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<br />Five tributary streams to the South Platte River were <br />also studied by detailed methods. These tributary <br />streams include Big Dry Creek, Slaughterhouse Gulch, <br />South Tributary to Slaughterhouse Gulch, Little Creek, , <br />and Lee Gulch, all generally flowing from east to west <br />to the South Platte River. These streams create sub- <br />stantial potential flood hazards as they exist within <br />the city. <br /> <br />Upstream portions of Slaughterhouse Gulch were studied <br />by approximate methods as agreed to by the City of <br />Littleton and the Federal Insurance Administration. <br /> <br />.. <br /> <br />-. <br /> <br />On the South Platte Rive:r:.j'.,cjust upstream of the city, <br />the U. S. Army Corps of Engineers is completing construc- <br />tion of the Chatfield Dam. The primary purposes of the <br />dam are flood control and recreation. The dam is now <br />operational for flood control purposes; and therefore, <br />flood hazards downstream are based on the dam's operation. <br /> <br />Those areas studied by detailed methods were chosen <br />with consideration given to all proposed construction <br />and forecasted development through 1980. <br /> <br />2.2 Community Description <br /> <br />Littleton, the county seat of Arapahoe County, is located <br />in central Colorado, just south of Denver, the state <br />capitol. The city was incorporated on March 13, 1890, as <br />an agricultural community. In the last few years, with <br />metropolitan urbanization, the community has experienced <br />an accelerated growth. The population for 1960, 1970, <br />and estimated 1974 are 13,670, 23,643, and 42,000, ' <br />respectively. <br /> <br />The city has an annual mean temperature of 50.20 and <br />and an average growing season of 139 days. Average <br />annual precipitation consists of 14 inches of rainfall <br />and 45.6 inches of snowfall. <br /> <br />.. <br /> <br />The South Platte River is a continuous flowing stream, <br />whereas the tributaries are intermittent flowing streams. <br />The South Platte has two major flooding characteristics, <br />snow melt and summer weather fronts or thunderstorms. <br />The tributary basins are narrow, hydraulically steep, <br />and composed of highly erodable, clay-loam soils. In <br />the underdeveloped portions of the basins, the ground <br />cover is predominantly a short grass ~alled "buffalo <br />grass~1 . <br /> <br />4 <br />