To: Honorable Mayor and Members of Town Council
Through: David L. Corliss, Town Manager
From: Mark Marlowe, P.E., Director of Castle Rock Water
Matt Benak, P.E., Water Resources Manager
Rick Schultz, Water Efficiency Supervisor
Courtney Stoddard, Water Efficiency Specialist
Title
Resolution Approving the 2024 Water Conservation Rebate Incentive Program [The entire Castle Rock Service Area]
Body
________________________________________________________________________________
Executive Summary
The purpose of this memorandum is to request Town Council approval of a Resolution (Attachment A) to increase the 2024 Water Conservation Rebate Incentive Program budget. Conservation rebates are in place to encourage additional indoor and outdoor conservation measures. These programs are evaluated annually for effectiveness and categories are adjusted accordingly.
For fiscal year 2023, the conservation rebate budget is $200,000. For 2024, staff is proposing to increase the budget to $300,000.
Currently there are four rebate programs in place, they include:
• ColoradoScape Retrofit
• Ultra-high-efficiency (UHE) toilet replacement
• Rotary Nozzle Retrofit
• Whole Home Water Monitoring, with automatic shut-off
Castle Rock Water is proposing one very significant change to the current rebate programs. For ColoradoScape Retrofits, CRW recommends increasing the rebate from $1.50 per square foot for turf removal and replacement with ColoradoScape to $2.50 per square foot. This value was put out for consideration in the 2023 Community Survey and a significant positive response was obtained with over half of respondents indicating that this change would incentivize them to participate in a ColoradoScape conversion. CRW staff have evaluated the costs of the rebate relative to the potential value of the water savings and has shown that a $2.50 per square foot rebate is still a good value for the community in terms of reducing long-term water supply needs. This change is also consistent with CRW’s goal of reducing total non-functional turf in the community by 30 percent in the next several decades.
Staff Recommendation
Staff recommends approval of an increase in the Water Conservation Rebate Incentive Program budget to $300,000 for 2024.
Proposed Motion
“I move to approve the resolution as introduced by title”
Alternative Motions
“I move to approve the resolution as introduced by title, with the following conditions: (list conditions).
“I move to continue this item to the Town Council meeting on _____ date to allow additional time to (list information needed).”
Attachments
Staff Report
Attachment A: Resolution
Attachment B: 5-Year Average Consumption
Attachment C: 2023 Conservation Rebate Funding Summary