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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMemo - Mail Packet - 8/18/2020 - Memorandum From Eileen Dornfest Re: Halligan Water Supply Project Status Update: Third Quarter 2020 Utilities electric ꞏ stormwater ꞏ wastewater ꞏ water 700 Wood Street PO Box 580 Fort Collins, CO 80522 970.212.2900 V/TDD 711 utilities@fcgov.com fcgov.com/utilities M E M O R A N D U M DATE: August 3, 2020 TO: Mayor Troxell and Councilmembers FROM: Eileen Dornfest, Special Projects Manager THROUGH: Darin Atteberry, City Manager Theresa Connor, Interim Utilities Executive Director Liesel Hans, Interim Deputy Director – Water Resources and Treatment Operations RE: Halligan Water Supply Project Status Update: Third Quarter, 2020 Bottom Line Please find attached a quarterly Status Update on the Halligan Water Supply Project. This report provides a summary of work in progress and recent accomplishments. CC: Water Board DocuSign Envelope ID: D4B3CE9D-E535-4AD1-A32A-8C98A0C56E0A HALLIGAN WATER SUPPLY PROJECTUPDATE August 2020 BACKGROUND The Halligan Water Supply Project would enlarge Halligan Reservoir, an existing reservoir on the North Fork of the Poudre River, to meet the demand of future Fort Collins Utilities’ water customers and provide increased reliability for existing customers in the event of emergencies, drought and climate- change uncertainties. The project would expand the reservoir by about 8,100 acre-feet by increasing the height of the existing 70-foot dam by 25 feet. For context, an average single-family home uses almost a third of an acre-foot of water each year (about 108,000 gallons). The project is anticipated to be completed in 2026. The project reached a milestone in November 2019 after many years of hard work, when the draft EIS was released. Permits are required from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) and other federal, state and county agencies to enlarge Halligan Reservoir. Staff continue to support preparation of a final EIS by the Corps. Additionally, staff are working toward other permitting processes, including the Fish and Wildlife Mitigation Plan and the 401 Water Quality Certification. PROGRESS UPDATE Permitting and Mitigation • The Corps is addressing comments on the draft EIS and working toward preparation of the final EIS, which is anticipated in 2021. For a comment summary, visit fcgov.com/halligan-comments. • Staff are working closely with Colorado Parks & Wildlife to develop concepts for the Fish & Wildlife Mitigation Plan. This process kicked off May 1. • Work toward the 401 Water Quality Certification continues, including additional water quality sampling this year. Property Acquisition and Easements • Staff continue to work with several landowners to develop easement agreements for permitting and design access. Preliminary Design • Preliminary design activities are underway. Public Engagement & Communication • See below for project-specific communications and engagement since January. The Halligan Dam typically spills every spring with excess runoff from the snowpack. 447 Social Media (reach) Website (pageviews) Events (booth visitors) Presentations (attendees) 2,888 222 Media (articles/ads)1 3,425 DocuSign Envelope ID: D4B3CE9D-E535-4AD1-A32A-8C98A0C56E0A PROJECT SCHEDULE The draft EIS was released in 2019. Construction could begin as early as 2024. Other project milestones are shown below. For more information, visit fcgov.com/halligan Eileen Dornfest, Special Projects Manager • 970-416-4296 • halligan@fcgov.com Auxiliary aids and services are available for persons with disabilities, V/TDD 711.Esta información puede ser traducida, sin costo para usted, 970-212-2900.Utilities Project schedule is dependent on the permitting schedule and subject to change. ‘06 ‘07 ‘08 ‘09 ‘10 ‘11 ‘12 ‘13 ‘14 ‘15 ‘16 ‘17 ‘18 ‘19 ‘20 ‘21 ‘22 ‘23 ‘24 ‘25 ‘26 Federal Permitting Other Federal & State Permitting Preliminary Design Final Design Construction Enlarged Halligan Operations — Record of Decision Purpose & Need — Notice of Intent Baseline Environmental Studies Alternatives Environmental Impact Studies — — Develop & Issue Draft EIS — Draft EIS Comment Period — Prepare & Release Final EIS WE ARE HERE — Purpose/Need Figure 1: Cost Range Figure 2: $ Spent vs. Projected Costs ANTICIPATED COSTS Project costs were updated in 2019 pending the release of the draft EIS and with information learned over the previous two years. The estimate is presented as a range due to the long-term nature of the project, the conceptual nature of the current design and the uncertainty associated with a complex water supply project. As noted in previous quarterly updates, costs are anticipated to change and likely grow as the scope is refined and permitting requirements and design elements are better understood. Costs will be updated again in 2021 after preliminary design is complete and more is known about the project design, permitting and mitigation elements. Costs will continue to be updated as new information is obtained. Updated cost estimates and other decision factors will be evaluated at project milestones to verify that the Halligan Project remains the most cost-effective water supply solution for Utilities’ customers. Currently, the Halligan Project is anticipated to provide firm yield at about $15,000 per acre-foot and is the most cost-effective project to meet the City’s water supply needs. For comparison, the market rate for firm yield from the Colorado- Big Thompson (CBT) Project is approximately $60,000. Also, the Northern Integrated Supply Project (NISP) and Windy Gap Firming Project unit costs are currently $30,000 and $20,000 per acre-foot, respectively. Figure 3: Regional Water Supply Projects Unit Cost through Time Windy Gap NISP Halligan 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 2015 2020 2025 $5K $10K $15K $20K $25K $30K $35K $0 Moffat Collection DEIS Released All permitting & design complete DEIS in Preparation FEIS Complete DEIS Released All permitting & design complete DEIS in Preparation $33,143 $30,000 $20,000 $15,000 2019 costs shown for other projects were published information at that time and may not represent actual 2019 cost estimates.Unit Cost of Water (Per Acre-Foot of Firm Yield)Spent to date: $18.8M Projected future costs Appropriated funds remaining: $18.5M $120M$100M $150M Range of Probable Cost Range of Possible Cost Cost in Millions0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 MITIGATIONDESIGN & CONSTRUCTIONPUBLIC OUTREACHPROPERTY ACQUISITION PERMITTING $28M $5M $1M $70M $16M DocuSign Envelope ID: D4B3CE9D-E535-4AD1-A32A-8C98A0C56E0A