C150243 approval ltr

• Contract/PO #: C150243
• Contractor Name: Aurora, City of
• Contract Type: Loan
• Water District: 0
• County: Adams
• Bill Number: SB 07-122
• Loan Projects - Doc Type: Approval Letter

STATE OF COLORADO
Colorado Water Conservation Board
Department of Natnral Resouxces
1313 Sherman Street, Room 721
Denver, Colorado 80203
Phone: [phone]
FAX: [phone]
www.cwcb.state.co.us
MEMORANDUM
(REVISED)
TO: Colorado Water Conservation Board Members
FROM: Kirk Russell, P.E. ��
Mike Serlet, P.E., Chie��f
Water Supply Planning and Finance Section
DATE: January 16, 2007 (REVISED January 29, 2007)
SUBJECT: Agenda Item 9f, January 23-24, 2007 Board Meeting
Water Supply Planning and Finance Section — New Loans
City of Aurora — Prairie Waters Project
Introduc#ion
Bill Ritter, Jr.
Governor
Harris D. Sherman
Executive Director
Rod Kuharich
CWCB Director
Dan McAuliffe
Deputy Director
The City of Aurora, acting by and through its Utility Enterprise, is requesting a loan from the CWCB
in the amount of $75,000,000 to finance a portion of the Conveyance System of the Prairie Waters
Project (PWP). The loan amount represents approximately 30% of the $250,000,000 Conveyance
System (or approximately 10% of the entire $800,000,000 Prairie Waters Project). Aurora, Colorado
is a Front Range metropolitan community of 300,000 people. The service population is expected to
exceed 600,000 people within the next 40 years. The City's water utility, Aurora Water, needs to
increase the reliability of the current system and prepare for the City's future water needs.
The Conveyance System consists of water transmission facilities, including three pumping stations
and 33 miles of 60-inch flexible steel pipeline to convey water from the Brighton area to a new water
purification facility located near Aurora Reservoir. The Conveyance System construction is
anticipated to begin in the summer of 2007. See attached Project Data Sheet for a location map
and a project summary.
Backqround
Aurora's water supply depends on renewable surface water supplies in the Colorado, Arkansas,
and South Platte Rivers. Yields from these supplies are highly variable because Aurora's water
rights are relatively junior. During the wet conditions of the late 20th century, this system met
Aurora's water needs. The recent drought of 2002 dropped the City's water storage levels to below
26% of capacity. This represented only six months of normal water supply. It also exposed the
City's vulnerability to drought conditions and forced the City to address the needs to safely meet
current and future demands.
Flood Protection • Water Supply Planning and Finance • Stream and Lake Protection
Water Supply Protection • Conservation and Drought Planning