Denver South Platte River Committee Meeting: Wastewater Enterprise Fund Briefing and Consent Approval - August 26, 2026

The South Platte River Committee of the Denver City Council met on Wednesday, August 26, 2026. Minutes list the meeting at 1:30 PM. Present: Chair Jamie Torres, Vice Chair Kevin Flynn, and members Flor Alvidrez, Chris Hinds, Amanda Sandoval, and Darrell Watson; Diana Romero Campbell was absent. The committee received Council Presentation 26-1222, a briefing on the Wastewater Enterprise Fund, and approved one consent item, Council Bill 26-1210.

Consent Calendar

• Council Bill 26-1210: Approved by consent. Amends an intergovernmental agreement with the Urban Drainage and Flood Control District, doing business as the Mile High Flood District (MHFD), to add $8,550,000 in MHFD funds and $4,200,000 in City funds, bringing the new total to $42,468,816.59, to design and construct drainage and flood control improvements for the Globeville Levee Project from 31st Street to East 50th Avenue in Council District 9. The agreement term is unchanged. Reference: DOTI-202054890/DOTI-202685164-06.

Discussion Items

Wastewater Enterprise Fund Briefing - Council Presentation 26-1222

Elena McGorder, DOTI data liaison, and Jennifer Williams, DOTI engineer, presented the briefing; Bruce Hernick and Peter Spanzer also answered committee questions.

• The Wastewater Enterprise Fund was established in 1966 under the Denver Revised Municipal Code to protect, preserve, and promote the health, safety, and welfare of residents by preventing water and stream pollution.
• DOTI manages stormwater and sanitary sewer systems, green infrastructure, waterways, operations and maintenance, and development services. Its stormwater system includes 1,000 miles of pipe and 50 miles of waterway; the sanitary system includes 1,500 miles of pipe, 35,000 manholes, and seven lift stations.
• DOTI conveys sanitary flow to Metro Water Recovery, which treats wastewater and recovers resources. Presenters said DOTI will pay just shy of $80 million for Metro Water Recovery sanitary services next year, billed on flow and loading.
• Three main investment areas are stormwater improvements, sanitary system improvements, and green infrastructure. 2026 projects include Weir Gulch, the Globeville Levee and 48th Avenue Greenway, Tower Road rehabilitation, citywide pipe lining, and SWIFT green infrastructure installations.
• The 2026 budget includes about $64 million in capital spending and about $80 million for the Metro Water Recovery fee. Revenue sources include a sanitary sewer fee of about $150 million and a storm fee of about $95 million. A typical residence pays about $200 per year for the storm fee, billed twice yearly; sanitary fees average about $30 per month on Denver Water bills and are based on winter usage.
• Flood risk reduction priorities include roughly 5,000 structures citywide in mapped floodplains, fewer than 500 on Weir Gulch, more than 1,200 associated with Harvard Gulch, and about 10 square miles in Upper Montclair without an open waterway. The Storm Drainage Master Plan was adopted in 2025 and is updated every five years by code.

Committee members raised questions and positions:

• Councilwoman Flor Alvidrez noted frequent flooding in District 7 and asked why the Valverde outfall and Sanderson Gulch were not in the presentation. Presenters said DOTI is working with MHFD on a Valverde outfall systems plan and that a community meeting with the Ruby Hill RNO is pending for Sanderson Gulch. Alvidrez asked for a more detailed update and offered to partner on the Sanderson Gulch work. She also asked how flooding is detected when residents do not call 311 and how beaver habitat will be addressed; DOTI said it tracks resident complaints and works with Denver Parks and Recreation on habitat.
• Councilman Kevin Flynn asked how partial payments are credited between stormwater and sidewalk fees. Peter Spanzer said payments are applied first to the stormwater bill because of outstanding stormwater bonds; a new billing system may change that. Arrears are monitored, and liens generally are triggered after a balance exceeds $200 and is more than 90 days past due.
• Councilwoman Amanda Sandoval asked about master plan updates and then criticized the lack of development/impact fee updates. She said the city tied resident fees to consumer price indexing in 2015 while DOTI impact fees have not been updated since 1996, and she encouraged DOTI to bring fee schedule updates in 2027. Presenters said the impact fee update is on the radar and being discussed with the Department of Finance.
• Councilman Darrell Watson thanked DOTI for work that reduced flooding in Park Hill and Five Points, including green infrastructure. He then asked for a high-level Globeville Levee update; Bruce Hernick said the project is about 50 percent complete, with the north half in construction and the south half in design, and likely two to three more years of construction.
• Councilman Chris Hinds asked about utility work, citing Denver Water and Xcel work on the 1100 block of Acoma that may have caused street pooling, and about dry soil after the Denver Water Board voted to restrict lawn watering after September 30. Presenters said they would take the Acoma issue back to the team; Jennifer Williams noted that SWIFT green infrastructure helps slow runoff and improve soil absorption.
• Chair Jamie Torres asked for a follow-up on Valverde and clarified that language about removing structures from the floodplain means reducing flood risk, not physically removing homes. Jennifer Williams apologized for the wording and said fewer than 500 structures are in the Weir Gulch floodplain. Torres also mentioned volunteer debris cleanups and encampment issues along Weir Gulch.
• Councilwoman Alvidrez raised the drying of Houston Lake after a Salisbury lateral break; neighbors formed Friends of Houston Lake and are planning a town hall. DOTI said it has been working behind the scenes with Parks and will follow up with an accurate answer about the lake's relationship to stormwater.

Key Outcomes

• Council Bill 26-1210 was approved by consent; no other action items were before the committee.
• The Wastewater Enterprise Fund briefing was informational; no formal action was taken on Council Presentation 26-1222.
• Committee members requested follow-up from DOTI on a detailed Valverde update, the Sanderson Gulch community meeting, the Houston Lake town hall, utility-related drainage concerns on Acoma, and developer impact fee modernization. Chair Torres said the committee would like to see a follow-up on the developer impact fee, which she called long-overdue low-hanging fruit.