To: Board of County Commissioners
Through: Gini Pingenot, Director of Open Spaces
Prepared By:
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Glen Poole, Operations Manager, Open Space Departments
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presenter
Presenter: Glen Poole, Operations Manager, Open Spaces Department and David Anderson, Mile High Flood District
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Subject:
title
2:30 PM *High Line Canal Trail, Stormwater Transition and Management Plan Funding
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Purpose and Request:
recommended action
Arapahoe County and the Open Spaces Department acquired 45 miles of the High Line Canal property in June of 2024 from Denver Water. The Mile High Flood District (MHFD), the High Line Canal Conservancy (Conservancy), and the Canal Stormwater Technical Advisory Committee selected ICON Engineering to facilitate and develop a Storm Water Transition and Management Plan (STAMP Plan) for the High Line Canal. The STAMP Plan will serve to guide current and future storm water management and risk mitigation on the High Line Canal.
Open Spaces and a staff member from Mile High Flood District (MHFD) will present a joint project request for $150,000 dollars to assist in funding the STAMP Plan. The total cost for the STAMP Plan is expected to be $657,500, Arapahoe County’s $150,000 share represents 22% of the total cost of the STAMP Plan.
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Background and Discussion: The High Line Canal is a 71-mile historic irrigation canal, recreational trail, and linear natural area. In addition to serving as a regional recreational amenity and ecological resource, many sections of the High Line Canal receive inflows of stormwater and provide stormwater conveyance capacity as part of the regions stormwater management system. The MHFD, Denver Water, the High Line Canal Conservancy, and local agency partners have worked together since 2014 to formalize the Canal’s use for stormwater management and conveyance.
Given the recent transfer of ownership of significant portions of the High Line Canal to Arapahoe County, the County and the Canal Collaborative jointly determined the need to complete a canal-wide model refinement and jurisdiction-specific planning effort to support current and future management of the stormwater functions of the High Line Canal. The STAMP planning effort will be led by the MHFD in cooperation with local agency partners. The STAMP planning process will engage the following stormwater managers within Arapahoe County: the City of Littleton, South East Metro Stormwater Authority (SEMSWA), Greenwood Village, Cherry Hills Village, and the City of Aurora. The STAMP Plan will incorporate all previous planning efforts along with newly refined information to become the central planning document used to guide stormwater management in the Canal.
The plan will provide the following deliverables:
1. Canal wide stormwater management plan;
2. Jurisdiction Specific stormwater planning reports with operations / maintenance recommendations and a prioritized capital improvement plan;
3. Updated existing conditions models; and
4. Proposed new jurisdiction specific condition models Interface with the Natural Resource Management Plan Geospatial files;
The MHFD is leading the planning process for the STAMP Plan and will also be facilitating the project management of the STAMP Plan.
The MHFD advertised a Request for Proposals (RFP) to hire a consultant to develop the STAMP Plan and selected the partnership of ICON Engineering, RESPEC, and Matrix Group as the consultant team for the project. The consultant team has scheduled 18 months to complete the STAMP Plan and its associated engagement process.
The MHFD has requested funds from all High Line Canal Collaborative partners to support the stormwater planning project. MHFD has committed $250,000 to fund the STAMP. The following partners: Denver Water, Highlands Ranch Metro District, City of Littleton, SEMSWA, Greenwood Village, Cherry Hills Village, City and County of Denver, and the City of Aurora are expected to contribute a combined total of $257,500 toward the planning effort.
As a new owner of the Canal, Arapahoe County would like to provide a portion of the funding to support the STAMP Plan. The total project cost is expected to be $657,500 with Arapahoe County contributing $150,000 dollars (approximately 22% of the budget). The Arapahoe County Open Space Department along with the County’s Public Works Department are a strong proponent for the development of the STAMP Plan. As a component of the County being a new owner of the High Line Canal, the County will take over management of the stormwater agreements that govern the County owned portions of the High Line Canal.
The STAMP Plan will serve as a guide for County departments and our stormwater partners in the mitigation of risk, improvement of water quality, and the sustainable management of stormwater within the Canal in the future. The STAMP Plan will provide guidance for the County and its partners in establishing canal maintenance standards for water conveyance, balancing between landscape enhancement strategies and water conveyance goals, stormwater infrastructure capital improvements, and in establishing future stormwater management leases. These are the outcomes the County hopes to complete during the two-year transition period, setting Arapahoe County up for success with managing the County owned portions of the High Line Canal.
Fiscal Impact: The Open Space Acquisition and Development Fund would support the $150,000 STAMP Plan Funding request. The fund balance is sufficient to sustainably support this joint project request
Alternatives: Approve, modify, or deny the recommended STAMP Plan funding request. .
Alignment with Strategic Plan:
☒Be fiscally sustainable
☐Provide essential and mandated service
☒Be community focused
Staff Recommendation: Open Spaces staff recommends BOCC approval of the joint project funding request of $150,000 from the $4 million-dollar High Line Canal Working Group pledge within the Open Space Acquisition and Development Fund to support the High Line Canal Stormwater Transition and Management Plan.
Concurrence: On August 26th, 2024, the Open Space and Trails Advisory Board recommended the BOCC approve the joint project funding request to support the STAMP Plan for the High Line Canal. The following County Departments concur with this funding request as well: Public Works and Development and County Attorney’s Office.