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OCN > 2512 > Donala Water and Sanitation District, Nov. 20 – Water rights and exchange options reviewed

Donala Water and Sanitation District, Nov. 20 – Water rights and exchange options reviewed

By James Howald and Jackie Burhans

In November, the Donala Water and Sanitation District (DWSD) board heard a presentation on its water rights and exchange options from Kelsey Briggs, a project manager at LRE Water. Acting General Manager Christina Hawker updated the board on changes to the proposed 2026 budget. The board considered a petition for inclusion into the district from the Bill and Vickie Hancock Living Trust and approved a license agreement to grant limited access to the district’s Willow Creek Ranch property. The meeting ended with two executive sessions, after which no action was taken.

Surface water and exchanges key to district’s future

Briggs walked the board through a detailed memo she had prepared documenting DWSD’s surface water rights and exchange options. An exchange is a mechanism to move water to where it can be used without the use of pumps or pipelines. Exchanges divert water from a river, stream, or other source and then return an equal amount from a different source so that the water rights owned by downstream users remain intact. Briggs discussed an example exchange in which water was diverted from the Fountain Creek Mutual Canal (FCMC) to the Big Johnson Reservoir, and then water was conveyed from the Pueblo Reservoir to the confluence of the FCMC and the Arkansas River, so that users of the Arkansas River downstream from the exchange point would have an equal amount of water available to them after the exchange.

Briggs said DWSD currently depends primarily on groundwater pumped from the Denver basin aquifers but has three renewable surface water rights: Laughlin Ditch water rights diverted from Fountain Creek, Willow Creek Ranch water rights diverted from the Arkansas River, and the district’s reuseable return flows of treated effluent from the Upper Monument Creek Regional Wastewater Treatment Facility (UMCRWWTF). As aquifers deplete, well water will become more expensive, Briggs said, so it is important to move to renewable surface water to control costs in the long term.

The Laughlin Ditch water rights were purchased in 2017. The district currently does not have a method to convey, treat, and deliver this water to its customers; the water is leased to the Arkansas Groundwater and Reservoir Association (AGRA).

The Willow Creek Ranch water rights were acquired in 2009. This water is currently stored in the Pueblo Reservoir and then treated and conveyed to DWSD customers through a contract with Colorado Springs Utilities. When the Pueblo Reservoir reaches its storage capacity, DWSD’s water is the first to be released downstream to keep the reservoir within its limits.

The reusable return flows from the UMCRWWTF will be treated and conveyed to DWSD customers by the Loop water reuse project.

According to Briggs, DWSD has four “exchange-to” locations from which water can be diverted, Briggs said, which are:

  • The Chilcott Ditch headgate.
  • The Fountain Mutual Ditch (FMD) headgate.
  • The confluence of Beaver Creek and Monument Creek.
  • A point to be decided between the Tri-Lakes Wastewater Treatment Facility and the UMCRWWTF.

The district has five “exchange-from” locations to which water can be directed:

  • The confluence of the Arkansas River and Fountain Creek.
  • Stonewall Springs Reservoir complex.
  • Big Johnson Reservoir.
  • Spring Creek Augmentation Station on the FMD.
  • Chilcott Augmentation Station.

Briggs said the district will need to develop a long-term strategic plan to identify the most efficient ways to combine the “exchange-to” and “exchange-from” points to deliver water to its customers. The district’s water lawyer, Matt Poznanovic, would need to handle related issues in the water court. Briggs said she could develop a flow model in six months that would help the board decide how to use its water rights and exchanges. The board directed her to do so.

Proposed 2026 budget

Hawker updated the board on changes she made to the proposed 2026 budget since the board meeting in October. The cost of inspecting the sewer system by video camera was reduced from $296,000 to $99,000 due to a decision to inspect just a third of the system. The cost of participating in the Loop was increased from $250,000 to $550,000. Hawker said she increased this line item after receiving the Loop’s proposed budget for 2026. The amount for the Loop includes DWSD’s portion of the first option payment for the Loop’s purchase of the Sundance Pipeline from the Cherokee Metropolitan District.

Hawker added that she is working with the El Paso Board of County Commissioners to get reimbursement for $400,000 of the cost to redrill Well 7D as part of the district’s American Recovery Plan Act grant for radium reduction.

The board’s December meeting has been rescheduled to the 9th so that the board can have a final vote on the budget before Dec. 15, when the district must submit the final version of the budget to the state.

Petition for inclusion

Director Bill George opened a public hearing on a petition from the Bill and Vickie Hancock Living Trust to include a property it owns at 15220 Leather Chaps Drive into the district’s water service area. The property is too far from DWSD’s sewer collection system to be included for sewer service. George was facilitating the meeting because board President Wayne Vanderschuere was attending from his home via Zoom.

Hawker reviewed the history of the property, which was included in the district’s service area in 2022 but was later subdivided. The trust decided it would be cheaper to have a well and septic system and requested exclusion from the district, becoming part of unincorporated El Paso County. The county later decided well and septic systems would not be allowed on properties smaller than five acres, prompting the trust to make the petition for inclusion before the board.

The board voted unanimously to grant the petition.

Willow Creek Ranch license agreement

At its meeting in October, the board discussed allowing neighbors of its Willow Creek Ranch property near Leadville to have access to the ranch in return for alerting the board to any unauthorized use of the ranch. Staff was directed to draft a license agreement and release that would grant limited access. Director Ken Judd asked Hawker to draft a waiver to allow horse riding on the property. Hawker said she would draft the waiver, and no vote was needed on the license agreement.

Executive sessions

Following its regular meeting, the board held two executive sessions. Each was a separate item on the agenda and was attended by varying staff and consultants.

The first session was to confer with counsel regarding personnel matters. This session was attended by board members only.

The second session was to receive legal advice regarding the district’s water court application in Case No. 24CW3019.

No actions were taken following the executive sessions.

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The next board meeting is on Tuesday, Dec. 9 at 1:30 p.m. Generally, board meetings are held on the third Thursday of the month at 1:30 p.m. and include online access; call (719) 488-3603 or access www.donalawater.org to receive up-to-date meeting information. The district office is located at 15850 Holbein Drive, Colorado Springs.

James Howald can be reached at jameshowald@ocn.me. Jackie Burhans can be reached at jackieburhans@ocn.me.

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