new laws and regulations. The changes are not “over the top or overly punitive, just clear and clean.” He requested the board examine the policy manual and approve the updated manual at the August meeting. A lot of changes to be implemented were driven by staff members, he said.

Executive session

The board moved into an executive session at 7:09 p.m. pursuant to Colorado Revised Statutes sections 24-6-402(4)(a), for the purpose of acquisition of water/land, and 24-6-402(4)(b), for the purpose of determining the positions relative to matters that may be subject to negotiations, developing strategies for negotiations, and instructing negotiators as it relates to potential development incentives.

Sheffield confirmed that after the meeting returned to the regular session, no action was taken, and the meeting adjourned at 8:36 p.m.

**Above:** The Vactor 900 combination sewer cleaner truck is shown with operator David Clegg during the district’s annual sewer system cleaning in The Heights at Jackson Creek on July 17. The sewer system maintenance team is led by Supervisor/Manager Kevin Fackerell, and the truck is crewed by Clegg and Alejandro Curiel. The district received the truck in September 2023 to avoid outsourcing costly sewer maintenance. The crew is almost finished cleaning the district’s entire sewer system, with only Sanctuary Pointe left to be cleaned. Photo by Natalie Barszcz.

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Meetings are usually held on the third Thursday of the month at the district office located at 16055 Old Forest Point, Suite 302. The next regular board meeting is scheduled for Aug. 22 at 5:30 p.m. For meeting agendas, minutes, and updates, visit triviewmetro.com.

Natalie Barszcz can be reached at nataliebarszcz@ocn.me.