Metro District Looks to Purchase Water Rights on South Platte River
by Lane Roberts
For more than a year, the Castle Pines North (CPN) Metro District has been in serious negotiations to purchase water rights from the London Mine, located on the middle fork of the South Platte River.
Now, the Metro District is looking closely at spending $23 million to purchase 1,200 to 1,300 acre-feet of renewable water. (An acre-foot of water is defined as water that covers one acre of land and provides enough water for two families for one year.)
The water, originally purchased by the Coors Brewing Company in 1975, is currently owned by THF Holdings.
The Metro District recently entered a “purchase and sale” agreement that allows for a thorough due diligence examination. During the due diligence phase, URS Engineering will explore the water rights for CPN to see if it will benefit the District.
Most of the water from the South Platte River currently flows into Chatfield Reservoir. How the District would make delivery of the water to CPN is still being explored. “In the short term, if we purchase the water we will look at leasing it to other providers,” said Metro District Manager James McGrady. “We cannot use it immediately because we do not have necessary infrastructures in place.”
How will CPN pay for this renewable water supply?
McGrady says the District will utilize revenues from the utility enterprise and operations and maintenance mil levy.
“We were fortunate to be able to negotiate with this developer to reach an agreement,” said McGrady. “This looks like a good opportunity for us.”
For more information, contact the Metro District at 303-688-8550 or e-mail jmcgrady@cpnmd.org.
