To: Members of the Castle Rock Water Commission
From: Mark Marlowe, P.E., Director of Castle Rock Water
Roy Gallea, Engineering Manager
Josh Hansen, Project Manager
Title
Ordinance Authorizing the Exercise of the Town’s Powers of Eminent Domain for the Plum Creek to Rueter-Hess Reservoir Pipeline Infrastructure Project [Northern Castle Rock and Eastern Castle Pines]
Town Council Agenda Date: August 16, 2022
Body
________________________________________________________________________________
Executive Summary
Castle Rock Water (CRW) is seeking Town Council adoption of an Ordinance (Attachment A) authorizing the exercise of the Town’s power of eminent domain for the Plum Creek to Rueter-Hess Reservoir Pipeline Infrastructure Project, if necessary.
CRW’s Water Resources Strategic Master Plan identifies pipeline infrastructure (pipeline, pump station, and outlet structure) needed to convey renewable and reuseable water from the Plum Creek Basin to Rueter-Hess Reservoir (RHR) for storage during periods when available supply exceeds demand. Storage of this water is critical for responding to future irrigation season demands. The proposed infrastructure is being sized to move 1,000 acre-feet per year from the Plum Creek basin to RHR and planned to begin operation in 2024.
An engineering consultant, Providence Infrastructure Consultants (Providence), was retained to complete a pipeline alignment study and preliminary infrastructure design in 2021. The alignment study was completed in late 2021 and the Town selected a proposed pipeline alignment. Preliminary design is underway and being completed concurrently with survey of the pipeline corridor.
The proposed pipeline is approximately 7.5 miles in length and crosses or impacts 44 properties. Some have common property ownerships and there are approximately 33 different ownership entities. Staff has begun initial discussions with 11 of the 33 property owners and recently retained a land acquisition consultant, Western States Land Services (Western States), to assist with property owner coordination and good-faith negotiations to acquire the necessary easements.
Based on current schedule for the project and past experience on other projects, approval for the use of eminent domain is recommended upfront in property negotiations to facilitate easement acquisition before final design and construction begins to avoid unnecessary delays.
Given project schedule and experience on other projects, Staff requests adoption of this ordinance to allow property negotiations to commence immediately upon adoption. Legal descriptions will be prepared and the Town’s consultant is ready to begin the negotiation process.
History of Past Town Council, Boards & Commissions, or Other Discussions
On March 23, 2022 Castle Rock Water Commission voted unanimously to recommend award of a services agreement in the amount of $1,262,595 with Providence along with authorization of $126,300 in staff-managed contingency to complete final design for the proposed Plum Creek to RHR Pipeline Infrastructure.
On April 5, 2022 Town Council voted unanimously to award a services agreement in the amount of $1,262,595 with Providence along with authorization of $126,300 in staff-managed contingency to complete final design for the proposed Plum Creek to RHR Pipeline Infrastructure.
Notification and Outreach Efforts
In order to obtain right of entry agreements to begin surveying the pipeline corridor, staff has initiated discussions with 11 of the 33 property owners. Western States is assisting with contacting additional property owners to initiate meetings to discuss the project with Town Staff.
Discussion
A need for a sustainable long-term water supply was identified in CRW’s Water Resources Strategic Master Plan and one of the major goals of that plan is establishment of a renewable, sustainable water supply that accounts for 75% of the annual demand for water in Castle Rock by 2050 and 100% renewable supply in an average hydrologic year by 2065. Renewable water sources for Castle Rock include a combination of existing surface water rights along East and West Plum Creek, reusable lawn irrigation and reclaimed water flows, and imported surface water from outside of the Plum Creek Basin.
A critical component of the Town’s long-term water supply is its diversion structure on Plum Creek near Sedalia. The structure is downstream of the Plum Creek Water Reclamation Authority (PCWRA) outfall where the majority of the Town’s fully reusable water is reclaimed. Construction of a new pump station and 30-inch pipeline was recently completed and is now operating to convey raw water from the Plum Creek Diversion to the Plum Creek Water Purification Facility (PCWPF) in Castle Rock. In addition to using this diverted water for on demand raw water supply, the Town desires the capability to transfer this water to RHR for storage during periods when the available supply exceeds demand. The stored water will provide an additional supply that can later be pumped back to the Town through the local WISE pipeline to help meet peak season demands.
In March 2021, through a competitive Request for Proposal process, the Town retained Providence Infrastructure Consultants (Providence) to complete an alignment study and preliminary design of new pipeline infrastructure to convey renewable water to RHR. The study evaluated 4 different alternative alignments based on factors including cost, schedule, operational flexibility, environmental impacts, property impacts, and constructability. Providence completed the study in late 2021 and staff selected a pipeline alignment for the project. In April 2022, Town Council approved a contract with Providence to complete final design services for the pipeline infrastructure.
In April 2022, the Town retained Precision Survey to complete a pipeline corridor survey. The survey data will allow completion of preliminary and final design of the infrastructure. The selected pipeline corridor is roughly 7.5 miles in length and runs northeast from East Plum Creek through the Promenade Development and around the western and northern edges of Sapphire Point before turning north through The Canyons and North Canyons developments to the south shores of RHR (see Attachment B).
In June 2022, the Town retained a consultant, Western States Land Services (Western States), to assist with obtaining right of entry agreements needed to complete the corridor survey and to assist with acquiring temporary and permanent pipeline easements needed from property owners.
Preliminary alignment work has identified 38 permanent easements and 38 temporary easements required for construction of the project. Portions of the pipeline in properties owned by Douglas County, Colorado Department of Transportation, and railroads will require different types of agreements and permits. In general, the Town will be seeking 30-foot width permanent pipeline easements and 30-foot width additional temporary construction easements from property owners. Legal descriptions and exhibits will be prepared for each parcel. These legal descriptions and exhibits will be used for property valuations and negotiations. Easements with estimated value greater than $5,000 will require formal appraisals. Easements with estimated values less than $5,000 will have a value finding conducted by Western States. Once easement values are determined, the Town will make initial offers based on these values.
As with any land acquisition, the property owner often has questions or concerns regarding impacts to the property and any existing improvements. The Town, through its acquisition agent, Western States, will respond to these questions and concerns in an effort to negotiate an equitable solution and acquire the needed easement.
The negotiation process can be concluded relatively quickly for some parcels, but in other cases the process can be drawn out, and in rare situations a compromise cannot be reached at all and property must be acquired through condemnation. If the parties are unable to negotiate a solution regarding the easements, the project schedule could be impacted. Therefore, an ordinance authorizing condemnation is recommended for approval at this time. In either case, the property owner will be compensated with a fair and equitable payment based on current market value.
Budget Impact
$10,000,000 was budgeted for the project in 2022 in account 211-4375-443.78.04 Water Resources, CIP - PlumCreek-RueterHes PL & PS. This account has a budget balance of approximately $8,421,055 for 2022. $1,000,000 is budgeted for right of way acquisition costs. The project is being funded with Series 2022 Bond Funds. A summary of current estimated project costs is provided below.
|
Alignment Study/Preliminary Design |
$220,697 |
Encumbered |
|
Preliminary Geotech |
$19,528 |
Encumbered |
|
Corridor Survey |
$174,175 |
Encumbered |
|
Final Design |
$1,388,895 |
Encumbered |
|
Right of Way Acquisition Services |
$350,000 |
Estimated |
|
Right of Way Acquisition |
$1,000,000 |
Estimated |
|
Construction Phase Engineering |
$500,000 |
Estimated |
|
Construction |
$16,000,000 |
Estimated |
|
Total Estimated Cost: |
$19,653,295 |
|
Staff Recommendation
Staff recommends Town Council of the ordinance authorizing the use of eminent domain to acquire the required easements, if necessary.
Proposed Motions
“I move to recommend Town Council approve the Ordinance as introduced by title.”
Attachments
Attachment A: Ordinance (Not Attached)
Attachment B: Alignment Corridor Map