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Home My WebLink AboutMemo - Mail Packet - 4/18/2023 - Memorandum From Clay Frickey And Jenny Axmacher Re: Update On The Water Adequacy Determination Process Code Update Community Development & Neighborhood Services Planning & Development Services 281 North College Avenue P.O. Box 580 Fort Collins, CO 80522.0580 970.221.6376 970.224.6111- fax MEMORANDUM Date: April 13, 2023 To: Mayor Arndt and Councilmembers Thru: Kelly DiMartino, City Manager Tyler Marr, Deputy City Manager Caryn M. Champine, Director, Planning, Development & Transportation Paul S. Sizemore, Director, Community Development and Neighborhood Services From: Clay Frickey, Interim Planning Manager Jenny Axmacher, Principal Planner Re: Update on the Water Adequacy Determination Process Code Update __________________________________________________________________ The purpose of this memo is to provide information on the purpose, content, and engagement for this work prior to Council conducting a hearing on the proposed code update for water adequacy on May 16, 2023. Background: Water is a crucial and constrained resource, and the City strives to ensure that development meets the community’s vision and expectations for responsible resource management. Because the City does not currently have a review process or criteria for “non-standard” water service models, including groundwater systems, new policy and code are needed to confirm that future residents are adequately served. While the Montava Development has generated the immediate need for this type of review, staff believes a comprehensive program could have benefits for reviewing all new developments moving forward, regardless of the water source. Requirement for Water Adequacy Review: This review process is being proposed to further effectuate a Colorado state statutory requirement (Section 29-20-301, et seq., C.R.S.), which states: A local government shall not approve an application for a development permit unless it determines in its sole discretion, after considering the application and all of the information provided, that the applicant has satisfactorily demonstrated that the DocuSign Envelope ID: 1191EBFF-4F84-4B71-BA29-6FBB77E43AC7 Page 2 proposed water supply will be adequate. A local government shall make such determination only once during the development permit approval process unless the water demands or supply of the specific project for which the development permit is sought are materially changed. A local government shall have the discretion to determine the stage in the development permit approval process at which such determination is made. Currently, development within the City only occurs within the boundaries of existing City (Fort Collins Utilities) and Special District water providers, such as Fort Collins-Loveland Water District and East Larimer County Water District, and the adequacy determination is made through the issuance of a “will serve” letter from the established water provider. A will serve letter states that the provider has the infrastructure and capacity to provide water service to the proposed development project and commits to providing that service. Pursuant to state statute, ‘will serve’ letters meeting certain requirements may satisfy the water adequacy determination, but staff will soon be faced with a proposal that is outside the bounds of the current system and needs a more robust and transparent process to evaluate the more complex proposal. It is partly the responsibility of the City to ensure that future residents are well served by an adequate system. Summary of Proposed Code Changes: The proposed Land Use Code changes include an amendment to Article Three, adding Division 3.13 and adding nine new definitions to Article Five, Section 5.1.2 Definitions. A summary of the proposed changes include: 1. Article Three, Division 3.13 – Water Adequacy Determinations The proposed new division is to establish the standards and procedures by which the adequacy of proposed water supplies for development are reviewed and determined pursuant to Section 29-20-301, et seq., C.R.S. The subsequent sections outline the applicability, application, and procedures and standards for the three different review types:  Established potable water supply entities, such as Fort Collins-Loveland Water District and East Larimer County Water District  Other potable water supply entities such as new private water supplies or metro districts  Non-potable water supply entities, such as irrigation water supplied by metro districts The approval authority in all cases is the CDNS Director and the timing for the determination generally corresponds to Final Development Plan review or Development Construction Plan. It is anticipated that a consultant would be hired to complete the determination review and make a recommendation to the Director for approval. Established Entities The code provides options for compliance through: • Review of water supply plans o Proposed code provides for Council Review of water supply plan updates o Based on feedback during 7/12/22 work session for greater oversight of Districts • Letters from professional engineers detailing how the water supply system functions Once an initial approval is completed, the process would move forward similarly to what the City does now with will serve letters but with greater consistency between the different providers. Other Entities DocuSign Envelope ID: 1191EBFF-4F84-4B71-BA29-6FBB77E43AC7 Page 3 A more detailed process is proposed for other water providers and the City has identified the following characteristics for evaluation criteria:  Water Quality  Quantity of Water  Dependability of Supply and Supplier o Supply Resiliency o System Redundancy o Maintenance and Outages  Availability of Supply  Financial Sustainability of Supplier o Capitalization In general, the standards compare the new proposed system to the existing municipal utility. The proposed code provides the opportunity for a Modification of Standard request in cases where the existing municipal utility cannot be met. Non-potable Entities The criteria for non-potable systems looks to make sure the supply has enough quantity and quality to support the associated uses such as irrigation for landscape. 2. Article Five, Division 5.1.2 – Definitions The proposed change to Division 5.1.2 is to add definitions that relate to the water adequacy determination review process and provide additional clarity on specific terms used in that section. Such definitions include: • Adequate • Established Potable Water Supply Entities • Water Supply • Potable and Non-potable Water Supply Engagement: The following outreach activities were completed for this code update or are currently underway: • Information on the City website o Includes an educational video o Contact information for questions and feedback • Coordination with CPIO for additional visibility for the project • Staff has reached out to, provided a copy of the draft code, and an invitation to schedule a meeting to: o East Larimer County Water District o Fort Collins – Loveland Water District o West Fort Collins Water District o Sunset Water District o The Montava Development Team (meeting scheduled) o The Bloom Development Team o The Polestar Village Development Team o Save the Poudre • Any requested outreach meetings will occur in the time between the P& Z work session on April 14 and the P& Z hearing on April 26 • Staff will be providing an update to Water Commission on April 20 to collect their feedback • No other specific public outreach is planned due to the narrow focus of this update DocuSign Envelope ID: 1191EBFF-4F84-4B71-BA29-6FBB77E43AC7